Opportunity knocks

Posted: Friday, Sep 24, 2004 - 12:18:07 am PDT
By RICK THOMAS
Staff writer


Courtesy photo
This is one of the new games former Coeur d'Alene resident Jeremy Young and SimplyFun will be marketing through home parties under a program being launched today and Saturday at the Coeur d'Alene Inn. CHS graduate returns to pitch the prospect of selling party games

COEUR d'ALENE -- A former Coeur d'Alene resident who made it big is back to kickoff a unique new business venture tonight and Saturday.

Jeremy Young, a 1989 Coeur d'Alene High School graduate, will hold the first of what he calls "opportunity meetings" at 7 p.m. tonight and 10 a.m. Saturday at the Coeur d'Alene Inn. Those meetings will introduce prospects to a new direct-sales home party program selling games from his new company, SimplyFun Inc. He compares it to Tupperware or Pampered Chef parties.

"Instead of coming over and watching someone cook pizza on a pizza stone, people come over and play games," Young said.

SimplyFun has created six new games, using cards, boards or just game pieces, which independent game consultants will market at parties held by friends or family members, typically with about eight attending. The consultant will provide the family-oriented games, and instruct players on the basics and intricacies of them.

A party will last 1 1/2 to two hours, with five games played, said Matt Molen, vice president of marketing.

"It's like having a game night with friends," Molen said. "The feel is like going to a friend's house -- less about a sales pitch, more about having fun."

The concept is the brain-child of Gail DeGiulio, chief executive officer of Issaquah, Wash.-based SimplyFun, and she, Molen and Young developed the idea. They've been conducting test parties in the Seattle area for several months and are now ready to begin signing up consultants. She and Young will be on hand for the program initiation.

Molen said he expects the idea to appeal to people age 30-45, with about 70 percent women, but younger consultants will also probably be interested.

For an investment of $150, consultants get two each of five games to use for parties. The games can be ordered at the parties, or consultants can purchase extras to sell on the spot.

Games will sell for $20 to $45, and be of "heirloom quality," Molen said.

"We expect them to be kept on the shelf and played for many years," he said.

High-quality games are the latest interest of Young, who created VServices.com and sold it to Micron Electronics for $48 million. Last year he started Uberplay, a collection of high-quality board games to be marketed in stores.

The SimplyFun games will be sold only through the game parties.

The games range from "Walk the Dogs," which uses 63 miniature dogs placed on a table top "winding nose to tail like a conga line," said Molen, with cards depicting the front and rear ends of the dogs. Players age 7 up then try to get their dogs to the front of the line.

"Linkity," a fast-paced word-association card game is designed to be played in about 15 minutes by three to five players age 8 and up.

"Eye to Eye," a board game, is designed for family parties of three to six, ages 8 and up, where each player takes a card type, such as "candy bars," and writes three brand names, with the idea to match other players' choices.

"It's Scattergories meets Family Feud," Molen said.

Information: (425) 557-7767