Ok.. so if you want to convince your boss to do something, unionizing his comic book shop is NOT the play. I have no idea what the ROI is but I assume it takes longer considering the rising costs of pinball games.

Simple solution: Just have the boss call someone that routes pins and tell him to drop one off. Bonus is you can switch them out every so often, and you don't have to fix it.

No offense to you or unions, but I would not have went down the union path for a comic book store.

There is much more to operating a machine on location than buying a pin and plugging it in. If it were as simple as that then there would be machines everywhere.

One machine isn't going to draw a lot of new customers in. I am all for unions, but unionizing over a pinball machine is just bizarre.

His store. He's putting his money where he knows it will make money for him.

A pinball in there is unknown. No idea if zoning ordinances allow it, what is required in licenses. And if it can earn it's keep. With new pin prices, it isn't likely to make enough to be worth trying.

Best try and have an operator put one in, and then see if it was worthwhile.

LTG : )

Heed Lloyd's advice, Grasshopper.

The man has owned a successful arcade for almost 50 years. Weathered many storms and still survived.

The man is a pinball operating legend.

Dude let the guy run his store the way he sees fit if my vote. You presented the argument beyond that I would say if not your place to decide as his employee

You proposing putting something in his business and you make money off of it ? That is an issue too. Especially if anything that generates income in his store is his.

Hopefully a split, and not a guarantee. Like X amount a day or you make up the difference.

LTG : )

Just trying to understand the scenario you have in mind a little clearer; You don't want to use an operator so who is going to supply the pinball machine? Are you expecting your boss to buy the machine or are you buying it? If your boss is the one buying the machine I don't understand how you would be entitled to 50%. It's his investment and his location. He would have all the risk in this situation. Doesn't make a lot of business sense for him in this situation to give half the proceeds to you. On the other hand if you bought the machine and placed it in his store, it may open him up to the idea of adding more machines if your machines proves to be profitable.

Dude, buy the game yourself and put it in the store. Split the take 50/50 with your boss.
Now you're a (small) route operator!

Why would you even get anything if an operator put a pin in? That would be between the router and the owner (unless your boss is very generous).

Sorry, don't mean to sound negative.

I bet you quitting would improve the first three.

yea this seems weird all over. Do you get a percentage of income brought into the store or something? Seems this is more about you making more money than your store. If so, maybe tell your boss you can go half/half on the cost of the machine with him.

Id say 1 machine wouldnt be as big of a draw as you think. Youd probably need more like 3. Start with an operator.

you arent going to be running tournaments on 1 game. That sounds like the worst tournament ive ever heard of. Are there any locations in your area with multiple pins? Why would folks go to the comic book store with 1 when others have plenty?

You could open your own store. But what would you do if your 2 employees tried to unionize and steal your store from you………The irony.

But seriously. Open your own store and put in a pinball machine. Problem solved.

Like if he owned a store and you worked there?
Oh, wait..............

You ever route pins before ? If not and a new location, you have no idea what the players will like or not. You have money to buy more and rotate to a game people will put money into. You can't be passionate about this. Not buy what you like. You'll need to figure out what earns.

What does he need you for ?

I don't mean to sound cold or cruel. Just trying to get you to where this happens and is successful.

LTG : )

I’ve been mulling over and over what to type here but I’ll follow the “if what you want to say isn’t nice, don’t say it at all” and say nothing lol

Sounds like you want your boss to buy you a pin……There is NOTHING to manage with a new pin for the most part. Save your money and buy a pin. Then route the pin in the store if your boss will let you. The truth is a single pin is not gonna bring in a lot of “extra” revenue for your boss and is not enough for a tournament…bars/entertainment establishments with multiple pins work well for tournaments as they usually have food/drink and space for 20-30+ people.

Forgot this was some moron's troll account. Nothing to see here fellas, just some bored dork.

Hai guys!!! Look at me manage this pinball while my boss pays me to work.

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Does the store have enough unused floor space for a pinball machine and players ?

LTG : )

I think you have a few options in this situation:

1. Buy the machine yourself and ask your boss for permission to place in the store. This is the ONLY situation I feel that you are entitled to any profit the machine generates.
2. Seek out other business in your area that have pins (if there are any) and kindly ask if they will give you a breakdown of how they manage their pins; ie..private ownership or operator, pay split, profits, ect. Then contact an area operator for a breakdown of split %, city gaming fees, available games they have to offer, ect . Present all this information to your boss so he can make an informed decision so he can weigh his risks/rewards.
3. Keep your mouth shut and respect your boss' final decision.

Put one of your own games in there and see how it does. Give your boss the money for space and electricity. Plus your getting paid to be there already so just let him keep all the proceeds. If he likes it then go from there as far as putting in more or different games. Buying a new game is probably out of his budget at this point I'm guessing. In other words, start small and give it time to catch on from all angles.

John

If it's set up right for tournaments. No ball save, no extra balls, etc. etc.

I've run tournaments. You'd be surprised how long they can run.

LTG : )

I never saw anyone playing the pin at the comic book store on Big Bang Theory. Have you checked local ordinances? May not even be legal to have a machine in there.

How about you open your own store so you’re your own boss?

A small business owners worst nightmare, getting overthrown by his workers.

I’m guessing his dream wasn’t to open a shop only to be told how to run it by the people he hired.

This is one of the oddest posts I've seen in a while, congrats I guess.

Honestly, it sounds like you've presented your case, and then some. If he's not interested, he's not interested. It's his place, he can do what he wants.

Personally, I think you should let the matter rest for now before you risk capsizing the boat.

Yes, were all enthusiasts, and we all want to see more pins on location, but you can't twist someone's arm about it if they're just not biting.

Once some time has passed, maybe instead of trying to convince him to install something new in his shop, invite him instead to other places or events that might have pinball.

Then maybe it could turn out to be his idea to bring in a game, rather than you pestering him about it.

All of his threads are crazy shit like this.

Obviously a work !

I love pinball and own an family entertainment center. You know what I don't have in it at the moment? A pinball. Expensive. High maintenance. Low earning.

Also, it's a niche kinda store. My guess is the guy isn't making bank to drop 7k on a game because he likes it.

If you feel that string about it, buy or finance one yourself, give your boss a cut.

OPM is the easiest thing to spend in the world. Other people's money.

You work in a comic shop in DC? Great, I work in DC too. I’ll swing by at lunch to convince your boss. What’s the name of the comic shop?

You need some dirt on your boss so you can blackmail him into buying a pinball machine. Try breaking into his email to find something you can use. Good luck, your boss seems like an asshole.

Punchy the Clown should do the trick.

I already told the guys at work. We’d love to swing by and sign the petition.

What store? Fantom? Alliance? Big Planet?

I'll be in the area this weekend maybe I could convince him. What's the address and name.

Let me say this as nicely as possible, you’re a funny dude.

How long before o.p. gets himself fired over this?

As an avid card and board gamer I would absolutely HATE listening to a pinball machine being played. It’s a dumb idea. Your boss is right. Plus you want him to take all of the risk while you “manage” it. Have you ever operated, maintained or repaired games? I doubt it.

You are correct, he does seem to want control of his business. He seems like a very odd business owner.