Shopping on line can be easy, simple and save you lots of money. It can also take a lot of your time, frustrate you, and result in unwanted purchases. Now the same can be said for regular high street shopping, but with the vast opportunity presented by the Internet it will pay you to spend a few minutes reading this and understanding how to better optimize your Gamestop shopping experience:
1. Compare - without doubt the biggest advantage that the Gamestop offers shoppers today is the ability to compare thousands of Gamestop at a time. This is a great thing, but not necessarily all the time! Too much can be daunting at times so take advantage of the great comparison sites and where possible let them do the hard work for you.
2. Research - if it has been said it will be on the internet. Ignorance is no longer a justifiable reason for buying the wrong thing. Take the time to research in detail everything that you could possible want to know about
3. Testimonials - don't know anybody that has bought a Gamestop? Wrong! If the Gamestop is good the internet will let you know. Use the Internet as a friend and get testimonials before you buy.
4. Questions - Got a question about Gamestop then search the Forums, FAQ's, Blogs etc. Don't be afraid to ask .....
5. Reputation - Never heard of the company selling Gamestop? Don't worry, no reason why you should know every company in the world, but you know someone that does! Use the internet to find out what people are saying about Gamestop and build up a picture of their reputation for sales, returns, customer service, delivery etc.
6. Returns - still worried that even after all of the above your Gamestop wont be what you want? Check out the returns policy. There is so much competition now that someone, somewhere is bound to offer the terms that you are comfortable with.
7. Feedback - happy with your Gamestop then let people know, after all you are depending on others people input in your buying decision, so why not give a little back.
8. Security - check for the yellow padlock on the Gamestop site before you buy, and the s after http:/ /i.e. https:// = a secure site
9. Contact - got a question about Gamestop, or want to leave a comment then check out the sites contact page. Reputable companies have them and respond.
10. Payment - ready to pay for your Gamestop, then use your credit card or PayPal! Be aware of companies that don't accept them, there may be genuine reasons but given the huge amount of choice you have when buying online there is no reason at all not to buy via credit card or PayPal.
{{Infobox Company || company_name = GameStop Corporation| company_logo = image:Gamestop.png ()| foundation = 1984 (as
Babbage's)| location = [Grapevine, Texas,
United States| key_people = Dick Fontaine (Chairman, CEO), Daniel A. Dematteo (Vice-Chairman, COO), David W. Carlson (CFO), Steve Morgan (President)| industry = Electronics Stores| products =| revenue = $5.56 billion
United States dollar (
2007)], a suburb of Dallas, is the world's largest
video game and entertainment software retailer. The company operates over 4,900 retail stores throughout Japan, U.S., Canada,
Republic of Ireland,
United Kingdom,
Australia,
Denmark,
Finland, Germany, Italy, New Zealand,
Norway, Spain,
Austria, Puerto Rico , Switzerland and Sweden.
Retail stores operate primarily under the
GameStop and
EB Games brands but also operate under
Software Etc.,
E.B.X.,
Babbage's,
FuncoLand,
MovieStop and
Rhino Video Games. In addition, the company runs two ecommerce websites, GameStop.com and EBgames.com, and also Game Informer magazine, a leading video and computer game publication. In addition to video and computer games, GameStop sells magazines,
strategy guides, entertainment
DVDs and other related merchandise, along with buying used games and movies from its customers. A new store concept called MovieStop, which focuses on selling movies rather than games, is currently building and operating stores in the Southeastern
United States, including the Dallas area.
History
Babbage's and Software Etc.
GameStop traces its roots to Babbage's, a mall software retailer that started in Dallas, Texas in 1983. The movements that made Babbage's into GameStop started in 1994 with a series of mergers. The first was with Software Etc. in 1994, the second was with Funcoland stores in 2000, and the third was with Electronics Boutique (now
EB Games) in 2005, taking four competing, major mall software retailers and placing them under a single corporate umbrella.
When Babbage's merged with another mall software retailer, Software Etc., in 1994 the combined company was named NeoStar Retail, but the two halves continued to operate as if they were separate entities.
