Specialization vs Diversification: A Farmer’s Market Observation – Stonemaier Games

Specialization vs Diversification: A Farmer’s Market Observation

While walking around the Tower Grove Farmer’s Market this weekend, I noticed something interesting to me: There are quite a few stands that specialize in one specific type of item.

For example, there’s a mushroom stand. That’s all they sell: mushrooms. All shapes, sizes, and colors.

There’s another stand that just sells pickled things. Another stand only sells baklava in a variety of flavors. And so on.

As an average consumer walking around the farmer’s market, I’m drawn to these specialized stands even though there are other vendors that offer a bunch of different items. Why would I buy mushrooms from a stand that also offers tomatoes, lettuce, lemonade, earrings, and tapioca when I could go to the people who are entirely devoted to mushrooms?

I don’t know the stories behind these stands, but I would guess that some of them started out with a broader focus until they found their passion. There were probably more of them at some point, and some of them may have realized that there simply wasn’t a big enough audience to support such specialization–that’s the risk in finding a niche.

And it isn’t just about consumer perception. It’s also about honing your craft and mastering one specific thing.

On the flip side, I bet that some of the stands started out specializing in one thing, and then they found that they were more excited–and had success–offering a few different things. I visited one stand that sold a variety of eggs, knitted items, and really good Vietnamese iced coffee. They also had this goat hanging out near the stand, which makes me want to return next week:

As a publisher, I think the temptation is to diversify the product line. That certainly happened at Stonemaier Games: After Viticulture and Euphoria, I thought it would be a good idea to offer more than medium-weight Euro games in our lineup. So we signed Between Two Cities. I’m absolutely glad that we did, as it offers such an innovative partnership mechanism, but afterwards we realized the value in having a focus on a specific type of game. I’ve seen other companies due this far better than us with specific niche (Capstone Games, for example).

Crowdfunders may feel the same thing when they select new products to create or their reward levels. In trying to find offer for everyone, you often end up confusing people instead.

There are also companies that focus on a specific world, even though they offer different games within that world. That’s a clever hybrid of specialization and diversification.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this, whether they relate to farmer’s markets, specialization, or diversification.

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13 Comments on “Specialization vs Diversification: A Farmer’s Market Observation

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  1. Bundling, Upselling, and Selling the Wrong Feature: Farmer’s Market Observations – Stonemaier Games says:

    […] Specialization vs Diversification: A Farmer’s Market Observation […]

  2. Did you consider making imprints for different weight games? Stonemaier Family, Stonemaier Advanced etc (spitballing here). You would get the benefit of the main brand recognition, would still be intentional with just a couple of imprints, and customers would know what weight game they are buying.

    1. Indeed, we have considered something along those lines. The vast majority of our games are mid-weight Euros, so currently customers know what to expect, but if we ever wanted to start a “Pebblemaier” line of lighter games or a line of 2-player only games, we could. I don’t think that more is better, though, so if we ever did that, it wouldn’t be in addition to what we already do–such a product would take the place in our lineup of another product.

  3. To be sure, when Stonemaier Games puts out a new game, I pretty much know that I’m going to enjoy the game. The flavor and weight are always familiar in a good way.

    I’m not opposed to diversification though. For instance, I’m a pretty big fan of a bunch of Avalon Hill games from Acquire to Axis and Allies.

    While I’m nowhere near being the same league as either of you, Anthem Creations is taking our third approach. I’m building out a world, and I’m hoping to create an array of art styles and gameplay styles in doing so–much in the way Marvel did in the 90’s working across multiple mediums, But then again, world-building is a passion for me.

  4. If you stop and ask some of stands why they specialize, they will tell you that someone gave them the advice to do what you know how to do and do it well to succeed.

  5. Regardless of the Market store owners strategy, they are all impacted by external forces. Your company is a continuously evolving entity. It has to react to the world around it without diluting core values.

  6. This is a very timely post! I was recently watching a video with some YouTube personalities and they were discussing Red Rising. I am not exactly sure but it may have been a video with Alex from boardgameco and Quackalope, and they were saying something to the effect of before the release of Red Rising they had a good mental image of what a Stonemaier game would be. Now however because Red Rising, to them, is so different from the majority of your games that they aren’t sure what it will do to their mental image of a Stonemaier game going forward. I have been meaning to ask your opinion about that ever since but haven’t been able to make it to your weekly live cast.

    1. That’s interesting to hear! To me it fits right into our mold of medium-weight Euro games. :)

      1. Jamey,

        Thanks for the reply, I don’t necessarily agree with them, however I thought it was an interesting take and it made me wonder how much you think about your games fitting into the mold of what people perceive a Stonemaier game to be, or if you just go with your gut by making what feels right to you.

  7. I also expect that having different brands within a company allows it to diversify its specialization. A made-up example might be if you (Stonemaier) decided to pursue a line of games that are lighter weight, quick-to-teach, quick to set up and clean up, and which easily scale between player counts (Does that sound like any games you know?), and you decided to brand those games Between Two Games, setting them apart as games that are great for playing in between other games at a game night. Then, customers who are looking for something in that specialization know to look at your “Between Two Games” brand, whereas if they are looking for something in the medium-weight Euero range with a little more depth, they would go to your main Stonemaier brand.

    1. I’ve thought about this a lot recently because I’ve got an idea for a game that does not fit my brand in any way. Until now my games are on the lighter end, feature all-ages humor, colorful artwork and general thematic motifs of creativity, open-mindedness, positivity and togetherness.

      But I have an idea for a game I’m burning to make that would be an alternate-history critique of colonialism and its portrayal (in board games as much as anywhere else) that would require historical authenticity, more “adult” artwork to match the themes of morally dubious war, greed and conquest, and a level of design complexity above the threshold of my current audience.

      There are a few options: I could just publish it anyway because I’m a solo publisher and I do what I waaaant (and just accept that there will be little overlap with my current audience) – but then I’m preaching to the wrong crowd. Or I could create a new brand, as you suggest, but creating and maintaining one brand is hard enough! I can’t imagine taking on an entirely new one, that’s tantamount to creating a new company to someone in my position.

      Or I could pitch to other publishers better suited to the project, but what publisher takes pitches on a theme?? :D

  8. As I was reading your words, I had another thought. Isn’t it odd how someone specialising in mushrooms actually increases the amount of choice for consumers providing they are part of a market place. Bear with me. If all the vendors sold lots of different types of produce then the chances are they would all sell the same 4 types of mushrooms (the popular ones). But now there’s this dude selling only mushrooms you can choose from a whole range of mushrooms. Now if this vendor was the only fresh produce guy in the market it would mean less choice but because he is part of a market it works really well. I guess it’s the same in the board game market. The great Oink Games specialise in selling small box; short games. That’s cool if I’m after sweet filler games I know where to go. Stonemaier don’t do that kind of thing (unless that Realms thing is happening) but you sort of know what your getting with a Stonemaier game. It’s all about the quality of the market place not the individual sellers.

    1. That’s an excellent point about how specialization actually increases overall market diversification (and I really like the Oink Games example).

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