Battlefront Miniatures stops selling to Maelstrom Games

[LostInTheDark]

Interesting announcement on Maelstrom's website. From the details in the statement it looks like Battlefront got upset that Maelstrom were offering their customers the best deal they could rather than holding to Battlefront's pricing strategy.

http://www.maelstromgames.co.uk/index.php?act=new&ref=204

So it’s not just GW that's “price conscious”. GW might not like others stealing their IP, but at least they don’t seem to be into price fixing.

Well I supose if you set it high enough in the first place...:)

[wittdooley]

Doubt we'll hear any hubub about this, though.

Haters gon' hate.

[Denzark]

Maelstrom Games have always been fair and awesome with me.

Reading the emails it seems BF Games have their panties up their arse crack.

[Aldramelech]

I'm surprised this took so long to appear here, its been all over the net for days.

LOTS of BF Customers are very, very upset about this, three threads on BFs own site have been closed as their Mods try to put a stop to BF's own loyal Customers telling them that they are sickened by BF's bully boy tactics and lots more stating that they will no longer buy BF products as a result (I'm one of them).

The long and the short of it is BF are trying to tell MG how much they can charge for BF product, which is against UK law, and MG are refusing to bow to BF's illegal demands, so BF have used the flimsy excuse that MG are not a bricks and mortar store (which they are and BF knows this as most of their top brass has visited it at one time or another) and yanked their 40% discount. MG then took legal action to secure an order that had already been processed by BF but not sent and BF then pulled the plug.

BF's behavior throughout has been unprofessional at best and in certain comments with the correspondence insulting to the hobby as a whole.

The General opinion in most places is that BF have grown to big for their boots, underestimated the effect this will have on their business as Customers defect out of anger or just plain old cost and that with the rise of new plastic product and Forged in Battle ramping up and being stocked by MG their business is going to be in trouble soon.

[Inquisitor Hate Machine]

well that doesn't surprise me, I know of one ex-gw regional sales rep who quit and went to work for BF. And low and behold they started sending pedantic bullying emails about their price point to various stores...

Edit:

I will say that one thing BF said made me think. the line that the online store is hurting their other partners. If they are making this stance to try to stabilize the HUGE discrepancy between buying online and buying in brink and mortar stores... well, then i can say I support them. I've SEEN with my own EYES how much online sales eat away at local businesses. And I really cant buy the "the best deal is always best for the customer" because it isn't always true. There are times when you sacrifice local play spaces / FLGS / events just to save a few bucks.

I wont say that I am clean of this, I just purchased things on ebay at 50% retail. and yes I do feel bad, but Ive been trying to buy these things locally for a month, and they can never get it in stock. I will say that there is merit to the argument of "Well, Battlefront gets paid either way!" but I can also appreciate their attempt to maintain a larger pool of businesses that buy from them.

[Lane]

GW might not like others stealing their IP, but at least they don’t seem to be into price fixing.


So GW refusing to sell direct to companies without an actual brick n mortar storefront, raising the price that distributors pay and telling online retailers they could not use images of the boxes was not price fixing. Oh, I know at least one brick n mortar store that was 'highly discouraged' from offering discounts at about the same time.

[ted1138]

Doesn't this just play into the hands of people like "the Plastic Soldier Company Ltd", who offer(IMHO)a far better product, at half the price?

[greendragon]

It is interesting to read this thread and look back on how things are. Maelstrom now sells Battlefront again through whatever reason and Battlefront enforces a 10% maximum discount rule across the board, where they will not supply unless you play to this. Whether this is legal or not I do not know, but I do know they are within their rights to not supply as they choose and I'm sure they have a good legal team to back it up.

Myself, I get on alright with Battlefront, we pay up front and comply with their 10% terms as we still do business, it makes about a third of my overall business, while GW takes up almost two thirds (bar a small percent of other bits and pieces). GW's stuff with not allowing you to use the pictures is very odd. But their tiered discount to bricks and mortar stores is a fantastic idea. Encouraging you to have gaming tables and actually promote the hobby as I've found with Flames of War, if people actually give it a go - more often than not they enjoy it and take it up.