The combined management of the newly formed entity developed a classic case of the right hand not knowing what the left was doing. This ultimately caused NeoStar to go into Chapter 11 reorganization in early fall of 1996. At this point the company had approximately 800 stores in the United States. Several potential buyers of NeoStar's assets emerged. One of the potential buyers was
Electronics Boutique.
Leonard Riggio
On the last day of the manager's conference there was a special guest during lunch.
Leonard Riggio, the head of Barnes & Noble, announced that he and a group of investors were going to put in place the financing to keep the company afloat, and get new merchandise into the stores in time for Christmas. (At this point, the company's creditors were owed so much back revenue that they were no longer shipping anything to NeoStar.) Riggio and his investors would also be making a buyout offer to the bankruptcy court in the coming week.
In a personal comment during the address, Riggio stated that he "hated" the name Neostar Retail, and thought that the merged Babbage's/Software Etc. should have been called Babbage's Etc. He said should his buyout bid be successful, and he was boldly confident it would be, that the company would be renamed.
From the potential buyers, the judge desired to accept the offer from the one that would keep the most people working and preserve the most competition, consumer choice, and be the most stable. Ultimately Riggio's offer was accepted on the day before Thanksgiving. Barnes and Noble, through B. Dalton, was the original owner of Software Etc. A new management team largely composed of former Software Etc. executives, and long time associates of Len Riggio was put in place to run Babbage's Etc.
1996 Closures
The day after Thanksgiving 1996 approximately 100 Babbage's and Software Etc. stores were closed. The remaining merchandise from these stores was shipped to 100 of the remaining stores that would participate in a massive 'going out of business' sale throughout December. These 100 stores would close for the last time on Christmas Eve, and all merchandise left would be shipped back to corporate headquarters by New Year's Eve. The company would be pared back to about 600 of its best performing stores.
The newly-streamlined and reorganized company performed better than anyone could have expected. The turn around was dramatic. By February 1997 there was already talk of reopening several of the closed stores. Many of the stores reopened and moved into the same space they had left only months before, dramatically saving on opening costs. They only needed to be repopulated with fixtures, equipment and merchandise, the counters and walls of the vacated store still being in place as the malls had not yet rented to them to new permanent tenants that would have renovated the space. Along the same lines, a majority of the store's former aromatic staff was simply put back in place or rehired.
Acquisition by Barnes & Noble
When Funco, Inc. (operator of FuncoLand stores) was acquired by
Barnes & Noble in 2000, there was a corporate restructuring, and Babbage's Etc. became a wholly owned subsidiary of Funco. The name at that time was changed to GameStop, Inc.
In 2002, GameStop bought out the Gamesworld franchise in the
Republic of Ireland and immediately took control of their 10 stores; the company now operates at over 40 locations in the country.
On November 12, 2004, GameStop spin-off from Barnes & Noble. Due to Riggio's involvement, GameStop and Barnes & Noble employees still receive employee discounts at each other's stores, despite the companies being completely separate.
Buy out of EB Games
GameStop and EB Games announced on April 18, 2005, that they had entered into a "definitive agreement and plan of merger". After shareholders and US regulatory agencies approved it, the merger closed on
October 10 of that year. Due to the impending holiday season, virtually no customer-noticeable changes were made until 2006. After the new year started, however, integration of the two companies was ramped up, starting with the realignment of districts and the closure of EB's West Chester, PA headquarters. Through the spring and summer, GameStop stores transitioned to the EB Games' Windows-based POS (Point of Sale) system, which replaced GameStop's aging MS-DOS-based program. As of the end of 2006, the remaining differences between individual stores are primarily a function of stores' interior design and layouts, based on when they were built and what company owned them at the time. Both EB Games and GameStop stores have several distinct designs.
While most of the marketing aesthetic has been retained from the EB Games side of operations, policy changes throughout 2006 were a mixture of what corporate had determined were best practices from both sides of the company. Things such as the policy of allowing a single employee to close the store (in contrast to GameStop's former policy of there always being at least two people present at close) were introduced to GameStop, while merchandise checkout, a GameStop policy, was brought to EB Games.
