Current Events > GameStop CFO resigns

(+) Yeah! (+)

https://www.wsj.com/articles/gamestop-cfo-leaving-company-in-leadership-shake-up-11559254049

GameStop Corp. said Thursday that its financial and operating chief Rob Lloyd is stepping down from the embattled videogame retailer.

The Grapevine, Texas, company said Mr. Lloyd will resign from the role Monday, but he will continue as an adviser through July 3, according to a securities filing. The company said James Bell, the former CFO of Wok Holding Inc., the parent company of P.F. Changs and several other restaurants, to succeed Mr. Lloyd.

GameStop said in a securities filing that Mr. Lloyds resignation wasnt from a disagreement with the company or any matter relating to the companys operations. He became CFO of the retailer in 2010 after holding positions including chief accounting officer, controller and vice president of finance. He joined the company in 1996.

Mr. Lloyd also has been serving as operating chief since the company fired its previous COO Tony Bartel in February 2018. The company said Thursday it plans to eliminate the position.

Mr. Bell will have an annual salary of $700,000, according to a securities filing, and receive an equity award valued at $1.3 million. The award will be issued on July 1 and consist of time-vested restricted stock and performance-based restricted stock.

GameStop also said it hired Chris Homeister, the former CEO of specialty retailer Tile Shop Holdings Inc., as its new chief merchandising officer. Mr. Homeister will join the company in the newly created role June 10. The company also promoted marketing chief Frank Hamlin to the new role of chief customer officer.

The latest shuffle of executives comes after the company named George Sherman, the former chief of Victra, a retail chain that sells Verizon Wireless products and services, as its CEO in March. Mr. Sherman is the fifth person to serve as CEO since November 2017.

GameStops stock is down 40% this year as the chain has been hurt by the performance of its retail stores and consumers have increased the amount of games they buy digitally.

GameStop said in April it is undergoing a cost-savings and profit-improvement initiative for its current fiscal year. The company said earlier this year that it expected its total sales and comparable-store sales to fall between 5% and 10%.

GameStop settled a short-lived proxy spat with two shareholders earlier this year, agreeing to expand its board to 11 members from nine. The shareholders wanted GameStop to raise its current stock buyback plans to $700 million.

The company also has waded into the world of competitive gaming, or esports, and hopes to make its stores more of an experience for gamers and a place they can hang out.

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GameStop settled a short-lived proxy spat with two shareholders earlier this year, agreeing to expand its board to 11 members from nine. The shareholders wanted GameStop to raise its current stock buyback plans to $700 million.

Lolwut?
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Imagine if Gamestop invested in some arcades or catered to locals scene for competitive games, i.e. like how most card game shops like to flourish. People visit to hang out, buy games on the side, arcades bring the tiniest of revenues that will most likely pay itself off over time
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legendarylemur posted...

Imagine if Gamestop invested in some arcades or catered to locals scene for competitive games, i.e. like how most card game shops like to flourish. People visit to hang out, buy games on the side, arcades bring the tiniest of revenues that will most likely pay itself off over time

Even if it was some stupid bullshit like weekly late night smash tourney that got like only 12 dedicated players it would probably help a lot long term.
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legendarylemur posted...

Imagine if Gamestop invested in some arcades or catered to locals scene for competitive games, i.e. like how most card game shops like to flourish. People visit to hang out, buy games on the side, arcades bring the tiniest of revenues that will most likely pay itself off over time

Makes sense. You stop in to play (or maybe even buy) some games.
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legendarylemur posted...

Imagine if Gamestop invested in some arcades or catered to locals scene for competitive games, i.e. like how most card game shops like to flourish. People visit to hang out, buy games on the side, arcades bring the tiniest of revenues that will most likely pay itself off over time

This actually seems like a good idea, although the types of retail spaces they have occupied for years wouldn't really be suitable. I could totally see them rebranding as a place you go to actually play games
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one step closer to gamefaqs.gamespot.gamestop.com
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pikachupwnage posted...

