Name of your website?Backgammon and Board Games Shop
Your name?
Chris Ternel
Your Location (city, etc)
Leamington Spa
Please give us a short summary of your website?
We are the oldest online supplier of backgammon equipment, with the widest choice. Over 500 items, including backgammon sets, precision dice, cups, checkers and the leading backgammon software for learning and analysing backgammon.
What inspired you to launch your own website?
Having played backgammon since the early 80's in Denmark, I started the Danish Backgammon Federation in 1987. The game quickly took of, and many players needed equipment. In 1988 I started a small "brick and mortar" retail outlet and soon I was contacted by players in other countries wanting to buy equipment. The coming of the worldwide web meant that I would be able to supply more people and thereby reduce prices by being able to buy stock larger quantities making it more affordable. The end result being more people playing, especially in Europe.
When did you launch your first website, and what was it?
After having serviced Danish players for more than 10 years, I opened my website branch in 1997. In 2005 I relocated the business to the United Kingdom, and now only sell online.
How did you decide on a name for your website?
Initially it was just called Backgammon Shop short and sweet and descriptive, and I also wanted a short url, hence bgshop.com - easy to type, and easy to remember. After a few years I decided to try to sell other board games, the url could remain unchanged as "bg" is the shortened term for backgammon, but it also can be the shortened term for board games.
What makes it different from other, similar offerings?
Apart from being the first online outlet for backgammon, it also has the largest choice of backgammon equipment anywhere (both online and physical). I will always strive to provide competitive prices and a day-to-day service. I will ship anywhere in the world, and accept all major currencies.
What is your eventual goal? (To sell it, keep it for income, secure a book or other mainstream media deal?)
I am a well known international tournament player, and I intend to carry on using my expertise to provide quality backgammon equipment to other players until I retire from the game.
How does your investment of time and money balance against your success?
I have managed to combine the hobby that I loved for nearly 30 years, into a business that provides an income and a satisfaction knowing that I provide a service that is appreciated by many satisfied customers. For me that is success.
If you had an unlimited development budget for development, how would you change your site?
Backgammon is a niche market, as the website is today it has an order form and only accepts online payments via PayPal. If I had an unlimited budget I would turn it into a proper e-commerce website with a shopping basket and credit card facilities.
If your site got really big, really quickly, would you be able to keep up with the demand?
By sticking mainly to backgammon it is unlikely that demand will get big really quickly. However if it did keeping up with demand would not be a problem as it is very well stocked. The biggest problem might be some suppliers that could not provide the equipment quick enough.
What unexpected costs and headaches have you had to deal with?
Fortunately there haven't been any unexpected costs. The only real headaches (at the start) were unreliable internet connections and service providers, but that seems to be a thing of the past. Sometimes a supplier might be late when delivering, but it doesn't really cause a headache.
What has been your biggest challenge?
The biggest challenge has always been getting up to speed after returning from my summer break (2-3 weeks in July) when I attend several international tournaments back-to-back, this includes the World Championships in Monte Carlo.
What method has been most successful for promoting your website?
By far the most successful promotion of my website has been mouth-to-mouth. Having many regular customers, in particular those that buy books and need advice as to what they should read. Being inexpensive and providing timely an qualified information, is itself a good promotion for the website.
How has running your website differed from your expectations?
The amount of time it takes to pack orders, then ship them is much more time consuming than I expected. Also the amount of junk mail has increased considerably since I started. The great thing about only selling via the website means that I have much more freedom to do what I want when I want - no more 9 to 5.
How long have you run the site already, and how long will you continue to keep it up if you don't enjoy big gains in traffic, income or popularity?
As I said earlier the site has been running since 1997, and unless I stop playing backgammon and have a complete change of life, I will keep on running it until I retire or can't.
Do you find it difficult to run a website?
Not anymore, there where of course many issues at the start. However by involving myself seriously for the first year means that now I can let it virtually run itself. The hard part of having a commercial website is all the administration that is required to run it as a business, in particular what is required by the government - fortunately even the UK seems to be coming up to speed by making more of the admin. available online.
What is your website address?
Backgammon and Board Games Shop
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