On
January 4, 2007 GameStop Corp. officially purchased Rhino Video Games from
Blockbuster (movie rental store) and the stores were renamed GameStop.
The EB Edge Card and Game Informer Magazine
Gamestop offers the Edge Card when one subscribes to
Game Informer Magazine, which is touted by employees to be the "Number one game magazine in the country". In regards to sales, this much is true. With the Edge Card, the value of items traded in for store credit is increased by 10%, and it decreases the cost of used items by 10% (in both cases, video game systems are excluded). The increase/discount is often able to be combined with other offers, such as Buy Two Get One Free. This deal is available for $14.99 for 12 months, and is offered to everyone showing interest in making a purchase.
Reservations
GameStop allows customers to reserve many future releases that have an estimated release date by leaving a deposit. The minimum is typically $5.00, but can vary. Typically systems and other forms of hardware (Microsoft Zune for instance) will have higher required deposits. All money applied to the deposit is applied to the purchase therefore technically making the reservation free. GameStop has recently started experimenting with requiring a $10 deposit on titles in an attempt to increase the percentage of titles picked up by customers who have placed reservations.
Also, customers are able to make payments on the game and even pay it off before its release. The customer can claim their reserved game upon release day, and the 2 business days following the release day. If the customer does not pick up their reserve in that time frame, the money can either be refunded, moved to another reservation or if extra copies of the game are availabe placed towards the purchase of the desired game. For reasons such as anti-theft, conservation of space,and display purposes at least one copy of every new game is opened, with the contents removed from the case and placed in an organized drawer, while the empty game case itself is placed on the shelf. Upon request, employees will reseal or shrinkwrap your opened copy of the game, though some collectors would not consider these games "new". The games are also guaranteed to work and have never been played; preorders usually are not affected.
MovieStop
MovieStop is a store that focuses on selling movies rather than games, with a structure similar to that of a GameStop. They buy, sell, and trade movies. MovieStop offers a vast array of movies, both used and new. As of October 2007 there are 31 MovieStop stores nationwide, including those in Alabama, Virginia, Georgia, Massachusetts and Florida. Also, similar to GameStop's policy with games, customers do not need a case to return DVDs.
References
External links
- GameStop official website
{{Infobox Company || company_name = GameStop Corporation| company_logo =
image:Gamestop.png ()| foundation = 1984 (as Babbage's)| location = [Grapevine, Texas,
United States| key_people = Dick Fontaine (Chairman, CEO), Daniel A. Dematteo (Vice-Chairman, COO), David W. Carlson (CFO), Steve Morgan (President)| industry = Electronics Stores| products =| revenue = $5.56 billion United States dollar (
2007)], a suburb of
Dallas, is the world's largest video game and entertainment software retailer. The company operates over 4,900 retail stores throughout
Japan, U.S., Canada, Republic of Ireland,
United Kingdom,
Australia, Denmark,
Finland,
Germany,
Italy, New Zealand,
Norway,
Spain, Austria,
Puerto Rico ,
Switzerland and
Sweden.
Retail stores operate primarily under the
GameStop and
EB Games brands but also operate under
Software Etc.,
E.B.X.,
Babbage's,
FuncoLand,
MovieStop and
Rhino Video Games. In addition, the company runs two ecommerce websites, GameStop.com and EBgames.com, and also
Game Informer magazine, a leading video and computer game publication. In addition to video and computer games, GameStop sells
magazines,
strategy guides, entertainment DVDs and other related merchandise, along with buying used games and movies from its customers. A new store concept called MovieStop, which focuses on selling movies rather than games, is currently building and operating stores in the Southeastern
United States, including the Dallas area.
History
Babbage's and Software Etc.
GameStop traces its roots to
Babbage's, a mall software retailer that started in Dallas, Texas in 1983. The movements that made Babbage's into GameStop started in 1994 with a series of mergers. The first was with Software Etc. in 1994, the second was with Funcoland stores in 2000, and the third was with Electronics Boutique (now
EB Games) in 2005, taking four competing, major mall software retailers and placing them under a single corporate umbrella.
