NintendoAge

Store Credit

skinnygrinny — 2019-06-16T02:56:53 -05.00

Originally posted by: JamesRobot

In anticipation for the Vita, I dumped a boatload of mostly junk used CDs on Tradesmart and saved up enough credit to buy one on release day. Best trade I ever made. If it was a mom n pop, there's no way that would have went down.

And ya threw away the crap they wouldn’t take away in the trash outside the store.
You also got all those crap cds for free. So yeah, I’d say maybe the best trade of all time.
This probably needs its own thread.
just sayin’!

Store Credit

skinnygrinny — 2019-06-15T23:27:37 -05.00

Originally posted by: GCrites80s
edit: OK, one other exception... better PSX games -- we can always use those. But I have a suspicion that 75% of all PSX games sold have already been destroyed. You can't expect to have a large selection of the good stuff since they no longer exist.

Yeah, for what was the most popular console of its generation, with tons of "greatest hits" titles selling ridiculous numbers of copies, it's baffling that it's so hard to find any good original PSX games in "the wild" when compared to other platforms.

Store Credit

skinnygrinny — 2019-06-15T22:54:58 -05.00

I wouldn't be happy either, if I got store credit and then it wasn't allowed to be used on many items. As others have said, I think there are better workarounds to solve the problem, which stores could do, such as refusing to take some items or extremely low trade values, and these methods would sit much better with me than the way outlined in the first post.

Best way to increase value in crappy games? Bring back fullset mentality. Its become fashionable to cherry pick and only collect fun or rare games, but if more folks were doing full set again, a lot of other titles would be selling.

Store Credit

skinnygrinny — 2019-06-15T21:53:56 -05.00

For a long time we offered a straight percentage of sale price on all trades. People were bringing in way too much garbage under that system so we switched to the "bulk" system as seen in the trading card and comics industry since those products are very heavily weighted population-wise to low-end. As in 90-95% of all trading cards and comics on Earth are literally worth nothing and get the bulk rate. Under this system, all low-end crap under $5-12 retail gets anywhere from $.05 to $1.50 trade-in depending on how often it comes in and whether the we have put the games are on permanent BOGO or not (<$5 Game Boy and <$5 PSX games are examples of permanent BOGO at our stores). We had no idea about the bulk concept until we started doing trading cards. Every trading card and comic store does bulk. As the video game industry matured and the world discovered that video games wound up being just like TCGs and comics in that the population of existing games is heavily-weighted to low-end, the bulk concept needed to be introduced.

It would be interesting to see how badly the average price of games for any particular system on PriceCharting would tank if the graphs were weighted according to the existing population of games rather than just by assigning the number 1 to each title i.e. reflective of the fact that there are 100,000 SMB/DHs in existence for each NWC. If that was done the average price of an NES game would drop from $27 to around $5 I'd say.

Literally the only things my stores NEED right now are GameCube games, better N64 games and first-party Nintendo on most systems. One store is low on Wii games. Everything else on all systems takes care of itself with nearly unlimited supply always.

edit: OK, one other exception... better PSX games -- we can always use those. But I have a suspicion that 75% of all PSX games sold have already been destroyed. You can't expect to have a large selection of the good stuff since they no longer exist.

Store Credit

skinnygrinny — 2019-06-14T10:15:56 -05.00

The Game Center store at Yonge & Bloor (right by my office) is closing, and relocating to the Danforth location (they used to have two stores). If anyone has credit there best to get in and get it used. (I'm literally talking to nobody here I'm sure)

Store Credit

skinnygrinny — 2019-06-14T10:13:48 -05.00

In anticipation for the Vita, I dumped a boatload of mostly junk used CDs on Tradesmart and saved up enough credit to buy one on release day. Best trade I ever made. If it was a mom n pop, there's no way that would have went down.

Store Credit

skinnygrinny — 2019-06-14T09:38:01 -05.00

Honestly I dont really bother with brick and mortar game stores anymore. They are all almost certainly going to be higher then eBay and and if I cant use trade credit on the better stuff, why would I bother trading in the easy movers at 50% of there value when I could just sell them myself on eBay. I cant understand why a store would take in trade that they dont think they can sell. Its not like the customer is holding a gun to your head forcing you take there trade if its all junk.

Store Credit

skinnygrinny — 2019-06-14T06:52:20 -05.00

The economics of bulk jank seem clear. If the store cant sel it/ has enough just don't take it. Id they take it offer a low price. I know a local store offers 5 cents for sports games. Heck just look at game stop for a model.

Store Credit

skinnygrinny — 2019-06-14T00:29:22 -05.00

Originally posted by: DreamTR

Originally posted by: captmorgandrinker

Originally posted by: skinnygrinny

Originally posted by: DreamTR

Also, the op said it, he was trying to trade in crap to get something of highest value that attracts people. Store owners don't usually like that kind of trade.

I totally understand this. I’m not denying I was trying to trade up. But like you said just give me pennies or nothing. There is another store that will just tell me straight up they don’t want it. It’s a much better option imo.

Exactly. If people are trading in crap that you store guys are getting stuck with, then you either need to not take said crap in the first place (like scratched up discs) or offer something like a nickel in credit to where you're selling it in a quarter bin in your store (sports games, 2600 commons, etc). If somebody brings in enough of that bullshit to get them $100 in store credit, then you're still making $400 on the deal anyway.

Yes and no. If someone trades pure crap in it can sit for years and years at times. Believe me when I say if it does not sell in the store and isn't worth crap on ebay it's going to be bought for 5 cents if that. Most of the time we don't even pay for sports games anymore. Anyone paying $100 is not going to get their $400 immediately which is why it sucks to give $90 in credit for something that will sell cash wise most likely and then have to sit on the $90 in crap you bought for freaking ever.

Our solution has always been not offering a lot for stuff that is scratched, doesn't sell, etc. Very simple and the garage sale and ebay stuff that did not sell is not pawned off on me for Conker's Bad Fur Days.

I get where your coming from as a store owner. I would feel the same way. But I don’t think I would have a policy of cash only items if I have a store credit option.

I once asked a store owner “how do you deal with somebody trading in $100 worth of $5-$20 stuff and pulling Conkers bad fur day?”.

The store owner responded. we gave you the store credit. We took what we thought was good. We wouldn’t have given you the credit if we were afraid of what you would use it on.
This gave me two ideas. One, they don’t take crap that will sit and if they do they aren’t given anything for it. Two, they don’t put stuff out for sale if they arent willing to let it go for store credit.

I suppose I shouldn’t get upset at any store policy. It did surprise me at first. My original thought was that’s a shitty idea but... if you don’t like it , you can leave lol.

Store Credit

skinnygrinny — 2019-06-13T18:51:14 -05.00

Originally posted by: psychobear85

I'm surprised that some stores take in crap games that will sit for a long time or forever.

I have been to a game store that you could only use store credit on certain items. No big deal it sucks but it's also your responsibility to ask for trade in/store credit policy. Also they should post rules and guidelines for trade ins.

Totally agree. If you don't want 50 Madden 2002s, don't take them. It's that simple. That does suck but it's better to know that that's their policy ahead of time rather than have the store owner bail at the last minute because they changed their mind and suddenly don't want the games they were just about to take that they spent 15 minutes pricing out. I think it's on the store to explain the policy, not on the buyer to ask about it. If your store's trade in policy is anything different than store credit works on everything, you as the store need to explain that to the customer ahead of a transaction because most game stores allow credit to be used on anything in the store. Why would a customer assume differently?