Can this election just be over? There is always a pronounced negative effect on retail sales during the U.S. Presidental election years, because consumers value certainty. There will be a boost in sales no matter who wins. (Joe Biden is going to win.) Despite my incorrect prediction of the election outcome four years ago, I am confident enough in the underlying principle that this article is practically a reprint of the one I wrote at the time.
In 2012, Desert Sky Games was still newly opened and did not expect much in the way of sales. In 2016, we were almost finished with our first lease and had a miserable month thanks to the combination of a contentious election between Clinton and Trump, the Crystal Commerce "Red October" outages, the new Magic set Kaladesh being poorly received on initial release, and a lurch in the ever-increasing shift of general merchandise shopping toward the mass market.
Now it's 2020, and in addition to a hellscape pandemic year with financial ruin upon many, we've somehow got an even more contentious election between Trump and Biden, a change-of-generation with new Playstation 5 and Xbox Series consoles already sold out on pre-order, the new Magic set Zendikar Rising underperforming at the gate thanks to a slate of Standard bans and supply chain chaos, and DSG isn't even in any other categories anymore besides TCGs and video games, which is just as well because I hear nothing but snafu stories coming from those as well.
The election will ultimately resolve out. Like I said, regardless of who wins, people will turn the page and go back to buying things, when they can (go stimulus!). The Nintendo Switch is having a banner year so I have no real worries there; retro is doing fine, the PS5 and XS* will both drive tremendous sales and trade-ins, and Zendikar Rising and the forthcoming Commander Legends have enough great cards in them to keep players interested. The Expedition lands returned for their second installment since 2015's Battle for Zendikar, and this time the shocklands did not appear since they just rotated out from the Guilds year, but the fetchlands did appear, along with a great assortment of other most-wanteds, and players are loving it. Magic in 2020, strictly as a product slate, is far and away the best it's ever been. I wish it were possible for players to come to the store and play it.
Once the pandemic ends on November 4th (eyeroll) we can maybe even re-open the game tables before too much longer. I don't mean that COVID wasn't real or any such nonsense; it is obviously both real and serious. But once the election is over, the politicization of the pandemic can start tapering down and we can relegate it to the boring purview of medical professionals and state/local health agencies. There are COVID vaccine trials already underway and I know personally some people participating in them. The trials are being handled like the national security priority it is, and once a vaccine clears trials, it will be wise to go ahead and get it, rather than holding out or waiting for a better/revised option.
My divorce and the sale of my house are continuing to dominate my non-business time, so articles here on The Backstage Pass will likely continue to be sporadic. Hang tight and we'll be back on track before you know it. I have also been invited to do some article writing by one of our strategic partner companies here in the industry so I will be delighted to put a spotlight on that when it's time.
Have a great Halloween weekend, and whether the election goes your way or not, I hope you have a better end of 2020 than the middle was!
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