When Babbage's merged with another mall software retailer, Software Etc., in 1994 the combined company was named NeoStar Retail, but the two halves continued to operate as if they were separate entities.
The combined management of the newly formed entity developed a classic case of the right hand not knowing what the left was doing. This ultimately caused NeoStar to go into Chapter 11 reorganization in early fall of 1996. At this point the company had approximately 800 stores in the United States. Several potential buyers of NeoStar's assets emerged. One of the potential buyers was
Electronics Boutique.
Leonard Riggio
On the last day of the manager's conference there was a special guest during lunch.
Leonard Riggio, the head of Barnes & Noble, announced that he and a group of investors were going to put in place the financing to keep the company afloat, and get new merchandise into the stores in time for Christmas. (At this point, the company's creditors were owed so much back revenue that they were no longer shipping anything to NeoStar.) Riggio and his investors would also be making a buyout offer to the bankruptcy court in the coming week.
In a personal comment during the address, Riggio stated that he "hated" the name Neostar Retail, and thought that the merged Babbage's/Software Etc. should have been called Babbage's Etc. He said should his buyout bid be successful, and he was boldly confident it would be, that the company would be renamed.
From the potential buyers, the judge desired to accept the offer from the one that would keep the most people working and preserve the most competition, consumer choice, and be the most stable. Ultimately Riggio's offer was accepted on the day before Thanksgiving. Barnes and Noble, through B. Dalton, was the original owner of Software Etc. A new management team largely composed of former Software Etc. executives, and long time associates of Len Riggio was put in place to run Babbage's Etc.
1996 Closures
The day after Thanksgiving 1996 approximately 100 Babbage's and Software Etc. stores were closed. The remaining merchandise from these stores was shipped to 100 of the remaining stores that would participate in a massive 'going out of business' sale throughout December. These 100 stores would close for the last time on Christmas Eve, and all merchandise left would be shipped back to corporate headquarters by New Year's Eve. The company would be pared back to about 600 of its best performing stores.
The newly-streamlined and reorganized company performed better than anyone could have expected. The turn around was dramatic. By February 1997 there was already talk of reopening several of the closed stores. Many of the stores reopened and moved into the same space they had left only months before, dramatically saving on opening costs. They only needed to be repopulated with fixtures, equipment and merchandise, the counters and walls of the vacated store still being in place as the malls had not yet rented to them to new permanent tenants that would have renovated the space. Along the same lines, a majority of the store's former aromatic staff was simply put back in place or rehired.
Acquisition by Barnes & Noble
When Funco, Inc. (operator of FuncoLand stores) was acquired by Barnes & Noble in
2000, there was a corporate restructuring, and Babbage's Etc. became a wholly owned subsidiary of Funco. The name at that time was changed to GameStop, Inc.
In
2002, GameStop bought out the Gamesworld franchise in the
Republic of Ireland and immediately took control of their 10 stores; the company now operates at over 40 locations in the country.
On
November 12,
2004, GameStop spin-off from Barnes & Noble. Due to Riggio's involvement, GameStop and Barnes & Noble employees still receive employee discounts at each other's stores, despite the companies being completely separate.
Buy out of EB Games
GameStop and EB Games announced on
April 18,
2005, that they had entered into a "definitive agreement and plan of merger". After shareholders and US regulatory agencies approved it, the merger closed on October 10 of that year. Due to the impending holiday season, virtually no customer-noticeable changes were made until 2006. After the new year started, however, integration of the two companies was ramped up, starting with the realignment of districts and the closure of EB's West Chester, PA headquarters. Through the spring and summer, GameStop stores transitioned to the EB Games'
Windows-based POS (Point of Sale) system, which replaced GameStop's aging MS-DOS-based program. As of the end of
2006, the remaining differences between individual stores are primarily a function of stores' interior design and layouts, based on when they were built and what company owned them at the time. Both EB Games and GameStop stores have several distinct designs.
