About this episode

Garett Kiley discusses the shift from traditional distribution to direct relationships with local game stores in the indie card game industry.

Garett Kiley, co-founder of Rising Empire Studios, sits down with Zach to discuss their recent move away from traditional distribution and into direct LGS relationships via their Champion Store program. This is the most honest accounting of what it's actually like working with traditional distributors as an indie publisher, and a must-listen for publishers and players of these games.

People in this episode

Host: Zach

Guest: Garett Kiley

Topics covered

• indie card games
• distribution
• LGS relationships
• Champion Store program
• publishing
• game industry

Keywords

• indie publishing
• card games
• distribution challenges
• Champion Store
• Rising Empire Studios

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Rising Empire Studios

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• How the LCG Succeeds · April 17, 2026 · 2h 7m
• There is No "LCG Model" · April 11, 2026 · 2h 12m
• The Perfect Organized Play · April 6, 2026 · 2h 14m
• The Mirage of the Crowdfunded TCG · March 27, 2026 · 1h 56m

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