Mini-stores at 7 locations specialize in video games
By Andrew Gomes
Advertiser Staff Writer
Blockbuster Video has brought its video-game rental and sale expansion strategy to Hawai'i, carving out Game Rush "stores" inside several O'ahu Blockbuster locations.
Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser
Seven Game Rush store-within-a-store outlets opened over the last two weeks, with an eighth scheduled to open in January.
Kevin Nguyen, 11, and Robert Aguirre, 11, try out the video games at a Blockbuster store. There are seven Game Rush stores-within-stores on O'ahu, with an eighth opening early next year in Mililani.
Each mini-store occupies about 900 square feet in a typical Blockbuster to rent and sell an expanded selection of game hardware and software, including used games that can be traded.
Game Rush outlets also are set up for customers to sample games on a variety of consoles, and are staffed by game enthusiasts familiar with new and popular software titles.
Blockbuster said the concept enables it to take advantage of existing store traffic while minimizing operating expenses and capital investment.
"Game Rush positions Blockbuster as the only major retailer where consumers can rent, buy new and previously played games, and even trade games all in one convenient location," said Thibault de Chatellus, a Blockbuster senior vice president and games general manager, in a statement.
The video game retailing business is a roughly $10-billion-a-year industry, according to New York-based consulting firm The NPD Group, and Blockbuster has tried improving its position against chains such as GameStop and smaller video game stores over the last couple of years.
Los Angeles-based Blockbuster tested in-store game shops in 2002, and last year rolled out the Game Rush concept at 151 Blockbuster stores.
By the end of this year, Blockbuster expects to have about 450 Game Rush outlets among its more than 6,000 stores in the United States.
In Hawai'i, there are 25 Blockbuster stores, including 18 on O'ahu. The local Game Rush locations already open are Pi'ikoi, Kapi'olani, Kahala, Kane'ohe, Kailua, Pearl City and Waipahu. The eighth store, opening in January, will be in Mililani.
Paul Thorpe, regional director of operations for Blockbuster in Hawai'i, said that the initial response has been good and that Blockbuster is considering adding more Hawai'i Game Rush locations next year.
Reach Andrew Gomes at agomes@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8065.
