Garden Club & Petal

Games are Inbound + Cards Charged + Timeline Updates
15 days ago – Thu, Oct 08, 2026 at 11:53:56 AM

Hello cultivators! 

A quick update here with just a few bullet points to make sure everyone sees it:

Games arriving at port(s)

• I can confirm that our US freight is inbound and scheduled to arrive 10/11. This is for pledges within the US, Canada, and Mexico.
• I can confirm our non-US pledges are in route. See below:
• UK, EU, NZ, AU, and basically all non-US/Asia backers will be fulfilled via GamesQuest located within the UK. I can confirm from GamesQuest that this shipment is scheduled to hit port today/tomorrow! Now, we'll just wait on the games to clear customs there as well.
• Asia backers: your games are in transit. I will provide a specific update once I have a response from GamesQuest with those details.

Cards charged & fixing errors

• Cards have been charged. This charge was for shipping costs and any add ons from your pledges. 
• We have around 45 backers cards that have an error. If your card payment failed, you received an email from BackerKit to update your card details. Please note: We will be unable to fulfill your pledge until your card is successfully charged. Please check your emails for the confirmation or notice of a failed charge.

Incomplete Pledge Managers

There are still 73 backers who have not completed the Pledge Manager. Unless you complete the PM by providing your email address and paying for shipping costs, I will not be able to fulfill your pledge. I am sending out reminder emails weekly for this group of people.

• If you've lost your PM invite, click this link and follow the instructions to access it.

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PAX Unplugged Preview

If you're a BGG user, the PAX Unplugged preview list is live! It would mean a lot if you could hit "like" on our games to help us get more eyes on our new releases and upcoming titles. You can view all of our games here.

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This is my first time to use BackerKit's pledge manager, a new freight & logistics partner, and a new fulfillment partner, so I appreciate your patience and understanding as I navigate a lot of moving parts. I promise I'm working hard to get all of your pledges sorted out and our fulfillment team will also be working diligently to get orders sent out in a timely manner.

I will continue to update everyone as steps proceed, so expect another update soon with a fulfillment timeline once I confirm the games have cleared customs and are in the hands of our fulfillment partner. Fingers crossed for clear skies here on the home stretch! 

-Chris P.

Sea Freight & Fulfillment Update + Charging Cards + New Halloween Promo
22 days ago – Wed, Sep 30, 2026 at 03:45:36 PM

Hello cultivators!

TLDR:
- US/Canada/Mexico games arriving mid-October after error from freight forwarder
- All other games arriving at port mid-October with fulfillment to follow
- Fun Content & More!

🚢 Sea Freight Partner Change & Games are OTW

It's never a dull life as a small business owner, and this month was one for record books. In my last update, I gave some specific dates around US fulfillment timelines and our sea freight departure status. Well, it turns out that my US freight forwarded did not actually book the sea freight as they had previously confirmed and that Garden Club had been sitting in China since assembly completed in early August (around five weeks). 

After persistent update requests, I was finally able to confirm this huge error. I was pretty astonished, considering this was a consistent freight partner for our company, and one that was local. But, I did what all businesses owners have to do...pivot.

Once I realized the freight was delayed, I found a new freight partner who specializes in "fast boats". I also connected with a new fulfillment partner, MOCO Logistics, to coordinate our pledge fulfillment from California (20 mins away from where games land at port). I had to do all of this within 1.5 weeks otherwise we would miss a window to get games on a boat in time for our October fulfillment. Thankfully, our other campaign Headliner had just completed assembly as well. So I was able to coordinate getting both of these projects on the same boat here (meaning Garden Club will be on time and Headliner will be slightly early). Our new boat was scheduled to depart on 9/30 (in China, so yesterday). I am awaiting confirmation of departure, but many workers in China are on a week-long holiday so communication might be delayed. That boat is scheduled to hit port on/around October 11th, fingers crossed.

My stress levels = high 😅. Doing this change was more expensive than my original freight plan. BUT, I now have new logistics partners, more control over my freight and legal documentation, and and even deeper understanding of how freight gets moved and who is handling what. Plus, I am striving to remain on schedule as best as possible. 

