UK High Street definitely ‘off the plan’ for GameStop

GameStop has told MCV that DOES have designs on a big slice of the UK games market.

But the retailer says it will get it through its new UK website NOT a bricks and mortar assault.

As we reported last week, the chain has put paid to years of speculation that it will move in on the High Street by closing what it describes as two random” Birmingham and Stockport stores, and focusing on a purely online business.

From a bricks and mortar perspective the UK is saturated more than any other market we have done business in. We can offer a lot more value through our ecommerce and digital offering,” GameStop’s International EVP Mike Mauler told MCV as a new .co.uk e-store launched, adding that any designs to enter the physical retail space are off the plan”.

Via a more aggressive mail order and eventually digital model – from the Dublin officer of GameStop UK & Ireland, headed by commercial director Mick Finacune – the firm plans to give the likes of Amazon and GAME a run for their money.

Explained Mauler: While the e-commerce market in the UK has scores of competitors from GAME and Amazon to Play, we bring some unique value to existing ranges, exclusive products, and introduce value that isn’t there.

He added: We have invested a lot in making this happen and that shows publishers we are serious about this market.”
GameStop.co.uk has been live for two weeks, but it already boasts the UK exclusive on Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed Animus special edition. Mauler said GameStop will have plenty more of those exclusives”, piling pressure on GAME, which often boasts key exclusives to attract customers.

GameStop is also being aggressive on price too – 3DS is 154, for instance.

Commercial director Mick Finucane said: Special offers on price are indicative of the market and our activity to compete, but they are just part and parcel of our strategy. Core to our strategy is to offer gamers exclusive games and exclusive products that they just can’t find anywhere else.”

In time GamesStop.co.uk will also offer PC downloads, a service recently added to its .com big brother. The site currently sells pre-owned games and will likely add a mechanism to let users trade-in via post – although Mauler and Finucane would not confirm or deny that yet.