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[Warrior_Monk]

Hey guys, for my entrepreneurship class I needed a mock venture to do projections for and I chose board games. Now I need to find a few people to give me some information. If you wouldn't mind either PMing or posting here, I'd appreciate it. Here's what I need:

1. Age, Gender
2. Number of times you play tabletop* games (once a week, once a month, daily, etc.)
3. Number of times you would like to play tabletop games (but are unable to due to lack of interest on other's part)
4. What tabletop games have you played?
5. Would you be interested in game rentals for $5 for a few nights?
6. Do you prefer to learn new games or stick with what you know?
7. When you learn a new game, do you prefer somebody to teach it to you, or read the rules?
*When I say tabletop I basically mean board game, but I'm using tabletop because it encompasses games like Dominion, etc. I could say strategy games, but it's not limited to those either.

Also, if anybody has any connections to the industry, I'd love to get some advice. I've already spoken with uthminister and Doug, and I'll be PMing Prof U in 5 minutes.  Basically I'm looking at starting a tabletop game store with game rentals available that does tournaments and events like a card game store.  There are no plans to actually start this business (at least, not yet), but that's what I'm researching.

[soul seeker]

1. 38, Male
2. Definition of Tabletop would be nice. For my answers, I'm going to with "board games" instead of "Warhammer."  With that said, I play 5 times a week (not quite daily).
3. I would like to play daily, but schedules don't always allow for that.
4.  A lot! Is there a time frame on this question?  Like "this past week" or something like that because my family owns 85 "board" games.
   We own anywhere from traditional games (Monopoly, Life, Clue) to Award Winning non-mainstream (Kingdom Builder, Machi Poro?, Camel Up).
5. This question is tough.  There are games that I would like to try out first, but if I put money down (to rent) I would have to seriously consider buying it.  Maybe the rent money could go towards buying the game? My game shop periodically sets games up to play/read the rules for free.  I've bought at least 5 games and have considered 3 more because of it.  The tl;dr is that experiencing a game gives a good idea if you would like to buy it.  Outside of experiencing the game, I trust the "German Game of the Year" award because a lot of my favorite games have earned that award.  It is why I got Kingdom Builder.
6. I love learning new games.  You never know when you will find your next favorite game.
7.  I could do either, but in my family and friends I am typically the one introducing the new game so I typically end up teaching it.  However, I don't mind someone teaching me a new game. (Ex. Prof U taught me "Ticket to Ride" and Crustpope taught me "Trumpet" and "Dominion.")

Free Advice: consider having unwrapped copies of unknown yet fun/popular games so that people can experience it.  You will have less buyers regretting purchases and more impulse buying sales.
   Also, what I would do if I had the money to open a game store is: when shelving games, keep Award Winners together.

[Warrior_Monk]

When I say tabletop I basically mean board game, but I'm using tabletop because it encompasses games like Dominion, etc. I could say strategy games, but it's not limited to those either.  OP Updated.

[TimMierz]

1. 27 year old male
2. It varies over the years, but several times a week at least.
3. I would love to play games every day, but the time just isn't always there.
4. Since 2008, I've played at least 551 different game titles.
5. I would never pay to rent a game. One thing that's nice about games is that, disregarding expansions and the like, you buy them once and you've got something you can enjoy over and over.
6. I like both learning and playing what I know. Most of the time, I like sticking with what I know, but I'm almost always happy to learn.
7. I prefer being taught in person, because I like to ask clarifying questions and move actual pieces around.

[Warrior_Monk]

5. This question is tough.  There are games that I would like to try out first, but if I put money down (to rent) I would have to seriously consider buying it.  Maybe the rent money could go towards buying the game?

My idea is that if you want to try it in store it's free, but if you want to take it home for a few days there's a $5 charge (which will be discounted if you decide to buy the game).

[browarod]

1. 25, Male
2. Couple times a month.
3. Most of the time, lol. I'd love to have a weekly game night but most of my friends are either not interested or busy or not nearby.
4. Way too many to easily list here, I've played a lot of games.
5. There are a number of games I would definitely try if I could rent that I otherwise haven't felt like putting money towards.
6. I'm good with either. It's fun to try new games and games you know are always good to fall back on.
7. Some of both. People who know how to play can better explain situations or strategies, but reading the rules gives you the best understanding of all the rules (if they're written well, lol).

