“While games do not have a ‘sell-by’ date, shelf and stockroom space remains finite.”
Sometimes, stock doesn’t sell. I have bought and paid for games that have then gone on to sit on my shelves in an annoying and persistent fashion, while customers browse past them, time and again. Sometimes, this is an indication that I need to remerchandise my shelves, to give the slow games more prominence. Sometimes this is a sign that I made an error of judgement in ordering the game in the first place. Sometimes, this is a sign that the hype and buzz that led to my order was, to quote Shakespeare1, ‘full of sound and fury, signifying nothing’.2 Since my inventory management is based on games selling, so that I have the physical room to bring in new ones, this is an issue. Sooner or later, I will get to the point where I need that game gone from my shelves.