While most of the marketing aesthetic has been retained from the EB Games side of operations, policy changes throughout
2006 were a mixture of what corporate had determined were best practices from both sides of the company. Things such as the policy of allowing a single employee to close the store (in contrast to GameStop's former policy of there always being at least two people present at close) were introduced to GameStop, while merchandise checkout, a GameStop policy, was brought to EB Games.
On January 4,
2007 GameStop Corp. officially purchased Rhino Video Games from
Blockbuster (movie rental store) and the stores were renamed GameStop.
The EB Edge Card and Game Informer Magazine
Gamestop offers the Edge Card when one subscribes to
Game Informer Magazine, which is touted by employees to be the "Number one game magazine in the country". In regards to sales, this much is true. With the Edge Card, the value of items traded in for store credit is increased by 10%, and it decreases the cost of used items by 10% (in both cases, video game systems are excluded). The increase/discount is often able to be combined with other offers, such as Buy Two Get One Free. This deal is available for $14.99 for 12 months, and is offered to everyone showing interest in making a purchase.
Reservations
GameStop allows customers to reserve many future releases that have an estimated release date by leaving a deposit. The minimum is typically $5.00, but can vary. Typically systems and other forms of hardware (Microsoft
Zune for instance) will have higher required deposits. All money applied to the deposit is applied to the purchase therefore technically making the reservation free. GameStop has recently started experimenting with requiring a $10 deposit on titles in an attempt to increase the percentage of titles picked up by customers who have placed reservations.
Also, customers are able to make payments on the game and even pay it off before its release. The customer can claim their reserved game upon release day, and the 2 business days following the release day. If the customer does not pick up their reserve in that time frame, the money can either be refunded, moved to another reservation or if extra copies of the game are availabe placed towards the purchase of the desired game. For reasons such as anti-theft, conservation of space,and display purposes at least one copy of every new game is opened, with the contents removed from the case and placed in an organized drawer, while the empty game case itself is placed on the shelf. Upon request, employees will reseal or shrinkwrap your opened copy of the game, though some collectors would not consider these games "new". The games are also guaranteed to work and have never been played; preorders usually are not affected.
MovieStop
MovieStop is a store that focuses on selling movies rather than games, with a structure similar to that of a GameStop. They buy, sell, and trade movies. MovieStop offers a vast array of movies, both used and new. As of
October 2007 there are 31 MovieStop stores nationwide, including those in Alabama, Virginia, Georgia, Massachusetts and Florida. Also, similar to GameStop's policy with games, customers do not need a case to return DVDs.
References
External links
- GameStop official website
Gamestop.com - Buy PS3, PS2, PSP, Wii, DS, Xbox 360, Used, PC Games ...
Nationwide retailer of computer and console video games, both used and new, as well as action figures and peripherals for several gaming platforms.
Gamestop.com - Buy PS3, PS2, PSP, Wii, DS, Xbox 360, Used, PC Games ...
GameStop has a huge selection of new and used games at fantastic prices. Save by trading your old video games at over 4,500 store locations worldwide. Shop online at GameStop.com ...
GameStop.ie
Guitar Hero: On Tour This portable version features the same rhythm-based "play to the music" gameplay of the console game, and will even have its own peripheral to get the job ...
GameStop.ie
Store Locator Select a city below to find the GameStop store closest to you. Don't forget to call and check our in-store specials!
GameStop - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
GameStop Corporation (NYSE: GME), whose headquarters are in Grapevine, Texas (a suburb of Dallas) is the world's largest video game and entertainment software retailer.
foyleside -:- Store - GameStop
back to Foyleside Stores view Next Store »
GameStop launches TV network - news - www.mcvuk.com
Retailer teams up with CBS to bring GameStop TV to over 4,000 outlets US retail giant GameStop has launched a new TV channel in associat...
GameStop plans UK invasion - news - www.mcvuk.com
It was surely only a matter of time before the worlds largest specialist games retailer turned its attentions back to Europe. And 2006 looks se...
GameStop Careers :: FAQ
Q: How can I apply for hourly retail opportunities? A: You may obtain an application at any GameStop location or download the application. Then visit GameStop locations that most ...
Gamestop
Find My Company locations... Powered by MapQuest.
