Korea Boardgames
Korea Boardgames is a South Korean direct-to-consumer e-commerce retailer of board games, speed cubes, and Gravitrax marble run products, serving Korean hobbyist consumers through a curated catalog of 1,200+ SKUs and official brand partnerships.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2004
- HeadquartersPaju, South Korea
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Korea Boardgames does
Korea Boardgames (코리아보드게임즈) is a South Korean direct-to-consumer e-commerce retailer and publisher specializing in board games, speed cubes, and Gravitrax marble run systems. Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Paju-si, Gyeonggi Province, the company operates a Korean-language online store at koreaboardgames.com serving Korean consumers across multiple hobbyist personas, including board game enthusiasts, families, strategy and deduction players, casual gamers, and speed cube and marble run collectors. The company is privately held and led by Representative Kim Gil-o (김길오), with 51-100 employees and no disclosed institutional investors or funding rounds.
The catalog spans over 1,063 board games (across strategy, party, family, deduction, abstract, card, thematic, puzzle, mafia, children's, action, classic, and 2-player genres), 108 speed cube products primarily from GAN and MoYu, and 73 Gravitrax products covering starter sets, core/power/pro expansions, and accessories. The platform surfaces internationally recognized titles including Spiel des Jahres winners (Rummikub, Carcassonne, Catan, Ticket to Ride, Azul, Cascadia, Scotland Yard, Sherlock Holmes Consulting Detective), Golden Ace winners (Arc Nova, Detective: Modern Crime), and Golden Geek 2025 awardees, plus licensed Dobble editions (Animal Crossing, Super Mario, K-Pop Demon Hunters). The site offers Korean-language editorial content through an online magazine, a dedicated B-Camp and Events category, and a mobile app providing news and promotional benefits; social presence spans KakaoTalk, Instagram, YouTube, and a blog.
The business model is unit-priced DTC retail with 30-50% discounts on featured items, pre-order campaigns for upcoming releases, restocking notifications, and free shipping above 30,000 KRW (3,000 KRW standard shipping below that threshold). Products are priced between 5,000 KRW and 490,000 KRW. Key distribution partnerships include an official Gravitrax distributorship with Gravex Systems in South Korea and authorized seller status for GAN speed cubes. The company holds Korean business registration 128-81-91230 and mail-order license 2010-경기파주-2563, and operates standard customer service hours of 9:00-16:30 on weekdays.
Korea Boardgames firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Korea Boardgames
- Legal name
- KOREA BOARDGAMES
- Website
- https://koreaboardgames.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2004
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Korea Boardgames is a South Korean direct-to-consumer e-commerce retailer of board games, speed cubes, and Gravitrax marble run products, serving Korean hobbyist consumers through a curated catalog of 1,200+ SKUs and official brand partnerships.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Korea Boardgames industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Board Game Publishing and Retail
- NAICS
- Hobby, Toy, and Game Retailers (45912)
- SIC
- Retail-Hobby, Toy & Game Shops (5945)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Board Game & Puzzle Specialty Retailers (CRALALAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Board Games, Card Games & Puzzles Retail (CRALAFAF), Physical Game Retailers (Online/Brick-and-Mortar) (MPAFACAI), Strategy/Euro Board Games Retail (CRALALAC)
Keywords
Where Korea Boardgames is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Paju
- HQ country
- South Korea
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices1 record
Markets served
Korea Boardgames business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Product Sales: Direct product sales of board games, speed cubes, and marble run products through their e-commerce platform. Products include pre-order sales for upcoming releases, restocking of popular items, and standard retail sales with various discounts and promotions.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Individual product pricing with discounts |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
Korea Boardgames product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Korea Boardgames is a South Korean retailer and publisher specializing in physical tabletop products, including board games, speed cubes, and Gravitrax marble-run products. It sells products directly through its Korean-language e-commerce store, including standard retail sales, pre-order campaigns, restocks, discounts, and promotional events.
Product overview
Korea Boardgames is an e-commerce platform specializing in board games, speed cubes, and the Gravitrax marble run system. The store offers over 1,063 board games across genres (strategy, party, family, deduction, card, thematic), 108 speed cube products (primarily GAN and MoYu brands), and 73 Gravitrax products including starter sets and expansions. The portfolio also features internationally recognized titles like Spiel des Jahres winners and Golden Geek Award recipients, plus licensed editions of popular games such as Dobble (Animal Crossing, Super Mario, K-Pop Demon Hunters). Notable games include deck-building titles like Dominion expansions, strategic classics like Puerto Rico 1897 and Arc Nova (2023 Golden Ace winner), and app-integrated detective games like Detective: Modern Crime Board Game.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Board Games [보드게임] Traditional board games across genres including strategy, party, family, deduction, abstract, card, thematic, puzzle, mafia, children's, action, classic, and 2-player games; the store carries more than 1,063 board game products from international publishers.
- Speed Cubes [큐브] Speed cubes and puzzle cubes including GAN, MoYu, Rubik's cubes, Next cubes, lubricants, books, licenses, and cube lessons; the store offers 108 cube products.
- Gravitrax [그래비트랙스] The Gravitrax marble run system by Ravensburger, including starter sets, expansions in the core, power, and pro series, accessories, and The Game variants; the store offers 73 Gravitrax products for building marble-run tracks.
- Detective: Modern Crime Board Game [디텍티브: 모던 크라임 보드게임] A detective board game combining smartphone-app use with board game mechanics; players act as detectives at Antares, an FBI-affiliated investigative agency, using a database to input and cross-reference evidence such as fingerprints, blood, and soil samples.
- Klankatakom [클랭크 카타콤] A deck-building dungeon exploration game where players expand tiles to create dungeons, collect relics, and escape; it is described as an evolution of the existing Klank series with additional elements.
