Travis Severance of Millennium Games and Hobbies in Rochester, New York read Andy Battaglia's comments regarding the costs of holding HeroClix events (see "Andy Battaglia of Comics Etc. on 'HeroClix Organized Play'") and had this to say.
 
When I read the title of this article I assumed that the content inside was going to be much different.  I thought that it was going to speak to the lateness of the kits, the issues with the shortages, or the lack of communication on the part of WizKids at times to address these concerns.
 
Making a profit on an event with an organized play kit and sealed product is just math.  You take the cost of the kit and divide that by the number of expected players.  You take the cost of the sealed product per player.  Then figure out how much per head you want to make on the event.  If you are concerned about attendance numbers you can charge a fee based on a sliding scale.  That way you don't lose money.
 
Let's take Month 1 AVX as an example.  Using some easy numbers, if the kit cost $90 and the sealed product cost $60 and you assume 10 players for the event, your cost per player is $15.00.  Let's say that you want to make $5 a player.  Charge $20 for the event and you're golden.
 
The Month 1 kit had a ton of value in it.  Each player gets the large Phoenix Force base, two of the Phoenix shards, a double sided map and the usual number of additional prize pieces for top finishers and fellowship.  If we use the retail value of what a player is getting then they all should be happy.  Boosters retail for $11.99, huge pack boosters, which is essentially what the Phoenix base is, retails for $39.99.  That doesn't include the value of the extra shards and the map.  So each player walks away with at least $52 in value for their $20 spent.  That's better value than a standard retail discount.  The value on these items is taken away when people don't price them accordingly.   
 
If you are getting more players and want to reduce the cost of the event, feel free.  If you are getting fewer players and need to charge more, just explain the math to them.  Let them know ahead of time what the upper end price will be.  In my experience, players never mind paying less, the same can't be said for more.  Most players will understand that as a business owner, to continue doing business, there is a need to turn a reasonable profit.  We are not running charity organizations. 
 
The concept behind the WizKids storyline OP program is one of the best in the industry.  They are giving players a solid, tangible reason to come into our businesses at least once a month.  The story lines they have chosen so far have been popular and fun.  The idea of having a sub set of minis, like Fear Itself, as part of an organized play series, was awesome.  It got a bit stale after six months of opening the same stuff but they have addressed that with the War of Light series that is next on the block.  They took the feedback from retailers and players and decided to split the sealed product into two sub sets.  That means instead of seeing a bit of a tail-off in the last few months because people have all of the pieces, they will need to come in for the whole series to collect them all. 
 
WizKids has had operational issues with distribution of this series.  Some of the kits have run late.  Some of the kits were heavily allocated so people didn't get what they ordered.  There were times when they didn't give us all the information we needed to properly figure out what the price of the event should be far enough in advance to properly advertise.
 
The cost of the kits is different from the way WizKids used to handle organized play.  The change has been in effect for a while though.  No Man's Land, Infinity Gauntlet and Fear Itself all had kit costs. 
 
Organized play is not for every store.  If you can't get enough players to cover the cost of the kit then running events doesn't make a ton of sense.  We, as retailers, should take the responsibility to price events according to our costs.  WizKids, unlike some other companies, includes judge prize support as well.  That helps to additionally lower the cost of having someone run those events.  Most judges are happy with just the provided prize support pieces.  If they aren't I would find someone that is. 
 
Occasionally players ask why my event costs more than the store down the road.  I just explain the same math to them, as I did here.  Most understand and those that don't are usually not truly my customer.  Players will always want more for less.
 
I would hate to think that other publishers would not offer dynamic organized play events because they were not confident that I could properly monetize the event to make it successful and profitable.  WizKids has had their issues operationally with this series thus far.  I do commend them for the effort they are making to drive customers into my store on a monthly basis.  
 
The opinions expressed in this Talk Back are solely those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editorial staff of ICv2.com.