🔔 Pledge Manager Status

There are still around 80 people who have not completed the Pledge Manager. I do have an account for your pledge, but unless you complete the PM by providing your mailing address and paying for shipping costs, I will not be able to fulfill your pledge. I am sending out reminder emails today for this group of people. If you do not get a reminder email this week, then you have completed your pledge! 

• If you've lost your Pledge Manager invite, click this link and follow the instructions to access it.

Orders have been locked, but cards have not been charged. I plan to charge cards on Thursday, October 8, as long as the boat is confirmed to be on the water and our inventory on the boat.

Additionally, our retailer backer will notice credits on their accounts according to various amount spent. I want to make sure our games are easily accessible for local game stores as well. Thank you for your tremendous support.

🌸 New Content Videos!

While you wait, there is plenty of new Garden Club content for you to explore! Check out the latest videos below:

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Looking for something new? 

Rainbow BLVD

My industry colleague and good friend Scott Morris has started his own publishing company, Steelwing Games. Together with a talented team, they’re preparing to bring Rainbow Blvd. to Kickstarter!

I'm glad to help a longtime friend and fellow publisher spread the word of his new venture! Learn more and follow the campaign here. Launch day is October 13th.

Jingle Bell Roll's Halloween Promo

I'm so thrilled to announce we have a Halloween-themed promo for Jingle Bell Roll. If you're a fan of the game, this adds a new mechanic of trick or treat cards that you will be forced to give other players. If you're on the fence about, now's a great time to check it out! The promo is $5. 

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO ADD THIS PROMO TO YOUR PLEDGE SEE INSTRUCTIONS BELOW:

I realize that backers who own Jingle Bell Roll might want to add this promo to their pledge they are currently receiving. If that is the case, please comment on this update with the word "SPOOKY". If you comment, I will locate your pledge and reopen it so you can add the item to your pledge in BackerKit. This will be the easiest way for me to track each item without completely reopening all pledges.

I know I can accommodate this for pledges located in the US, Canada, Mexico. I plan to accommodate this for pledges in the UK, EU (Europe in general), New Zealand and Australia. I will mail a batch of these promos to the fulfillment hubs in California and in the UK so they can add it to your pledge. The deadline for this is one week, October 7.

If you've already purchased the promo and are a backer, I appreciate you! I will look to credit your pledge with a little discount before I charge cards next week. But, every bit counts when you're a small biz so I am extremely grateful. 

Stonemaier Games' Braided Skies

My good friend Jamey just announced a new game, Braided Skies! I love the way Stonemaier Games handles their launches, and I hope one day I'll be able to do direct releases like this. But, most importantly, Jamey is such a genuinely nice person (and a fellow soccer fan)! If you're into deep strategy games, check this one out.

I also got to participate in Stonemaier's Design Day where we did testing of our new trick-taking game Magic Tricks from designer Luke Williams. It was a hit and scored a whopping 5/6! 

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That's all for now. I will send another update once I can confirm units have arrived at various ports and fulfillment is underway. 

• Chris P. 

Games on Boats + Pledge Manager Status Update
about 2 months ago – Tue, Sep 01, 2026 at 12:30:36 PM

Hey cultivators!

I'm here with our monthly update. This one is fairly short, but positive!

🚢 Games are on boats!

• All assembly and safety testing has been completed. 
• Games are on boats to the US, UK, and Asia hubs. 
• US hub games left on August 17 and should arrive in September.
• UK hub games left on August 25 and should arrive early October.
• Asia hub games left on August 25 and should arrive in October.

Fulfillment Hubs

All pledges within the US, Canada, and Mexico, will be fulfilled by Chris Couch Games. Pledges in Asia will be fulfilled by GamesQuest/VFI. All other pledges will be fulfilled by GamesQuest from the UK hub.

Fulfillment for all games are scheduled to begin in October. Hopefully the US games arrive a bit sooner and I can begin fulfillment in late September. If we run into any unexpected hiccups, I will provide an update accordingly. 

