At GAMA 2023, Adam Sellner of The Gaming Co held a seminar on their business model and how they leverage TCGplayer tools. Adam dove into their experience with TCGplayer programs, decision-making processes, pricing, and business models.

Watch The Seminar

This seminar covers: 

  1. The impact of joining Direct by TCGplayer
  2. Direct by TCGplayer fees
  3. The Gaming Co business model 
  4. Best practices for card organization 
  5. Card pricing practices 
  6. Experiences with robotics 


Adam Sellner of The Gaming Co first started selling in 2011 out of his college dorm room with $2,000 to his name. In 2022, 11 years later, The Gaming Co made $17 million in sales and they currently operate 8 stores. Everything has come from the original $2,000 investment. 

The Impact of Joining Direct by TCGplayer
Direct by TCGplayer is a fulfillment service that handles every aspect of a seller’s online orders. A TCGplayer team of experts takes on the fulfillment, verification, shipping and customer service on behalf of the seller. On average, order volume increases by 277% four weeks after joining Direct by TCGplayer. Additionally, the top selling 750 cards on TCGplayer sold for a 13% premium (Direct vs. non-Direct copies).

 

 

 

 

Addressing Direct by TCGplayer Fees
The Gaming Co averages a 24% fee on their Store Your Products (SYP) account, with no special deal in place. What’s the trick? More cards. If you have more cards, you pay less fees; larger card orders lead to fewer packages, meaning you will be hit less by the 50% shipping replacement cost on the SRC table.


The Gaming Co Direct/Store Your Products/Sort Business Model 

  1. The Gaming Co’s goal is to get all cards possible on one account due to order sizes increasing. The Gaming Co sends everything eligible to Store Your Products. 
  2. They use the Sort program for collection buys. 
  3. All cards not accepted into SYP are sold through a separate account, dedicated to cards under 70 cents.

Best Practices for Card Organization
If you sell through Direct by TCGplayer, use Direct Reimbursement Invoice (RI) order. This means alphabetized by set in reverse chronological order. If you do not sell through Direct by TCGplayer, use a system that works best for you. The Gaming Co recommends a system that requires the least amount of product knowledge to support. 

In terms of shelving, The Gaming Co uses Costco metal shelves and Amazon black shelves for overflow, rather than cabinets.

How The Gaming Co Prices Cards
To price cards, The Gaming Co exports stock levels every single day and then compares those levels over a long period of time. They then look at the sales rate over this extended period to see how to best price cards. This process ensures they price at minimum Direct Low, or a bit higher. 


Robotics: Should You Use Them?
If you have consistent volume, The Gaming Co recommends utilizing robotics. Highly consider how much a robotics investment will free up your time in addition to the cost of the machine. If you have a consistent volume of inventory, you can quickly see a return on investment.

The Gaming Co currently uses Roca by TCGplayer for alphabetizing, picking, and inventorying. They use TCG Machines for booster box opening and picking.