Electronics Boutique
Encyclopedia
King of Prussia Mall
The King of Prussia Mall is the largest shopping mall on the East Coast of the United States, and largest shopping mall in the United States of America in terms of leasable retail space....
near Philadelphia, the company has grown into an international corporation. EB Games's parent corporation, GameStop
GameStop
GameStop Corporation is an American video game and entertainment software retailer. The company, whose headquarters is in Grapevine, Texas, United States, operates 6,500 retail stores throughout the United States, Canada, Australia, Austria, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, New...
, has its headquarters in Grapevine, Texas
Grapevine, Texas
Grapevine is a city in northeast Tarrant County, Texas, United States located within the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area. As of the 2010 census the city population was 46,334. The city's moniker is derived from the native grapes prevalent in the area. In recent years several wineries have...
, a suburb of Dallas. When Electronics Boutique was an independent company, its headquarters was in West Goshen Township, Pennsylvania
West Goshen Township, Pennsylvania
West Goshen Township is a township in Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 21,866 at the 2010 census. In 2009, Money Magazine voted West Goshen as the 11th best small town in America....
, near West Chester
West Chester, Pennsylvania
The Borough of West Chester is the county seat of Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 18,461 at the 2010 census.Valley Forge, the Brandywine Battlefield, Longwood Gardens, Marsh Creek State Park, and other historical attractions are near West Chester...
.
History
Originally, the operation mainly sold calculators and digital watches. Between 1977 and the mid-1990s, the company expanded to (and later stopped) selling computers and other related items (according to the EB Games employee handbook). Electronics Boutique also operated stores under the name Games and Gadgets. In the mid-1990s, the company's focus switched to TV-based video games and consoles, though many stores still maintain PC game sections.In May 2000, in order to unify their company, Electronics Boutique changed the vast majority of its current EB and EB Gameworld stores to the name EB Games. They also announced that they would be either closing or selling all of their EB Kids and Brandywine Sports Collectible Stores.
For years EB Games’ primary distribution center was in Louisville, KY, with two smaller distribution centers and a World Headquarters all located in West Chester, PA. With video games getting more popular every day EB Games decided it was time for a new distribution center. In October 2004, EB Games opened its doors to its new 314000 square feet (29,171.6 m²) distribution center in Sadsbury Township, PA. The world headquarter office in West Chester remained open, however anyone working at the old distribution centers were transferred to the new location.
As of July 30, 2001, the company operated 2,280 stores in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
, Sweden, Austria and Spain, primarily under the names EB Games and Electronics Boutique. The company operates an e-commerce and international website at http://www.ebgames.com . There is also an Australian EB Games website at http://www.ebgames.com.au and a New Zealand EB Games website at http://www.ebgames.co.nz , both now support full online shopping like the international website does, they both have many games available for purchase and download at EB Games Australia - Digital Downloads for Australia and EB Games New Zealand - Digital Downloads for New Zealand.
EB Games and GameStop Merger
On Thursday, October 6, 2005 shareholders from EB Games and GameStop agreed to a $1.44 billion takeover deal. The deal offered $38.15 in cash as well as approximately ¾ of a share of GameStop stock for every 1 share of EB Games stock. This offer was a 34.2% premium on the $41.12 per share closing price of EB Games stock. GameStop decided to close both EB Games newly constructed distribution center in Sadsbury, PA, their call center in Las Vegas, NV, and their International Headquarters in West Chester, PA, eliminating more than 800 jobs. Only 65 former EB Games employees were offered jobs at GameStop’s headquarters in Grapevine, TX.International
EB began its international expansion with the opening of three stores in TorontoToronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
in 1993. The Canadian division is the largest of the international divisions with 300+ stores as of May 2008.
In 1995, the company expanded to the UK with the purchase of financially troubled British game retailer Rhino Group The name of the chain was changed from Future Zone to "Electronics Boutique" to match the new owner. Store remodels, product mix changes and used video games combined to restore the chain's finances.
In April 1999, Electronics Boutique's UK entity bought out its main rival, GAME
GAME (retailer)
The Game Group plc is a British video games retail company. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE SmallCap Index....
following GAME's near failure after a dreadful Christmas period. Electronics Boutique UK folded The Game Group, plc, into its own structure, keeping GAME stores open under their GAME branding, and all new stores following the release of PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
in 2000 used the GAME branding, as EB UK wanted to sever its ties with its American parent.
Electronics Boutique commenced operations in Australia in 1997 and rapidly became the number one video game specialty retailer in the country and the only one with a nationwide footprint.
Although the EB-GAME "merger" created a company separate from the US parent, EB retained a 24% ownership stake in the merged chain for a period of time and, under the merger agreement, collected substantial management fees from it until 2004, when the companies agreed to sever the remainder of their ties with a one time settlement. The GAME brand replaced the EB name at all former EB stores in the UK and Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
. The new company was the biggest video game retailer in the United Kingdom. However, GameStop is once again operating in Ireland under the GameStop brand.
On May 23, 2005, EB Games announced a definitive agreement to acquire Jump, a retailer based in Valencia
Valencia (city in Spain)
Valencia or València is the capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third largest city in Spain, with a population of 809,267 in 2010. It is the 15th-most populous municipality in the European Union...
, Spain that sells PCs and other consumer electronics. EB Games plans to begin introducing video game hardware and software into Jump's 141 stores over the next several months. The acquisition provides EB Games entry into the Spanish marketplace and continues EB Games's aggressive international expansion.
EB Games once had a retail presence in South Korea.
On June 22, 2008, reports surfaced that EB Games in New Zealand would acquire The Gamesman - New Zealand's largest independently owned and operated specialised gaming store. All Gamesman stores are to be rebranded as Games stores, leaving no multi-centre specialist gaming stores in New Zealand.
EB Games Australia
EB Games Australia
EB Games Australia is an Australian video game and entertainment software retailer. Headquartered in Pinkenba, Queensland . The company operates over 380 stores across Australia's seven states and territories and 30 more stores in New Zealand. EB Games Australia is part of the GameStop Corporation...
and EB Games New Zealand both offer customers the ability to price match competitors' prices, thereby remain petitive in the market place. They also offer a full refund to customers returning purchases made within certain time frames, such as 7 days and with retention of the receipt.