1# Insider Info: boardgame inventors, retailers & suppliers

Toy Sales may have fallen this year, but party and board game sales are growing.

The New York Times reported on Dec. 13 that sales of board games rose 23 percent through October. The Times cited figures compiled by the NPD Group, the research firm based in Port Washington, NY, which noted that total sales of board games by all retailers totaled about $375 million in 1999.

It's quite a turnaround considering that five years ago, "board games languished in the shadow of the brisk sales of video games. But in 1999, the sales growth of video games began to slow while board game sales rose sharply," stated the article.

It attributed the sales growth to a few key factors, including new licensing agreements (Pokemon, Monopoly and Who Wants to Be A Millionaire) and the fact that Americans have been looking for more social forms of entertainment. Games are filling the bill.

Mattel increased the number of new board games it issued this year by 50 percent, releasing 21 titles including The Harry Potter Trivia Game and ThinkBlot, a new game by the inventor of Pictionary.

Steve Benoff, the buyer for F.A.O. Schwartz, reported that classic games were selling much faster this Christmas than last. In fact, he had to reorder additional supplies of Monopoly, Scrabble and Life - first introduced in 1935, 1948, and 1960.

While the big manufacturers and stores report sales growth, how is the specialty market affected? Are new games, and new game concepts, selling as well as the classic games appear to be?

"We've definitely seen a jump," said Joe Miccio, founder of Amerigames International, makers of the "quick games" - QuickChess, Checkers, Backgammon, Parchisi, and Quick Tac-Toe. "We saw about a 50 percent increase in the number of games that we sold." Amerigames sells specialty game and educational stores, as well as independent toy stores and specialty toy chain stores.

While Amerigames International, which celebrates its tenth anniversary this year, can point to different marketing and distribution strategies as contributing to its growth in sales, Joe also noticed that board games, card games, and other activities that call for interaction and socialization are experiencing a resurgence.

"The response that I'm getting from store owners is that people are looking for activities that best use their time, and best use their children's time," said Joe. "They don't want their kids to spend the majority of their time doing mindless things. They prefer to learn, and they prefer interaction as opposed to isolation. The remarks that I'm hearing point to the fact that people are enjoying games for social reasons."

Joe said that people are really just starting to realize the problems that have been creeping up with too much TV, too much Internet, and too many video games. "It's gotten to the point where you can easily count the positives and negatives of each - it's gotten more specific, less speculative. Parents, in particular, are able to focus on what they think is good for their family, for their children. Games by their very nature have you interacting with other people. Plus you have fun when you're doing it."

When I asked if he thought classic games were selling better than new games, Joe pointed out that it was hard for him to say, since the games his company manufactures are classic, but they also offer a new twist. "The Quick Games have three important options, or characteristics, that people are looking for today. First, it's a classic game. You can play the full version Chess, or of Checkers. But the second option is the quick version. That's the new twist. It lets you play at different levels of ability - and quickly - and kids really enjoy that. There's Power Pawns with just the pawns and King's Conquest with just the kings.

"But the third factor of these games is their teaching factor," noted Joe. "Kids are learning how to play the traditional games. The educational factor is something that's in demand today and will continue to be in demand in the future."

January/February 2001