We had a slight delay in getting games on boats because the EU recently updated their import rules. I had to find an EU representative and will need to add stickers to the shrink wrap for each unit to abide by these rules. This brought some unexpected costs, but that is how it goes in the product design world. Thankfully, our fulfillment partner is ready and willing to assist! These stickers will not impact your game box. 

🔔 Pledge Manager Status

There are still 88 people who have not completed the Pledge Manager. I do have an account for your pledge, but unless you complete the PM by providing your email address and paying for shipping costs, I will not be able to fulfill your pledge. I am sending out reminder emails today for this group of people. If you do not get a reminder email today, then you have completed your pledge! 

• If you've lost your PM invite, click this link and follow the instructions to access it.

Orders have been locked, but cards have not been charged. I'm waiting to know the exact landing date for the inventory for the US. Once I know that date, I will charge cards about 10 days beforehand. This way, I can order all of the shipping supplies and get games going out to everyone as soon as possible. I anticipate charging cards the week of Sept. 14th or Sept. 21 and I will provide an update accordingly.

🌸 Unboxing & Components Preview

If you missed my unboxing video spotlighting all of the components, then you can check that out below. I'm so thrilled with how the games turned out. I'll be taking photos of everything soon, and I'm working with The Grove for our official how to play videos for both games and the expansions. These videos are planned to release in October 2026.

That's all for this update! In terms of future games, here is a list of everything we're working on now and beyond! If you are on BGG, you can find all of our listed games here. I created listings for all of the expansions in Garden Club and Petal in case you want to log them into your account. Please leave a like or follow if you feel so inclined :)

• Headliner, 2026
• Vector, 2027
• Tug of Words, 2027
• Magic Tricks, 2027
• Perfect Pairs, 2027
• Menu of the Day, 2027-2028 (Officially signed as part of the CCG lineup! Yet to be added to our BGG catalog.)
• Haunted Hills, 2028
• Hackers, 2028
• Unannounced mini-expansion, October 2026
• Unannounced Game #1, 2028
• Unannounced Game #2, 2028

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-Chris P.

Manufacturing Complete + Pledge Manager + Gen Con!
3 months ago – Mon, Jul 27, 2026 at 05:25:52 PM

Hello cultivators!

Lots of positive news in today's update. July has been CRAZY to say the least. I'm currently printing 14 total SKUs (individual products) at the same time 😵‍💫. Plus preparing for Gen Con! But, let's dive in.

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Manufacturing is Complete!

Boda has confirmed that manufacturing is complete! We are still slightly ahead of schedule, but due to a couple of logistics hiccups, there was a slight delay in getting the wooden, screen printed components to the factory.

I received the MPC! This mass production copy is the final printing of the game and mini-expansions that you will receive. Everything looks FABULOUS, and I'm very thrilled with the game and components. You can watch a video of me walking through everything below.

If your'e a BGG user, I have uploaded all of the mini-expansions to BGG so you can log them into your inventory if you wish. I use that to keep track of all the games I own! Just click the link and go to "Expansions" to see the listings.

• Additionally, you can watch me unbox Headliner here.

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Pledge Manager - Closing Aug 5th

So far, 85% of you have completed the pledge manager! THANK YOU! For the remaining 122 backers, please please go ahead and complete that ASAP. We are getting ready to book freight, and I need to allocate all of the items for your pledges. I plan to lock orders and close the PM the week I return from Gen Con on Wednesday, August 5. I wanted to give everyone an extra week, but to keep our timeline on track, we need to close it and move forward.

Note: You are required to complete the pledge manager so that I can have your address to ship your game to you. Without it, fulfillment will not possible. If you've lost your PM invite, click this link and follow the instructions to access it.

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Gen Con!

If you haven't already heard, Chris Couch Games has been selected for the Gen Con 2026 Marketing Fellowship. We'll have our first booth at Gen Con this Thursday through Sunday! It's an extremely exciting opportunity that we thrilled to take advantage of. This means we'll have a 10x20 booth where you can come visit to see the new games and even some future releases. 

