By Scott Wright
A BOARD game created by a one-time Edinburgh taxi driver has experienced a huge rise in sales as households return to traditional pastimes during the lockdown.
More than 1,600 copies of Taxi! have been sold since the imposition of social distancing measures on March 23.
The spike has been in line with the sales growth of 240 per cent seen across the UK board game market in the last two months, coinciding with people spend more time indoors to help halt the spreadof the virus. Nearly 26,000 copies of Taxi! have now been sold since its launch by former cabbie Derek Carroll and Gordon Drysdale in 2015, with the business turning over £100,000 in its most recent financial year.
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The game involves players travelling around the board, picking up passengers and receiving tips if they successfully answer questions about cities or sports teams. The player who has earned the most money by the end of a shift is declared the winner.
Mr Drysdale said: “The peak period for board game sales is traditionally November and December, when companies typically achieve around 90% of annual sales. What we have seen in the past eight weeks is unparalleled, with a rise in sales of over 200% compared to what we would normally sell at this time of year.
“The coronavirus pandemic has placed society in an incredibly challenging and stressful situation and the growth in boardgame sales seems to indicate that families are perhaps returning to traditional games as a way of spending time together, which is heartening.
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“Boardgames allow households to connect together in an entertaining and meaningful way.”
Several editions of Taxi! have now been launched, including versions dedicated to Edinburgh, Glasgow, London, and New York, Hearts and Hibs, and Scottish Rugby. Talks are now under way with other national and international football clubs and sporting bodies with a view to further editions being rolled out. The game can be purchased online through itison, with high street stockists including WH Smith, Waterstones and Jenners. Prices typically start ay £29.95 for city editions, rising to £32.95 for sports.
Mr Drysdale said: “It has been a long haul over the past five years but we now have the infrastructure in place to allow us to seek funding for both the rapid growth potential for our board games as well as the development of a new free to
play app.”
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