GameStop settled a short-lived proxy spat with two shareholders earlier this year, agreeing to expand its board to 11 members from nine. The shareholders wanted GameStop to raise its current stock buyback plans to $700 million.

Lolwut?

What's confusing about this paragraph?
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legendarylemur posted...

Imagine if Gamestop invested in some arcades or catered to locals scene for competitive games, i.e. like how most card game shops like to flourish. People visit to hang out, buy games on the side, arcades bring the tiniest of revenues that will most likely pay itself off over time

Aren't card shops massive underperformers and go out of business most of the time after 5 years?
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rabbi_baby posted...

legendarylemur posted...

Imagine if Gamestop invested in some arcades or catered to locals scene for competitive games, i.e. like how most card game shops like to flourish. People visit to hang out, buy games on the side, arcades bring the tiniest of revenues that will most likely pay itself off over time

Aren't card shops massive underperformers and go out of business most of the time after 5 years?

It depends on the place, but populated card shops actually flourish. I've talked to some owners and seen casual interviews, and they don't really earn much off of people casually walking in, rather their revenues are focused during periods where a bunch of people coming in for a dedicated locals scene. Competitiveness drives people to constantly spend more and more on new cards, for example, and card shops provide an immediate access to cards at a small premium, compared to buying them online and having to wait.

But because of the way sites like ebay and amazon affected card shops, most card shops that are pretty profitable also have a big online setup. One large store claimed they actually earn by far the most on commons being sold online, since it's so much easier for people to browse and buy in bulk. Regardless, Gamestop already has an online presence, but they can't trump Amazon or Best Buy.

Also arcades especially for fighting games or rhythm games bring a lot of exclusivity. Not everybody owns an arcade stick controller, and most of those arcade version have maxed out graphics or exclusive content. Arcades are incredibly niche now, but they bring something to the table that no populated businesses are really taking advantage of.

I think location is definitely another issue though. Most Gamestops are too small, but they can reduce a lot of clutter and cater to a new format.
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legendarylemur posted...

Imagine if Gamestop invested in some arcades or catered to locals scene for competitive games, i.e. like how most card game shops like to flourish. People visit to hang out, buy games on the side, arcades bring the tiniest of revenues that will most likely pay itself off over time

That would require the actual Gamestop store to not be tiny and not packed full of Funco Pops nobody buys.

So a guy who has been with the company since the early 90s and probably actually cares about video games is gone, and the newcomers are a tile store guy and a verizon store guy.

Man, they're so fucked.
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Do I buy stock now?
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Turbam posted...

Do I buy stock now?

If you expect the stock to increase in price before the buyback, sure.

Video game themed strip clubs and be done with it.

SK8T3R215 posted...

pikachupwnage posted...

GameStop settled a short-lived proxy spat with two shareholders earlier this year, agreeing to expand its board to 11 members from nine. The shareholders wanted GameStop to raise its current stock buyback plans to $700 million.

Lolwut?

What's confusing about this paragraph?

The company is struggling and shareholders want the company to waste money buying its own stock back.
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pikachupwnage posted...

SK8T3R215 posted...

pikachupwnage posted...

GameStop settled a short-lived proxy spat with two shareholders earlier this year, agreeing to expand its board to 11 members from nine. The shareholders wanted GameStop to raise its current stock buyback plans to $700 million.

Lolwut?

What's confusing about this paragraph?

The company is struggling and shareholders want the company to waste money buying its own stock back.

No I think the investors wanted to sell their stock back to GameStop because they want out.
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GameStop just needs to die already

I've been watching these vids from a store manager that worked there 11 years, and the way they do customers and employees is even worse than I first assumed
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NeoShadowhen posted...

Video game themed strip clubs and be done with it.

Now this is out of the box thinking!
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ToadallyAwesome posted...

NeoShadowhen posted...

