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Wes Marriott, founder of Gatwick Games.

Courtesy photo

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Goat Lords by Gatwick Games.

Courtesy photo

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Gatwick Games was founded on a desire to enrich friendships and family relationships. Wes Marriott, founder of Gatwick Games, came from a big family that often bonded over playing games and it was his own family-life experience that inspired his company.

Before Wes endeavored into the entrepreneurial world, he worked as a traveling consultant: “I thought it was cool — there were some good things to learn, but I wasn’t getting enough creativity in my life. I always knew I was going to go back to entrepreneurship eventually.” He came up with a few side projects and the one that filled his need for creativity was his goal to create a game.

Goat Lords was the first game that Wes created. Inspired by the monetary success of a popular game at the time, he listed Goat Lords on Kickstarter; and while the game was profitable, it didn’t do as well as he had hoped it would. After some time had passed, he decided that maybe Amazon would be a better market for his game. He was right. It sold well during that Christmas season and the momentum propelled him forward. With Goat Lords and a few purchases of game companies that weren’t so successful on Kickstarter, Gatwick Games was formed.

During our interview, Wes shared how he and his team design new games: “We basically just play a lot of board games and card games and if we start liking some of the ideas we try the ideas out.” Game making is an extremely creative process that’s full of trial and error. One of their recent games, Loot ‘n Loaded, went through many iterations before hitting the shelves. Some ideas work, others don’t, but the process starts with recognizing an idea that could turn into an enjoyable game. It’s not a one-step process, but it’s a fun one!

Though the team’s experience at work may literally be fun and games, Gatwick Games’ sales began to decrease in the year after the COVID-19 pandemic. Wes cooly explained that they combatted a decrease in sales by releasing more games and said he’s confident that they will bounce back. They have a few party games and card games in the works that are sure to bring fun and happiness to friends and families alike.

For the past five years, the Startup Building and the Provo community have played valuable roles in Gatwick Games’ upbringing. Wes talked about the ease of access to networking opportunities in the Startup Building and how nice it is being in close quarters with other startup companies. They have been in the Startup Building for the past five years and have seen the startup environment grow around them! And, because their headquarters is located close to Brigham Young University, students in Provo often get involved in testing new games. He values the young talent that Provo holds and shared how he had help from a BYU student to create the goat artwork that’s associated with Gatwick Games.

Startup companies take a lot of work and are full of ups and downs. Wes and his team are proving that while it’s important to work hard for success, work can really be all fun and games.

If you’d like to learn more about Gatwick Games, feel free to email them at fun@gatwickgames.com or visit their website at gatwickgames.com.

Interested in renting your space at the Startup Building? Call or text 385-236-3061 for more information.

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