[to_to_toriquah]

1. 22/Female

2. Once in a blue moon (downside of not having a roommate and still making friends in a new area)

3. 2-3x

4. Classic games like Monopoly, Life, Scrabble, etc. Newer games such as Settlers of Cataan, Munchkin, Quelf, etc. Obscure/Old games like Inventors, Waterworks. Trivia Games. Risk. Kiddie games.

5. That would be an interesting business. If I had people to play games with, it would be something to consider.

6. I love learning new games, as well as playing familiar games over and over and over again (except for Clue - long story).

7. I prefer both. I will read the directions, and have someone explain/demonstrate/walk me through it to me.

[Alex_Olijar]

1. 23, you know
2. Varies, probably 2-3 times per month
3. Willing to play daily but no one I spend daily time with would
4. A ton of stuff, basically as everyone here as said
5. I would gravitate to the in store option, but I think once I have a kid or two I could see this option being valuable to be able to try with my kids at home vs in the store.
6. New games, I enjoy figuring them out
7. I prefer learning form the rules because learning from people usually gives you the wrong rules

[YourMathTeacher]

1. Old guy
2. Several times a week
3. Several times a day
4. Small World, Lords of Waterdeep, Smash Up, 7 Wonders, DC Deck Building, Flash Point: Fire Rescue, Ticket to Ride, Pandemic, Shadows Over Camelot, Dominion, Munchkin, Hiss, The Resistance: Avalon, Settlers of Catan, Rack-o, Othello, Risk, Clue, Chess, Stratego, Dark World, Tower of the Wizard King, Dark Tower, Rail Baron, Monopoly, Sorry!, Scrabble, Dungeon, Grand Imperialism, ... that's all I can think of off the top of my head.
5. I would consider it, but with more tabletop games coming out as apps for around $5, I would be more likely to buy the app than just a short rental. I would more likely pay a daily or monthly fee to come into your store and try out several different games.
6. I have been fascinated with trying new types of games lately, and I think old people like me appreciate the recent resurgence of tabletop gaming.
7. I always prefer reading the rules myself.

Let me caution you that tabletop game rentals would be extremely hard to monitor for damaged or missing pieces. I doubt you will have workers check every game piece, or every card in a deck-building game. Eventually you will get the scammers, counterfeiters, eBay resellers and the like that will steal and manipulate. You will have frustrated gamers that will find that they are missing pieces or cards that they really needed or wanted. Also, gamers will not want to play with warped cards, or water-damaged boards, or broken pieces. You would have to monitor each game carefully to avoid this, but I just don't see you having the time with each returned game.

[VJ]

1. 58, male
2. very seldom these days (I'm still developing my skills with the computer game Free Cell, so that I can become a world-class player).
3. several times a week (maybe after I take early retirement I can play more games, and catch up on my reading).
4. Mainly the "classic" games of yesterday, I have some of the games sold by Cactus Games.
5. Probably not, YMT was correct is his analysis of the problems associated with this.  I have been talking about starting a game store for over 30 years, and my idea was to have tables set up with board games, dedicated tables for card games, and consoles for computer games.  I would charge a monthly fee for membership for access into this area of the store.
6. Both.  I'm always interested in learning a new game.
7. Both.  I would like to preview the rules to get an overview, but I learn better when someone teaches me.

Side note:  I grew up with 3 sisters and 2 brothers, 1 TV with 3 channels - so I played a lot of board and card games for entertainment.  I develop a love for board games early in life.  However, as a young adult I got interested in role-playing games which I played for over 25 years.

[TheMarti]

1. 29, Female
2. A couple of times a month (but not weekly)
3. Weekly, at the very least. I love games!
4. Oh goodness me. Dominion, Settlers of Catan + Expacs, Warhammer, D&D, most "old school" games (Monopoly, Life, Scrabble, and the like), Last Night on Earth, Carcassone, and, uh. I don't remember the rest of them. Lots.
5. Oh that's an amazing idea! I'd love to try a game and see if I like it or whatever before I'd purchase it.
6. I LOVE to learn new games, cause if I didn't do that, I wouldn't have been able to find some of my favorites.
7. Both. I do a lot better when I learn it as I go, but I'll read the rules to get a basic idea of what is going on in the game first.

Hope this helps, Westy!

[Warrior_Monk]

This is a huge help, thanks so much guys.

[Rawrlolsauce!]

1. 20, Male
2. Once every month or two
3. 0.
4. Dominion, Ticket to Ride, King of Tokyo, Carcassone, etc. The games that are designed for stupid people.
5. No
6. Stick with what I know.
7. Learn the rules as you play.

Maybe I'm not your target audience. I've invested maybe $20 in board games over the last couple decades.