EB Games (once called Electronics Boutique) is a global video game brand used by several stores in Canada and Australia.

The company was first created in the United States in 1977 by James Kim in Philadelphia. At first, it sold calculators, radios, and digital watches. Later, it began selling computers and software. In the mid-1990s, the company started selling video games and expanded to Canada, Europe, and Australia. In 2002, the name was changed to EB Games. Some stores also used the names EBX and EB World.

In October 2005, EB Games agreed to be taken over by GameStop Corp. for $1.44 billion. GameStop stopped using the EB name in the United States and renamed all American stores to GameStop. However, the EB name continues to be used in Canada and Australia because people there still recognize it. These stores operate under agreements with GameStop Corp.

History

At first, the company sold calculators and digital watches. From 1977 until the mid-1990s, the company started selling computers, software, and other items, but later stopped. Electronics Boutique also operated stores under the name Games 'n Gadgets. These stores focused more on entertainment and games than on business tools. In the mid-1990s, the company shifted its focus to TV-based video games and consoles, though many stores still had sections for PC games.

On April 3, 2000, Electronics Boutique offered to buy FuncoLand for $110 million, paying $17.50 in cash for each share of Funco’s parent company. The company’s CEO said they had been trying to buy FuncoLand for two years and waited until the stock price was right. On April 5, Barnes & Noble’s subsidiary, Babbage’s Etc., offered to buy Funco for $135 million, either in cash or a mix of cash and Barnes & Noble stock. On April 12, Funco gave Electronics Boutique five days to increase its offer or accept Barnes & Noble’s offer. Electronics Boutique matched Barnes & Noble’s offer. On April 26, Barnes & Noble raised its bid to $161.5 million, or $24.75 per share, giving Electronics Boutique five more days to respond. On May 3, Electronics Boutique withdrew its bid, and Funco accepted Barnes & Noble’s offer the next day. The original agreement between Electronics Boutique and Funco included a $3.5 million breakup fee, which Barnes & Noble paid.

In May 2000, to make the company more consistent, Electronics Boutique renamed most of its EB and EB Gameworld stores to EB Games. They also announced plans to close or sell all of their EB Kids and Brandywine Sports Collectible Stores.

For many years, EB Games’ main distribution center was in Louisville, Kentucky, with two smaller centers and a World Headquarters in West Chester, Pennsylvania. As video games became more popular, EB Games decided to build a new distribution center. In October 2004, EB Games opened a new 314,000-square-foot distribution center in Sadsbury Township, Pennsylvania. The World Headquarters in West Chester stayed open, but workers from the old centers were moved to the new location.

On October 6, 2005, shareholders of EB Games and GameStop agreed to a $1.44 billion takeover deal. The offer included $38.15 in cash and about ¾ of a GameStop stock share for each EB Games stock share. This was a 34.2% increase over the previous price of EB Games stock. GameStop closed EB Games’ new distribution center in Sadsbury, Pennsylvania, its call center in Las Vegas, and its international headquarters in West Chester, Pennsylvania, resulting in over 800 job losses. Sixty-five former EB Games employees were offered jobs at GameStop’s headquarters in Grapevine, Texas.

List of operations

EB Games started its international growth by opening three stores in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 1993. The Canadian part of the company was the largest international section, with more than 300 stores by May 2008.

On July 28, 2021, EB Games said its Canadian operations would change their name to GameStop. This change was expected to finish by the end of 2021. Stores began showing GameStop signs by September 2021.

On May 5, 2025, GameStop Canada announced that its assets were sold to Canadian businessman Stephan Tétrault. The company also said it would soon return to using the EB Games name.

In 1997, Electronics Boutique entered the Australian market by opening its first store at Westfield Miranda in New South Wales. It became the first national video game store in Australia.

Since 2007, EB Games Australia has worked with the Starlight Children's Foundation. Every year, EB Games and Zing Pop Culture stores hold "Starlight Week" to raise money. In 2021, Starlight Week collected over $850,000 for the Foundation.

