TCGplayer and The Game Manufacturers Association (GAMA) recently announced the completion of the GAMA Horizons Fellowship, a program sponsored by TCGplayer to support emerging tabletop game publishers, creators, and retail store owners from historically underrepresented backgrounds. The Fellowship, created by the GAMA Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee, connects participants with mentors in the industry who help grow their business, while also providing access to grants and resources. At the conclusion of the Fellowship, one publisher and one retailer is selected to each receive an additional $5,000 grant to help create, maintain, and grow their business.

TCGplayer provided focused support to retailer fellows and mentors including a brand new Chromebook, Quicklist scanner, novelty playmat, TCGplayer apparel, and two resource guides. Following the conclusion of this year’s fellowship, retailer fellows will also continue to receive one-on-one coaching with a member of the TCGplayer Seller Growth and Success (SGS) team in addition to access to webinars hosted by the TCGplayer SGS team, GAMA, and the Horizons Fellowship curriculum teams. All retailer fellows will also receive discounted TCGplayer Pro Seller fees for six months with access to TCGplayer’s cutting-edge Retail Solutions, including its In-Store Kiosk, Pro Website, and MassPrice tools at reduced rates.

The retailer fellows from the inaugural Horizons Fellowship class include:

In connection with the Fellowship, Cardboardia was awarded an additional $5,000 grant to help accelerate their business growth.

Mentors who participated in the program include Kathleen Donahue of Labyrinth Games & Puzzles and Rebecca Banky of Black Knight Games, among others.

TCGplayer is committed to ensuring local hobby and brick-and-mortar stores have the resources and tools necessary to manage and grow their business. Not only that, but we believe that gaming is a Community For All. The Horizons Fellowship is an ongoing program with a mission to support emerging retailers operated by members of historically underrepresented communities. Going forward, we hope to expand our support of the Horizons Fellowship, and will partner with our friends at GAMA to make sure we let you know when applications for the 2022-2023 class are open!

Read our full announcement to learn more about the Horizons Fellowship and TCGplayer’s involvement. Interested in the GAMA Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee? Sign up to get involved!