Wizards of the Coast
Acquires The Game Keeper Inc.

Gaming News & Press Releases

by Bill Brierton

Wizards of the Coast Inc., a leading adventure games manufacturer announced that is has acquired The Game Keeper Inc., one of the largest specialty games retail chains in the United States.

Wizards of the Coast President and CEO Peter Adkison said, "The purchase of the Game Keeper fits naturally with our corporate strategy of creating great games and providing people with places to play. As a hobby and family game manufacturer, we create quality games that provide people of all ages with hours of entertainment. These retail stores, which are located in regional malls, will allow us to host game leagues and demonstrate how much fun getting together with friends and family can be."

The Game Keeper, headquartered in Santa Barbara, California, operates and manages 53 year- round retail stores and plans to open 100 seasonal stores in locations around the country. The stores provide an interactive experience, offering game demonstrations as well as a selection of more than 2,500 different game products and accessories. The country's leading importer of fine chess sets. The Game Keeper also sells puzzles, backgammon, dominoes, cribbage, cards and family board games. Wizard of the Coast games, as well as other adventure and hobby games, will be added to The Game Keeper's product mix.

Karin Kriznik, director of site based marketing and events for Wizards of the Coast, said, "With 23 years of experience in the retail arena, The Game Keeper will bring our company a tremendous amount of industry expertise and professionalism. We expect to work together to bring game enthusiasts an incredible play environment supported by the most knowledgeable and service oriented staff in the industry. Additionally, stores will offer one of the nation's widest varieties of specialty games and the latest computer titles. There will be something to appeal to everyone."

According to Cheryl Stem, founder of The Game Keeper "The synergies between our two companies will cater to the most astute game players from ages 5 to 105. I look forward to giving Game Keeper customers the opportunity that Wizards of the Coast provides to participate in tournaments, gaming events and ongoing game education. We will continue our mission of providing the most complete selection of games and game accessories the world has to offer." Wizards of the Coast's initial plans are to retain The Game Keeper name on many of the stores because of the company's strong brand awareness. However, Wizards of the Coast, which recently opened six retail stores in Washington state and plans to open ten more stores throughout the country this year, will eventually transition the Game Keeper store names to the Wizards of the Coast identity. The terms and financial details between the two companies were not disclosed.

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