GameStop’s (GME) Woes Continue as Aussie Subsidiary Shutters 19 Stores
GameStop's woes continue as the company's Australian subsidiary plans to close dozens of retail stores. | Image: Spencer Platt/Getty Images/AFP
- GameStop’s Australian subsidiary EB Games is set to close 19 stores in the next couple of weeks
- The company’s bad business strategy is self-evident even as it attends a 2020 consumer trends conference
- The share price also looks ready to roll over to new all-time lows
GameStop (NYSE:GME) is very quickly going the way of Blockbuster. Australian news reports that EB Games, a subsidiary of the video game retailer, is set to close at least 19 stores down under before the end of January .
The good news is that gamers can grab bargains of up to 60% off. The bad news is the company is still in big trouble:
As the retail apocalypse continues unabated into the new decade , it appears that GameStop still hasn’t learned its lesson. Instead of focusing on its core gaming business, it went on an acquisition spree in recent years including a purchase of the random pop culture collectibles retailer Zing.
GameStop Laughably Confirms Attendance at Consumer Trends Conference
To add insult to injury, GameStop also confirmed on Tuesday that it would attend this year’s ICR Conference on Jan. 14. The conference is an invite-only event that claims to help companies and investors understand consumer trends.
If the annual conference had actually held any sway, it would by now have advised the ailing business how to survive the meteoric rise of digital gaming.
Physical game media is clearly on its way out, except perhaps for future-looking technology like augmented and virtual reality. Facebook, for example, raised its AR and VR spend to a mammoth $10 billion last year in preparation for the new age of gaming.
GameStop Shares Look Ready to Roll Over
Despite a mid-2019 bounce, GameStop shares look ready to roll over once again:
Currently hovering around $5.72 a share, it seems only a matter of time until new all-time lows are breached.
The fan-favorite of many nostalgic gamers is now even more likely to see its end in a buyout or worse, bankruptcy.
