it run away from them. "
Just how does one regulate
growth in the land of " bigger is
better) " To begin with , Alvarez
says, " We don't have grandeur
mentality ." Aside from this attitude,
Alvarez added, " Most important in
my philosophy is that I don't believe
in volume, but I sincerely believe in
profits . "
That focus on profits has seen the
company progress from $200,000 to
$300,000 a month at the beginning
to a million a month in 1976 . Fun
Games began with seven employes
and M anufacturing M anager Holly
Leroy remembers "we hardly had a
pencil back here ." Presently , the
company employs 85 people and
two new buildings are planned for
manufacturing and office space .
The company is getting bigger,
but Alvarez keeps his philosophy in
mind and repeats, " We have growth
regulated to a point where we are
more concerned with profits , not
volume ."
Since quantity is not emphasized,
Fun Games can turn its attention to
quality and service . For example,
the company equips its games for
foreign export with the coinage and
voltage of the particular country
that receives the product. "This is
an extra service which most com-
panies don ' t provide , " Satish
Bhutani , Fun Games director of
international marketing , said. Also,
distributors rely on Fun Games
products reaching them intact. As
Bhutani explained, "We specialize
in packaging, so damage is no
problem. "
The engineering department also
contributes to improving product
quality . Larry Leppert, chief elect-
ronic engineer, told of redesigning
control handles on some games to
accomodate operators . " Some of
the people in seaside locations also
had trouble with corrosion on the
Growing up
slow
By MARY CLAIRE BLAKEMAN
"The key to their success is
probably the sharp businessman at
the front." Rudi Willers, a sales
engineer with Signetics said about
Fun Games Inc.
That man at the front is Oberto
Alvarez.
With a smile as warm as his
Caribbean island homeland , Alvar-
ez, or " Obie" as most people call
him , bustles through his office
talking to secretaries and engineers
as well as vice presidents.
His is an American success story:
In 1961 , Alvarez started out as a
janitor with Corrobilt Container
Company (which now houses Fun
Games). He went on to become
secretary-treasurer of the company;
vice-president of Corrobilt Wood
Products Division and finally presi -
dent of Fun Games Inc .
The game manufacturing com -
pany was begun, Alvarez said,
because, "we're always looking for
diversity of product . During .a
recession, history has shown that
anything related to the amusement
business will do well -- so I was able
to find the right people at the right
time. " The right t ime was late M ay
of 1975 when Fun Games Inc . was
founded .
With this young company, Obie 's
contained Latin fire is directed at
keeping things simmering without
burning th e business out too fast.
As Willers commented, "They 've
controlled their business and not let
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edge connectors," he said . " As a
resu lt , we ' ve gone to the expense
and trouble of plating them with
gold . "
Alvarez also emphasized the com-
pany's 24-hour service and said
expansion will not affect this policy .
Pat Karns, director of marketing,
added, " We're a small company and
can turn problems over fast. A
machine can be fixed in an hour, not
three weeks later ."
Servicing the distributor is a
primary objective of company
policy. Alvarez said his major con -
cern is "supplying necessities that
distributors have been requesting
around the world ." And Karns
added, " The relationship between
the manufacturer and distributor is
very vital ; you ' ve got to have good
rapport.
" The distributor has to be able to
tell you as a manufacturer that
something is wrong and you 've got
to be able to fix it quickly ," Karns
said . " Our ear to the world is the
distributor . "
Listening to the distributor was
part of the input for the company's
newest video game , Biplan e -4 .
" After coming out of the MOA
show, the present game, Biplane , a
two-player aircraft game, was well
accepted in the industry as one of
the top games in arcades both here
and in Europe," Karns said . " Sev-
eral distributors asked if we would
be making a multi -player Biplane to
be released during the arcade
season ."
Biplane-4 is patterned on Biplane ,
but features a 25-inch color monitor
as well as options for two , three, or
four players . " C.A . Robinson of Los
Angeles reported from its top
operator that in the first week of test
coil ctions , Biplane -4, compared
with the top 10 machines, was
number one in collections, " Karns
said with a smile . " It was the top
. « ,
EDCOE Mfg. & Service Co.
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