Video game themed strip clubs and be done with it.

Now this is out of the box thinking!

We can call it "Pole Position"
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pikachupwnage posted...

SK8T3R215 posted...

pikachupwnage posted...

GameStop settled a short-lived proxy spat with two shareholders earlier this year, agreeing to expand its board to 11 members from nine. The shareholders wanted GameStop to raise its current stock buyback plans to $700 million.

Lolwut?

What's confusing about this paragraph?

The company is struggling and shareholders want the company to waste money buying its own stock back.

They're still cash flow positive so they want more of that returned to shareholders. Also they basically didn't complete their last buyback plan so that would make up that shortfall.
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Tyranthraxus posted...

ToadallyAwesome posted...

NeoShadowhen posted...

Video game themed strip clubs and be done with it.

Now this is out of the box thinking!

We can call it "Pole Position"

ha!
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They need to close a good 50% of their locations. They expanded well beyond what ever made sense. Like Starbucks did into the 00s. And just like Starbucks they need to close in locations where there's multiple stores within mere miles or sometimes blocks of one another.

Second then need to dump about 90% of their store inventory that isn't games. Their stores have become pawn shops. Selling clothes, used phones, board games, statues and worst of all literal piles of those Pop dolls.
Dump it all. Go back to what it use to be. Games. New games and hard to find old used games. Wall to wall.

And lastly they need to get out of the large store fronts they're in now. Return to the smaller Cold Stone sized ones. Not the large Verizon/Starbucks sized places they started renting/leasing when they expanded. That also never made sense.
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EternalDivide posted...

ey need to close a good 50% of their locations. They expanded well beyond what ever made sense. Like Starbucks did into the 00s. And just like Starbucks they need to close in locations where there's multiple stores within mere miles or sometimes blocks of one another.

https://frinkiac.com/img/S09E19/605921.jpg
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This is like, what, the second time in a year? Jesus...
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I feel like Funcoland was their best business model. All kinds of games, new and retro, old consoles set up that you could try the games first. A big variety for a wide audience, something for everyone, and a lot of interaction.
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When i have problems in my relationship i know its because people are buying more digital games.
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legendarylemur posted...

Imagine if Gamestop invested in some arcades or catered to locals scene for competitive games, i.e. like how most card game shops like to flourish. People visit to hang out, buy games on the side, arcades bring the tiniest of revenues that will most likely pay itself off over time

Seriously this. There is no point to even go to Gamestop anymore thanks to the online stores like Amazon, Ebay and even the video game console's store.

If GS was a place like you described, I'd go pay a visit all the time and maybe buy some accessories as well. Since they don't want to do things like that there are other places to conviently buy games/accessories.

So RIP GameStop.
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The golden parachutes begin
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EverDownward posted...

This is like, what, the second time in a year? Jesus...

Uhh he's been there since 1996
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Tyranthraxus posted...

EverDownward posted...

This is like, what, the second time in a year? Jesus...

Uhh he's been there since 1996

My bad, I recall there being a big change up in the higher positions like last year.
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EverDownward posted...

Tyranthraxus posted...

EverDownward posted...

This is like, what, the second time in a year? Jesus...

Uhh he's been there since 1996

My bad, I recall there being a big change up in the higher positions like last year.

I think you're right but it wasn't the CFO. He was promoted to CFO almost 10 years ago.

Edit: actually the article has all the details. They've had 5 CEOs in 2 years and fired the COO last year.

This is a slightly bigger deal since this guy had that C-level position for 10.
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Tyranthraxus posted...

legendarylemur posted...

Imagine if Gamestop invested in some arcades or catered to locals scene for competitive games, i.e. like how most card game shops like to flourish. People visit to hang out, buy games on the side, arcades bring the tiniest of revenues that will most likely pay itself off over time

Even if it was some stupid bullshit like weekly late night smash tourney that got like only 12 dedicated players it would probably help a lot long term.

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