Game Group's UK shops rescued by OpCapita deal

The British arm of Game Group, the troubled British video game retailer, has been saved by turn-around investment firm OpCapita.

Game, the computer games retailer, was placed into administration last Monday, after Game was unable to pay a £21m rent bill. 

A deal, which will safeguard the future of the bulk of its remaining 333-shops, is likely to be announced as early as Sunday morning.

Final negotiations were understood to be being completed on Saturday night. It is not known how many of Game’s remaining 2,814 employees will keep their jobs, however.

It is believed that a management team is in position to run the UK business. It is not thought that a deal to rescue the international parts of Game has yet been reached, although potential bidders include Hilco and GameStop, the American video game specialist.

Although the exact price OpCapita is to pay for control of Game’s UK assets is not known, it is thought likely it will have bought the assets out of administration for a nominal amount, believed to be £1.

The real cost, however, will be assuming control of the company’s £85m debt pile.

As part of the deal, it is thought possible that the company’s six lenders, led by the Royal Bank of Scotland and Barclays, will have agreed to roll forward their support at the same time as taking a slight 'hair-cut’ - or reduction - on the amount of debt owed.
The company was placed into administration last Monday, after Game was unable to pay a £21m rent bill. Administrator PwC immediately closed 277 shops, with the loss of 2,000 jobs.
At the time, Mike Jervis, the joint administrator, said despite the “serious cashflow and profit issues” he was hopeful of “that a going-concern sale of the business is achievable.”
Ian Shepherd, the former chief executive of Game, admitted that he was “angry” the management had not been able to turnaround the business’s performance.
“I have fought, and all of the management team here have fought with every ounce of energy to avoid arriving at this point,” he said in an email to staff.
RBS and the other banks had also been considering an offer for the company, through a debt-for-equity swap. But OpCapita, which delivered a rescue offer to Game’s board the week before it was placed into administration, is thought to have benefited from its more advanced plans.
OpCapita, where former Somerfield chairman John von Spreckelsen is operating partner, bought Comet for £2 last year, and specialises in investing in and turning around retailers which have fallen on hard times.
The downfall of Game marked the latest collapse in the UK’s troubled retail sector. At the start of the year, as first reported by The Sunday Telegraph, Peacocks collapsed into administration, but was later part rescued by the Edinburgh Woollen Mill. Other recent retail casualties include Blacks Leisure and Barratts.

Game Group £20m lift despite fears over Comet links

The chief executive of Game Group, the video games retailer bought by OpCapita earlier this year, has said it is performing well and defended its backers despite having to operate without credit insurance and with a similar investment structure to Comet.

Martyn Gibbs, who was promoted by OpCapita to become chief executive of Game, told The Sunday Telegraph that the retailer is in “good shape”. 

By Graham Ruddick and Helia Ebrahimi

8:06AM GMT 11 Nov 2012

Game was bought out of administration in April by OpCapita and its American founder, Henry Jackson. However, the private investment firm is under increased scrutiny after it emerged OpCapita could make a profit from Comet despite the retailer collapsing less than a year after it was bought for £2.

Martyn Gibbs, who was appointed by OpCapita to become chief executive of Game, told The Sunday Telegraph that the retailer is in “good shape”. He said Game is forecast to make £20m in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation in the year to July 2013. Game has around 330 UK stores and employs more than 3,000 people.

“I have all the cash I need to trade through peak [period]. There has been nothing that I tabled that I didn’t get investment for. I can’t ask for more,” he said, adding that the investment amounted to “significant millions” and that any interest payments to OpCapita are “not at all” impeding the business.

Mr Gibbs said Game has maintained its market share at around 35pc, despite operating from half the number of stores, and has cut £17m of costs and opened new shops in Reading, Manchester and Sheffield.

The business has been boosted in the past few weeks by the launch of key titles, such as Fifa 13, Halo 4, and Assassin’s Creed 3.