Gen Con is the biggest convention in the US, and thanks to y'all, Garden Club, Petal, Headliner, Holiday Hills and Jingle Bell Roll are super high up on the BGG list of hot games to see at the convention. Please drop a few more likes if you haven't already, it really helps out!

I was really hoping to have a surprise for y'all at Gen Con. My manufacturer finished assembly and was able to air freight about 100 units of Garden Club and Petal (base game only) to me. I was going to offer backer pickup, designer events to sign games, etc. But sadly, they air shipped games are nowhere to be found for the last three weeks. UPS seems to have lost any trace of them, and my manufacturer is unable to provide me contact information for the freight forwarding company. This loss not only hurts emotionally, but financially. I was excited to provide review copies to content creators from around the globe, show off games to potential retailers, and have our full catalog on display. The shipment cost around $3k, with about $6k worth of inventory included. Maybe it turns up eventually, but it's certainly a more than frustrating situation and I'm sorry I don't have the games there for y'all to pick up.

All of that aside, I'm really thrilled to be at Gen Con. It's a HUGE opportunity. If you're going to be there, please come by the booth and get a name badge ribbon for FREE! This is just for you backers. Others can get a name badge ribbon with a purchase. 

If you're curious what games I'm excited about for the convention, check out my preview video with my friend Wes (he's working the booth with me at Gen Con). 

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More Fun + Future Games

• Chris P. 

Pledge Manager is OPEN! + Survey emails are on the way
4 months ago – Fri, Jul 03, 2026 at 10:21:19 AM

Hello cultivators!

BackerKit Pledge Manager is Open!

The smoke test is clear and the rest of the surveys are on their way to your inboxes! Thanks to the folks who completed the smoke test.

We did run into a slight error in the smoke test that we fixed, but unfortunately it's caused some of the folks who had already completed their pledge to need to reconfirm their pledge. This is part of the reason we do the smoke test, to make sure things are working correctly.

If you already completed your pledge but are emailed to do so again: Please click the email and reconfirm your pledge. Apologies for the confusion, and I appreciate your patience and understanding.

Here's what to expect:

• An email invite to complete your survey. This is your opportunity to send your address and add anything additional to your pledge. You can complete and update your survey any time up until shortly before fulfillment begins and the Pledge Manager closes.
• You will receive the invite from BackerKit, likely from this email: [email protected]
• The Pledge Manager will close on Friday, July 24.
• Your credit cards will not be charged for shipping until we're closer to fulfillment. Right now the estimated date to charge cards is between July 27 and August 17. I'm leaving some flexible time depending on how many pledges get completed.
• If you want to do free local pick up in Memphis, TN, please select "Local Pick Up" for your country in the survey.
• Surveys are expected to go out in waves, so don't be concerned if you don't receive one until the end of the weekend. Before reaching out, please check your associated pledge email and spam folders.
• If you're an AppleID user, it's possible your email may be out of reach. If this is the case, please reach out and we'll get it situated for you. If you've already sent me this info, you're good to go!

Have a Question in the Pledge Manager?

If you need assistance in the pledge manager or if you have questions about your pledge, click the "Need Help?" button in the top right of the pledge manager screen. You can also send me a direct message or leave a comment here on Kickstarter.

If you cannot find your backer email, please visit this link and use your email to find your pledge: 

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Headliner Backers & Combined Shipping

Garden Club will ship BEFORE Headliner unless selected otherwise in Headliner's PM. If you are interested in combined shipping, reference below:

US & Canada

• Garden Club will begin shipping in August at the earliest.
• Headliner will begin shipping in November at the earliest.
• Shipped together: You will save $6 on shipping costs, but your full pledge will ship later in November.
• Shipped separately: Garden Club will ship first, then Headliner. You will pay for shipping separately.

All other regions

• I am still finalizing a freight plan for both campaigns internationally.
• Shipping together WILL save money on shipping. 
• I will be sharing the detailed plan within Headliner's campaign.

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It's a holiday weekend in the USA. Please have fun and celebrate safely! I will be in touch soon with details about the final sample of Garden Club once it arrives. 

• Chris P.