Suppliers refusing to serve game

Page last updated at 15:33 GMT, Monday, 12 March 2012
Suppliers refusing to serve Game
Struggling video games retailer Game Group has confirmed that a number of its suppliers are now refusing to do business with the company, sending its shares down 68%.

Game said that while it was trying to resolve the matter "as quickly as possible", it was unsure if its efforts would be successful.

Some analysts say Game may fail to pay a quarterly rent bill later this month.

This increases the possibility of the company going into administration.

Earlier this month, Game secured a fresh lending deal with its banks, but this has failed to impress its suppliers.

Game said in a statement on Monday: "It is uncertain whether any of the solutions currently being explored by the board will be successful, or will result in any value being attributed to the shares of the company."

One company that is refusing to supply Game is Electronic Arts. This has meant that Game has not been able to stock some of the biggest-selling games, including Mass Effect 3.

Game's chief executive Ian Shepherd later tweeted: "Very tough time for all our teams around the world. We fight on, though.

"Plenty still to do, customer support humbling as always."

Poor Christmas

Game has seen its business eroded by competition from online-only retailers, such as Steam and Amazon.

The company, with headquarters in Basingstoke, has 1,300 stores worldwide, including 600 in the UK, trading under the Game and Gamestation brands.

Both Game and Gamestation also have an online presence, as does the firm's third internet-only brand, Gameplay.

Its group-wide sales for the key Christmas period fell sharply, dropping 12.9% from a year earlier on a like-for-like basis.

It is now predicting an underlying pre-tax loss of about £18m for the year to the end of January.

Game traces his itself back to 1992, when a company called Rhino Group was established.

In 1995 its stores were rebranded as Electronics Boutique, with the Game name following in 2002.

Analysts say Game is now looking for a suitor, with US rival Gamestop being named as the leading candidate.

However, analyst Mark Photiades of Singer Capital Markets said no buyer was expected to come forward before any move by Game into administration.

"We suspect that any potential suitor would prefer to wait for a formal administration process," he said.

"Through a pre-pack, the suitor would have much greater flexibility around store liabilities."

Taken from Bbc news

How has steam hammered games sales? Game hardly stock PC games.

The main factors in their downfall are, bad management of their own company, overpricing, bad reputation and being obsessed with preowned games which places like CEX beat them every time on recently.

Spot on Simon

I also saw earlier that other games are not going to stocked now such as Operation Racoon City - last Friday, I heard Game staff asking people at the till if they wanted to preorder it so this is another hammer blow

If GAME was likened to the sinking of the Titanic there now arse end up waiting for the big crack down the middle to finish them off

FWG Rigor Mortice wrote: If GAME was likened to the sinking of the Titanic there now arse end up waiting for the big crack down the middle to finish them off

Haha on games part

FWG Rigor Mortice wrote: If GAME was likened to the sinking of the Titanic there now arse end up waiting for the big crack down the middle to finish them off

quality quote there steve .
personally not surprised as they cant seem to grasp that you can get these games so much cheaper on ebay or something similar
new and old you would think someone in the company would stand up and say look we are not selling due to being over
bloody priced.it is that simple me thinks

Game's biggest mistake was focusing on pre-owned games. Seems like they bought so many that thay had to keep prices up of new games to cover the cost. The last time I went in Game the pre-owned section for 360 games was bigger than the new game sections of both the 360 and the PS3 combined.

They should've left the pre-owned market (except maybe trade-ins) to CEX and the little independant shops that are now all but extinct.

My local GAME is exactly the same Pais. Huge preowned section tiny new section

at the moment my game and gamestation consists of 1 shelf of new with about 5 or 6 new games and the rest of the shop pre owned

seems like a case of to big for ones boots
shame really a lot of people could lose there jobs which in this current time aint good

The Game Store opposite my office in Leeds has to to let sign up.

It looks like the end is near.............................

Microsoft have cut ties with GAME today aswell.....

I also saw a sign in the Gamestation window offering 35 quid trade in on ME3!!