Mr Gibbs said that he is “very close” to the suppliers of Game and that they have maintained their support.
But he accepted that Game would prefer to operate with credit insurance. OpCapita has said that the lack of credit insurance was one of the main reasons Comet collapsed. “I would rather we had it, but have managed without it,” Mr Gibbs said. “We will hopefully achieve it sometime in the future. But, we have never factored it in.”
OpCapita has structured its investment as with sister company Comet, so that Game is charged interest on its funding and OpCapita will be the leading secured creditor if it collapsed.
Leading credit insurers have refused to support Game since OpCapita bought it. Two of the largest, Euler Hermes and Atradius, are angry that OpCapita did not pay off £40m debt to suppliers when it bought Game, which it had no legal obligation to do, so insurers had to make huge payouts.
According to Companies House documents, Game’s property interests, equipment, intellectual property and insurance policies are held by a company registered as Baker Dozen Ltd.
One of the directors of Baker Dozen is Jim Shinehouse, the US restructuring expert who is also on the board of Comet’s parent company. In a similar structure to Comet, Game has £106m of loans held in the form of “payment in kind” (PIK) notes. Interest on PIK notes is normally at least 9pc, so Game could be making annual interest payments of £10m.

Tips For Improving Your Game Experience

By Jocelyn Dela Cruz

Video games are all the rage these days and there is rarely a person alive today who hasn't played one. These games can take you on a journey and provide you with hours of fun. There are some things you may not even know about video games and this article will provide you with some insider tips.

Try to purchase video games with your kids. Selecting games that everyone can enjoy leads to great family game nights. It also helps parents to know that games are age appropriate for their children. Staying involved in the games kids are playing is easy when parents are a part of the purchasing process.

Modern video games are not without their dangers, and playing them obsessively might be the one to worry about most. If you know that a friend or family member is a gamer, be on the lookout for signs that they're spending an immoderate amount of time playing. If they're having trouble meeting their obligations at school, work, or in their social circle, it may be time to confront them about how they manage their gaming time.

If you don't have to have a video game as soon as it hits the stores, consider waiting for a month or two and look for a price drop or used version. If you have patience, you can save a lot of money by waiting. The latest game may be really cool, but saving money can be cooler.

Video games have more to offer your child than just a chance to shoot things. Try choosing games that teach your child something. For instance, sports games can help your child learn the rules for games, and how games are played. Check out some reviews to find games that offer a learning experience instead of just mindless, repetitive motion.

A big part of successfully completely a video game is using cheat codes. These are codes that you enter as you are playing video games to help give you special powers or advance to the next level. Many websites on the Internet offer these helpful tools, giving both small and big cheats.

Take the plunge into the pre-owned video game market. Many gamers will purchase a game and finish the game quite quickly. Many stores allow these games to be traded in and then sell them at a reduced cost. This could be the most cost-effective way for you to get newer games without the high cost.

Video gaming can really enrich your life in a number of different ways. It can certainly increase your speed, agility and reflexes, depending on what you spend your time playing. There are virtually no limits to what you can gain from video gaming, if you play it right. Hopefully this article will bring your gaming up a notch or two.

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Gold in Wow Buying and Selling

By Zofia Dobrinin

It is true that hit the Wow gold cap will make you some money. Many game enthusiasts play the World of Warcraft because it is full of challenge while others play the game because it can make them some cash. If you have been in the World of Warcraft for some time, you should know that you'll find many places that can sell your items for real money. You can provide the power leveling service for the players and then charge them for money.

If you have enough money, it is possible to get what you want for your World of Warcraft characters. You possibly can have not only one character in the game; you may have more than one character.

When the player making getting rid of, they can get something form the mobs. Several mobs are easy to kill, and they will decline many useful items. Give a right position to your character and capitalize will be the main activity to obtain the opportunity to get cheap Gold in wow.

Some players are willing to buy Gold in Wow for their game play. They want to take pleasure in the game and they do not want to spend their own precious time earning the little gold hanging around.

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Create A Competitive Marketing With Articles Plan Using These Suggestions

By Hugh McCabe

Many individuals get pleasure from composing. From aspiring novelists to blog browsers and also private log buffs, writing is a superb method of expression. Composing can be an excellent enterprise when you know how to make use of article promotion appropriately. Evaluate the ideas and methods to learn how to market your blog. All the information will help you achieve success.

Use right sentence structure in virtually any content you make use of for article writing. By no means skip the proofreading even when you are in a hurry. Proper spelling and sentence structure help it become much easier to comprehend an article.

The headline of the report must be on position. Take a moment out and consider lots of different titles your report could have so you're able to pick out the ideal one particular for what you've written. Doing this ensures that you talk your thoughts and concepts properly, therefore increasing your reader basic.

Use niche research to create the titles of the articles. When you have a subject picked out for the write-up, find a key word tool that's cost-free and key in a couple of words that describe your subject matter. It would generate a prolonged key word list. Pick your label, along with other key word key phrases to be in the article, out of this listing.

