The Nottingham-based maker of Warhammer miniatures, paints, games and stories, sold through its own stores and independent shops worldwide.
Games Workshop designs, makes and sells fantasy and science-fiction miniatures and the games played with them. Its best-known worlds are Warhammer Age of Sigmar and Warhammer 40,000, alongside The Old World, The Horus Heresy and the Middle-earth Strategy Battle Game. Hobbyists build and paint their own armies, so the company also sells paints and brushes under the Citadel name and publishes novels through Black Library. Forge World made detailed resin kits until its website merged into the main Warhammer site in 2023.
The company began in 1975, when John Peake, Ian Livingstone and Steve Jackson started out in London making wooden games boards. It grew into a publisher of its own wargames and then a miniatures specialist, and joined the FTSE 100 in December 2024. We did not find a formal mission statement, but its annual report sets the ambition "to make the best fantasy miniatures in the world". It also says it recruits for attitude and behaviour rather than knowledge and skills. The report also says senior roles are filled from within where possible, and that 209 staff have cross-trained into new jobs since May 2024.
Nottingham is the heart of the business. All UK operations moved to Lenton in 1997, and the Nottingham site holds the head office, the factories that mould the plastic miniatures, a paint factory, the Warhammer Studio and a warehouse. A further factory is being built in Nottingham, due for completion in summer 2026. The group reports 134 stores in the UK out of 570 in 24 countries, and says it supplies about 8,100 independent shops in 71 countries.
The Warhammer Studio in Nottingham employs around 330 people, who create the artwork, sculpts, rules and publications behind every product. The group has about 3,500 staff in 25 countries, and says it has high staff retention and shares profit with employees through a Group Profit Share. UK base pay was rising to £12.75 an hour for 2025/26. Its Chief Executive has said "Our biggest risk is the people we employ", which shows how much weight the company puts on its team.
People work here as sculptors, illustrators, writers, factory teams, store staff, warehouse teams and head-office specialists. The company also builds community through Warhammer Community, the Warhammer+ streaming service and a schools programme with around 6,200 school and library clubs. In December 2024 it agreed a deal with Amazon to bring Warhammer 40,000 to film and television. If you enjoy making things and playing games, it is a very visible UK employer.
Website: www.games-workshop.com
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