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Entrepreneur parlays movie rental experience into successful video game store

Entrepreneur parlays movie rental experience into successful video game store

Thu. December 17, 2009; Posted: 10:40 PM
Dec 17, 2009 (Herald-Times - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Seven years ago, Ron Schneider sold his successful Video World stores to the mega-chain Movie Gallery, signed a noncompete contract, and got out of the business of renting movies and video games.

Now he's back -- sort of.

This time, with Game World on South College Mall Road, there aren't any movies, and renting is just part of the equation. The company also buys, sells and trades video games, systems and accessories.

Still, similarities between the businesses are obvious. The most fundamental is also unexpected.

"I don't play video games, and I never watched movies," said Schneider, an otherwise self-employed investor who believes more than anything in the industry's strong cash flow.

There's no doubt, though, that Game World represents Schneider's second bite at the apple.

Video World was built from the ground up into a nine-store chain across central Indiana.

Game World has also started slowly. When it first opened in March, it had only 500 items in stock, Schneider said. Now, 10,000 items cram its shelves and floor space.

While that represents success, Schneider is also taking a more tangible step forward. He is actively seeking space for a second Game World location, most likely on the west side of Bloomington.

"I want to build out Bloomington first, and then go from there," he said. "But I don't get into if I have one store or 10,000 stores. It's just that we want this store, however many there are, to be the best store."

With competition from national chains including Game Stop and EB Games, Schneider believes the best way to differentiate Game World is through customer service.

That's why he has re-hired top employees from the Video World days.

Eric Dinwiddie, who managed a Video World, was rehired as Game World's store manager. Lawrence Richardson, a district assistant with Video World, is also back.

Keeping quality is important, Schneider said. That's something he keeps in mind when others approach him about licensing the Game World brand in their own stores.

"People have been knocking, and I have listened. But I don't know if we want to do that," Schneider said. "The name is so important."

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