Drags to Riches - Tackling under representation of LGBTQ+ in the games market (David Pettifer, PhD Biological Sciences)

The winner of the 2021 Birmingham Start-Up Games, David Pettifer, talks with us about his start-up idea Board Wreckers Inc and how the games he has designed aim to bring something new into a traditional games market.

David's story: Bored Wreckers Inc, designs and develops board and card games, seeking to invigorate and disrupt the traditional table-top games market by putting inclusion, representation and diversity at the forefront.

After an evening of playing games with friends, we realised that LGBTQ+ themes were enormously under-represented in the games market. 

This led me to designing the company’s first product, Drags 2 Riches, a 2-4 player deck-building card game centred on the fabulous world of drag. Players build up their wardrobes of fierce looks over several rounds and play the best combinations of Hair, Makeup, Outfits, Heels and Accessories to win events and steal the show

Through the informal start-up meetings, the B-Enterprising team gave me the advice and encouragement that spurred me on to start my own business. They provided me with funding from both the ideas fund and the start-up fund, and this money enabled me to hire a graphic designer and produce the artwork, logo and promotional materials for the game. Now I have a fully working, fully illustrated, digital prototype of the game which is now ready to be printed
and tested physically.

Running my own business gives me an opportunity to develop new skill sets and tackle a diverse array of challenges, both of which I love. I've thoroughly enjoyed being able to build collaborations with the drag community, designers and playtesting communities, working closely with them and seeing my product idea become reality. There's no part of the process I haven't enjoyed yet, although that's not to say there aren't lots of challenges.

Actually I wish I'd known sooner about the ideas fund and start-up fund offered by B-Enterprising. I would have started my business much sooner if I had. 

Also by joining in with the informal meetups I felt fully prepared and supported in the process of beginning a start-up, so I would encourage anyone even thinking about a venture to join in and make the most of this resource! 

The biggest takeaway for me has to be that beginning a business is not a difficult as I thought it might be, and that anyone can do it with a little bit of funding and a bit of ambition.

This year I took part in the Birmingham Start-up Games pitching competition, hosted by the UoB Start-up Society, and won the grand prize in the established business category. It was a wonderful experience, and an amazing opportunity to network with other young entrepreneurs, potential mentors, and business leaders. Based on my success at the games, I have been put forward by the university to compete in the Santander X Entrepreneurship Awards, with a potential prize worth £75k to the business.

Also, if people are interested in trying the game then I'm always looking for playtesters, both online and in person (when Covid permits). This year I will be exhibiting at the UK Games Expo in the NEC (30th July - 1st Aug), so if you're attending then come and be one of the first people to play the game, take home some awesome promotional freebies and maybe win a prize! Otherwise, please do subscribe for updates on the website, and feel free to send me a message with any inquiries, feedback and suggestions (www.d2r-game.com) 

With thanks to David Pettifer from Bored Wreckers

The B-Enterprising Start-Up team can help you with your own start-up or freelance idea.