malachi_rempen

Clearly I did about the interest anyone would have in this AMA 😅

I don't think it makes sense to chase the dream out of the blue - for me anyway, that was too great a risk. When I launched my first Kickstarter I already had a following for my web comic. I would never have done it otherwise. And at that point I had been doing the comic for six years straight, never missing a week, for free. So although I didn't plan it that way, I had put in my time beforehand, for many years, developing and cultivating that audience. That's where you gotta start. In the online / crowdfunding world, you have to give give give give give before you can ask for anything in return. It's not easy.

Ooh, I can make some recommendations for you - Balloons by Chicco is great because it ages up with the kid, and it's not competitive so it teaches cooperation. The Busytown game has been a hit with my son, also cooperative - kind of a mix between a race and Where's Waldo, but with Richard Scarry people which is great. And then you can't really go wrong with anything by the publisher Haba. Lots of wood and natural materials, and gameplay that won't make adults want to die from boredom or annoyance.

I don't design games for kids that young, but I try to aim for "all ages" generally speaking, which usually means 10+.

I went with Whatz Games out of Shanghai, mostly because Roll Camera! had a tricky clapper box design and all the other manufacturers I talked to said "nah we can't do it." Whatz said, "we'll send you a sample in 10 days." They're great, quality stuff.

I round up the order number (plus about 15% contingency) to the nearest 500. Might not be the most cost effective way to do it but I'd prefer to have less overstock hanging around than a better per unit discount. I'm all about keeping operations tight. I pay for the difference up front yes, but I recoup that with online / convention sales down the road.

Luckily I am not doing all the fulfillment myself! I hire out fulfillment hubs in each global region (USA/CA, UK, EU, AUS and Asia) and they do all that hard stuff.

The $10.5k estimate was based on the factory's minimum order quantity (1000) and the cost to print and freight the expansion across the ocean. I would have lost money with $10.5k but I was pretty sure we'd pass it.

It's a bit of a gamble! My wife just got a good job in the healthcare industry but she works long hours, so I was in a position anyway where I was going to need to take more dad responsibility. Which I was happy to do - so it was win-win for both of us. It's not a long term solution but it'll give us some runway.