Establish your scenery on marketing stuff that cost you a great amount of money. The most expensive merchandise could be more lucrative. While you may go through a short-term decline in income when you decide on more expensive products, expending a bit more energy when marketing ought to constitute the variation. The methods of advertising a high priced product or service along with an affordable product are about the same.

Any report you create will need to have apparent and catchy title. What words or terms are most relevant to your target audience? Can you think of a time when you found yourself studying anything simply because of the headline? Create your titles in coordination along with them.

Make use of all the equipment which can be readily available. There are instruments which distribute your post to directories for you, on the price of a large number at the same time. While some have a little expense, others are free. Use them exclusively to help keep expenses straight down.

You could be an improved writer by means of studying. Reading and composing go hand in hand. If you please read on new components, you may improve your producing abilities. The content of the items you read is not related. Just the fact that you are constantly reading will help you greatly.

Article marketing is a superb way to develop your business on the web. Unfortunately, when carried out incorrectly, article writing can do tiny to assist drum up enterprise. Folks that don't talk about the guidelines within the report previously mentioned probably will find it declining since they are very important to be familiar with. Use the information here and write articles for money.

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A Primer On E-commerce And How To Start Selling Custom T-shirt Online Now

By Adam Sainez

Sometimes it is difficult to sell custom t-shirt online. You may have the best custom t-shirt online, but if you don't know the right way to trade custom t-shirt online, then you won't succeed. Try the tips below to sell custom t-shirt online and succeed.

Google is the largest search engine on the internet so your goal should be to make it work for you. A Search Engine Optimization will allow your website to be brought up more times on searches and will increase the amount of potential buyers that you have coming to your website.

Have you ever implemented a "heat map" test? This is a test that relies on a piece of software that measures where your customers are most likely to click. You might have buttons on your site that never get clicked at all. If so, eliminate them to eliminate clutter. The less cluttered your site the more you'll sell.

Use social media to get your name "out there". Don't spam people with link after endless link (you won't generate much interest that way), but instead get involved in conversation with people

Google is all about trust and they don't trust new kids on the block. Get a holding page online with lots of content and get included in relevant business / shopping directories and start up your social media accounts.

Do your research on ecommerce sites like eBay to figure out your market. This will also give you examples of list prices for custom t-shirt that you hope to sell. Once you have settled into a web site use the skills you've learned to drive traffic towards the website.

Use comparative dialect. Spell it out similar to this, why buy apparel "x" when instead you will get apparel "y" that performs exactly the same function for fewer. Add customer analyzes that backup this information.

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You must account for the disability law as well. It requires you to have alternative tags/images for people having visual issues. Apart from the legal aspect, it can also help you to cater to the requirements of a huge audience.

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How To Use Email Marketing To Boost Business

By Corey Tippy

Many businesses have used email marketing to create and build a successful business. It can be an effective way to keep up with customers and keep them informed about special deals, new products and even to let them know about new and exciting things about your business that may interest them. This article can help you make sure your email campaign is a success.

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Email marketing marches on, and the good old newsletter has become largely obsolete. Instead of sending around a general circular for all of your subscribers, expend the effort to tailor emails to the interests of their particular recipients. There are many robust programs and services that can help you do this automatically.

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Playing with fonts is fun, and you may be tempted to spice up your emails with exotic fonts. Resist that temptation! Fonts may display differently, or even be replaced by defaults, on someone else's computer. Even if an odd font does display correctly, there is no guarantee that your recipient will appreciate it the same way you do. To avoid any font-based mishaps, stick with fonts that are widespread, easy to read, and understated.

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Do not take up permanent residence in your readers inboxes. Remember that they email for a number a reasons, from work to family. You are probably sharing that space with other marketers. Send out messages often enough to stay on their mental radar, but more than once a week is probably going to annoy them and backfire.

Slowly build your contact list. Start with those who have already appreciated what you offer and then move on to areas where you can engage your prospects. It can take a while to pick whom should be receiving your emails, but it'll be worth it in the end to build a reliable contact list.

Try following up to your clients with a FAQ section. Include a link onto your email that says to click here to view the frequently asked questions in order for them to have a better understanding of your company. The concluding postscript could inform them to make sure they see you in action.

As you already know, email marketing can be a very useful way to interact with customer. You can offer special deals, new products and keep them up to date on all of the exciting things happening in your business. The above article can help you make sure that your email marketing strategies accomplish all of those goals.

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