- The Case of the Missing [사건의 재구성] A cooperative investigation and deduction game where players solve murder cases using a dedicated app for location investigation, scanning, and interaction.
- Puerto Rico 1897 [푸에르토리코 1897] A strategy board game described as having held the number-one position on world strategy board game rankings for the longest period and as a strategy game that marked an epoch in board game history.
- Arc Nova [아크 노바] A zoo-themed strategy board game and 2023 Golden Ace Expert category winner that combines multiple game mechanisms.
- Color Sense [색감과 직감] A communication party game for 3-10 players where players describe colors with words and guess based on intuition.
- Dobble [도블] A card game where two cards always share exactly one matching symbol; the source describes it as a global bestseller with awards in 6 countries and licensed editions including Animal Crossing, Super Mario, and K-pop Demon Hunters.
- Gravitrax Core Starter [그래비트랙스 코어 스타터] The base starter set for the Gravitrax marble run system, available in variants including standard, speed, and Optistock editions.
Companies that use Korea Boardgames
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Korea Boardgames technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Korea Boardgames partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Gravex Systems (그래비트랙스)coreGravex Systems is the manufacturer of Gravitrax marble run products. Korea Boardgames serves as the official distributor in South Korea, offering the full range of Gravitrax products including starter sets, expansions, and accessories through their online store.
- GAN (간큐브)coreGAN is a leading manufacturer of speed cubes. Korea Boardgames operates as an official seller of GAN products in South Korea, offering the full range including GAN14, GAN15, GAN16, GAN356 series, and various speed cube accessories like lubricants and tension adjustment parts.
- Spiel des Jahres (올해의 게임상/SDJ)minorSpiel des Jahres (Game of the Year) award winners featured prominently in the store's 'Awards' category, including titles like Rummikub, Carcassonne, Catan, Ticket to Ride, and others.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Korea Boardgames competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Asmodee: Global board game publisher and distributor whose titles (Catan, Carcassonne, Ticket to Ride) anchor Korea Boardgames' catalog. Comparable as the upstream incumbent whose wholesale strategy increasingly includes direct-to-consumer channels.
- Hasbro Gaming: Global toy and game giant whose titles and licensed editions (Dobble, etc.) appear in Korea Boardgames' catalog. Comparable as the upstream publisher-incumbent whose direct retail or licensing decisions shape Korea Boardgames' assortment.
- Ravensburger: German publisher and creator of Gravitrax, Korea Boardgames' core strategic partner and authorized Korean distributor relationship. Comparable as a global hobby incumbent with a Korean retail presence via Korea Boardgames.
- Coupang: Korea's dominant e-commerce platform (Coupang Play, Rocket delivery). Comparable as the broad incumbent competing for hobby SKU wallet share and setting the delivery/pricing benchmark Korea Boardgames must meet.
- Naver Shopping / Smart Store: Korea's largest search and shopping platform with millions of third-party sellers, including hobby retailers. Comparable as a broad incumbent channel where Korea Boardgames must either maintain storefront visibility or risk commoditization on price comparison.
- Goliath Games: Global board and family game publisher with broad retail distribution. Comparable as an upstream incumbent supplying family/party titles that Korea Boardgames merchandises under its Family/Party and Spiel des Jahres curation.
Direct peers
- Miniature Market: US-based specialty retailer of board games, miniatures, and tabletop hobby products via direct-to-consumer e-commerce. Highly comparable catalog breadth, import-distribution model, and hobby-enthusiast target customer as Korea Boardgames.
- CoolStuffInc.com: US specialty board game retailer carrying 10,000+ hobby SKUs across strategy, party, family, and card games. Mirrors Korea Boardgames' breadth-driven, enthusiast-focused e-commerce playbook with heavy inventory of international titles.
- The Cubicle: US-based speed-cube specialist retailer and GAN/MoYu distributor. Directly comparable to Korea Boardgames' cube vertical, including authorized-brand relationships and accessories (lubricants, tension parts).
Others
- BoardGameGeek: The world's largest board game community and metadata site, including a marketplace. Comparable as an ecosystem player that shapes enthusiast discovery and demand that Korea Boardgames' curated catalog and Golden Geek coverage is designed to capture.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks1 record
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Korea Boardgames social profiles
Digital presenceKorea Boardgames financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Korea Boardgames leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Korea Boardgames funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Korea Boardgames M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Korea Boardgames
What does Korea Boardgames do?
Korea Boardgames is a South Korean retailer and publisher specializing in physical tabletop products, including board games, speed cubes, and Gravitrax marble-run products. It sells products directly through its Korean-language e-commerce store, including standard retail sales, pre-order campaigns, restocks, discounts, and promotional events.
Is Korea Boardgames a public or private company?
Korea Boardgames is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Korea Boardgames founded?
Korea Boardgames was founded in 2004. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Korea Boardgames based?
Korea Boardgames is headquartered in Paju, South Korea, in the Asia region.
How does Korea Boardgames make money?
One revenue line is on record: product Sales.
Who are Korea Boardgames's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Asmodee, Hasbro Gaming, Ravensburger, Coupang, Naver Shopping / Smart Store and Goliath Games. Direct peers are Miniature Market, CoolStuffInc.com and The Cubicle. BoardGameGeek is listed as an others.
Does Korea Boardgames have an API?
No public API is recorded for Korea Boardgames.
What industry is Korea Boardgames in?
Korea Boardgames's product category is Board Game Publishing and Retail. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRALALAA, Board Game & Puzzle Specialty Retailers, with a secondary code of CRALAFAF, Board Games, Card Games & Puzzles Retail. Its NAICS code is 45912 and its SIC code is 5945.