GAME is closing all its stand-alone stores (stock image) (Image: Getty)
As a retailer which was formerly a staple of high streets across Britain shuts the doors of all its remaining branches, one woman has illustrated how this might present a chance to earn some additional money. Last month GAME confirmed all its standalone UK high street shops would shut as it entered administration.
The business is one of only a few remaining physical gaming retailers still trading as the gaming industry shifts increasingly towards digital purchases. The firm’s three surviving shops in Lancaster, Sutton, and Dudley’s Merry Hill shopping centre will shut their doors, though 200 concessions in outlets of Sports Direct and House of Fraser, alongside its online shop, will continue. Charlotte Gough, who has more than 38,000 followers on Instagram, where she offers useful advice on earning money through selling products on Amazon, illustrated how the closure presents a chance to generate some additional income.
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In a clip shared to the social media site, she stated: “GAME has gone bust, and, with all of its locations shutting in the UK there are hundreds of clearance deals to be had.” Charlotte displayed the shelves of a GAME concession inside a Sports Direct outlet, stocked with items bearing reduced stickers on them, including a copy of Grand Theft Auto V for the Xbox Series X, marked down from £29.99 to £20.
She continued: “With most of their stores residing within Sports Direct, the once game sections now look like this, with heavily reduced items to clear stock fast. There’s so much up for grabs, like this Mario LEGO set, which I can make £30 profit when selling on Amazon.”
While GAME had traditionally stocked video games, consoles and accessories, in recent years the retailer had broadened its range to include gaming-related merchandise such as toys, clothing and board games, reports the Mirror. Viewers were quick to share their thoughts in the comments section of Charlotte’s video.
One remarked: “You could tell Game was ending when they started selling more merch than games.” Another added: “They were always expensive as could find item elsewhere cheaper.”
A further commenter noted: “The thing is once supermarkets started selling games for cheaper, there wasn’t much point going to the high street stores. Then their pre-order bonuses became lacklustre, you hardly got any points on your reward card, and ordering from other online retailers was cheaper.
“For me there was no point to shop there. Finally, my local branch got put in right at the back of Sports Direct and that for me was a great reason to not even go in to browse.”
This represents the second time GAME has fallen into administration, having previously undergone the same process back in 2012. Mike Ashley’s Sports Direct rescued the gaming retailer as part of a £52 million bailout in 2019, with the parent company subsequently rebranding to Frasers Group that same year.
GAME’s managing director Nick Arran, who is also set to depart the company after nine years at the top, previously told GamesIndustry.biz in 2023: “Gaming is our core business and we will be [the] last man standing selling physical video games.” Yet market figures have revealed a seismic shift in the way gamers are purchasing their media.
Within the same report, Arran noted that digital game sales represented 45 per cent of the market — a figure that surged to 75 per cent in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, leaving the physical games market in a battle to recover that continues to this day.