In May 2011, EB Games started the EB Games Expo, an annual video game trade fair in Australia. Known as EB Expo or EBX, the first event took place at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre from October 15 to 16, 2011. The Expo lets video game developers show new games and hardware to the public, unlike E3 at the time.

In October 2011, EB Games launched the EB World loyalty program. At first, the program had four reward levels. Customers could move up levels by earning points called "carrots" when shopping at EB Games stores (later including Zing Pop Culture stores).

In May 2015, four former EB Games employees claimed a district manager bullied them, harassed them, discriminated against them, and made them work without pay. These incidents were said to have happened at stores in Figtree and Dapto. The employees reported these claims to the WorkCover Authority of New South Wales and the Australian Human Rights Commission.

In January 2020, EB Games said it would close 19 stores that were not making money by the end of the month.

In February 2021, The Sydney Morning Herald wrote an article about EB Games. It said selling pop culture items and used games helped the company grow. That same month, EB Games reported success and planned to open new stores.

In July 2014, EB Games Australia opened Zing Pop Culture (also called ZiNG Pop Culture), a store that sells pop culture merchandise. The first store was at Indooroopilly Shopping Centre in Indooroopilly, Queensland.

In September 2021, EB Games started Zing Marketplace, an online store for retro gaming and pop culture items. Customers could sell items to each other through the website. Zing Marketplace stopped operating on March 22, 2022.

As of January 2026, Zing has 336 stores in Australia.

List of defunct international operations

EB Games operated in Spain, Germany, France, Austria, Denmark, Finland, Italy, Norway, and Sweden. On May 23, 2005, EB Games announced an agreement to acquire Jump, a Spanish retailer based in Valencia. Jump sold personal computers and other consumer electronics. EB Games planned to introduce video game hardware and software into Jump’s 141 stores several months after the acquisition. This deal allowed EB Games to enter the Spanish market and continue its international growth.

Later, all EB Games stores in Mainland Europe were either renamed GameStop or closed.

In 2000, Electronics Boutique opened its first store in New Zealand, located in Auckland. In 2008, GameStop acquired The Gamesman, which was New Zealand’s largest independent gaming retailer with eight stores at the time. This acquisition added eight stores and increased EB Games’ total number of stores in New Zealand to 38, bringing the combined total of stores in Australia and New Zealand to 308.

In mid-January 2026, EB Games announced it would stop all operations in New Zealand by the end of the month. The company cited a multi-million dollar loss in the 2024 financial year, likely due to declining sales of physical games in the country. EB Games confirmed that New Zealand customers could shop online directly from EB Games Australia starting in March.

By 2001, EB Games had opened stores in Puerto Rico. These stores were later renamed GameStop and closed in 2016.

In October 1995, Electronics Boutique expanded into the UK by buying a 25% share in The Rhino Group, a struggling British game retailer. The company was then named Electronics Boutique Limited, and the store name was changed from Future Zone to Electronics Boutique. John Steinbrecher, a senior manager from the US and Canada, was assigned to oversee the UK stores. Through renovations, product changes, and the sale of used video games, the chain improved its financial situation.

In November 1999, Electronics Boutique Limited purchased Game, a rival retailer with 86 stores. The Game brand continued to operate alongside Electronics Boutique.

In October 2001, Electronics Boutique Limited acquired BarrysWorld, a gaming website; ScoreGames, a French retailer; and Centro Mail, a Spanish retailer.

In 2002, Electronics Boutique Limited became The Game Group. The Game brand replaced the Electronics Boutique name in all stores in the UK and Ireland, making the company the largest video game retailer in the UK. Electronics Boutique USA owned 24% of The Game Group and collected management fees until 2004. In that year, The Game Group and Electronics Boutique USA agreed to end their remaining partnership through a one-time payment.