The Feasibility of Opening a Video Games Franchise in the Lurgan Area

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Introduction

The coursework that I have chosen to do is the feasibility of opening a video games franchise in the Lurgan area. I decided on this because I have a keen interest in video and PC games, and because I live in the Lurgan area and frequently buy games I felt that the current retailers in Lurgan do not tailor to the needs of the common gamer. I felt that I may not be the only person to feel this way, and that there was a great need for a better service to customers and that there maybe enough demand to sustain a new business. There are no stores in Lurgan that currently specialise in video games and because of this there may be a gap in the market, which would be very important for the success of the franchise.

I chose to use a franchise to set-up in the Lurgan area as I felt that it was a quicker method, as it already has an established name nationally and internationally selling all over the globe. Electronic boutique is one of the most recognisable and trusted brand names in the interactive gaming industry. The franchise has enjoyed success and established themselves in countries such as USA, South Korea, Japan and Australia, showing that it is a symbol of quality that stretches across the language boundaries. They offer the customers wider ranges including video games and PC entertainment software, as well as video gam hardware, PC productivity software, PC accessories, interactive toys and trading cards. By opening a franchise I can offer customers immediate availability of all new releases.

I choose my aims so that they help indicate whether it is likely to be a profitable, and could help in indicating the strengths and weaknesses of setting up a new business. My aims would look at the competition I would face, the potential customers and whether there is a market, the pricing and marketing strategies to adopt and also the different financial aspects that I would need to consider on start-up and the first year. They would all aide me in seeing whether or not to proceed with starting up my own business

However some of the problems that I may face would be, whether there is a market, is such a business needed in the Lurgan area, which it may not as there has not been enough demand for a business to set up in the past, why was there no other firms willing to risk the Lurgan market. It may have been because the Lurgan area is only big enough now to sustain such a store, or that no proper research has been done and Lurgan is an untapped market. Another problem that I may face is the hectic time scale and cost of setting up a business, as I may find that at the end it may not be financially viable to start up a business, or that time may restrict the amount of research done. But these factors are hard to predict and even harder to prepare for.

I feel that this coursework would be advantageous to myself as it helps me to see whether I am right in thinking that Lurgan is long overdue for a games store. I will enjoy doing the research into something I have an interest in. To obtain the information that I need to come to a fair conclusion I will need to look at both primary data and secondary data I will use various research methods. To collect my primary data I will conduct both qualitative and quantitative research. To collect my secondary data I will conduct desk research and constantly assess the validity of my findings throughout.

Methodology

I will now look at the research that I will do to accomplish the aims, which I set at the start of my feasibility study. The purpose of market research is to obtain information on the market conditions for my business. It will concentrate on three main areas, the product, the market, and the competition.

Aim 1: To research and evaluate the local and national competition to see whether there is space in the market.

To achieve this aim I will need to do research into the Craigavon and Northern Ireland. This will be quantitative, as it will be factual information on the location and possibly sales of our competitors and other Electronic Boutique stores and maybe I may also include qualitative research through observation of our competitors and other electronic boutiques. I can achieve this through desk research and by looking at the firm's own national statistics which will give us information on current N.I. Electronic Boutiques. Also we could find information through quality papers and specialist magazines giving us lists of competitors around Northern Ireland and where they are located. Desk research is useful as it is less expensive than field research, and the information (being already available) is quicker to obtain. However competitors may be reluctant to give information on sales. Observation can be used to give me knowledge for later research and give informed assumptions for my later research. I will do covert observation of my competitors, as it will be unlikely that my competitors will allow me to observe their business. However there are time constraints on my research and I may find difficulties in observing store. Also my research will be based on my own interpretation of my subjects actions. But it will let me see how the day-today running of the business happens.
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Aim2: To build a profile, find the segment of my potential customer and whether the Lurgan area has enough to sustain a computer games shop.

To achieve this aim I will need to do research amongst my possible customers in the Lurgan area. I would like to be looking at concentrating on qualitative research, as I want my research to show attributes opinions, behaviours and beliefs of my potential customers. However postal surveys or questionnaires would be probably be used because of time constraints. As there would be little research done on the feasibility of opening such ...

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