Variety & Location of Attractions

If you are like most CEOs or managers of a family entertainment facility you are always trying to think of new ways to optimize various strategies in order to generate more business. Two things that often get overlooked are variety and location. Believe it or not, these are very important to capture the interest of customers and make it easier for them to enjoy your attractions.

It’s time to give your theme park or FEC an honest assessment to maximize its potential. Does your park have a variety of attractions and/or rides? If it doesn't, it should.?

?Variety

Every business has competitors. In order for a company to thrive, they have to be better than its competition. They have to offer more to their customers than the “other guy.”?

So, if you only have an arcade, but your competitor has an arcade AND:?

• virtual reality attractions
• rock-climbing walls
• sports simulators
• eSports gaming?

... whom do you think will attract more visitors? Your location or theirs? Theirs! Why? Guests want variety. It's no secret that people get bored easily. They get burned out just playing arcades or only riding a few attractions that never change.

In addition, you also want guests to stay longer and play more at your park. You don't want your business to be viewed as a place where somebody can go just to “kill time” for a couple of hours. You want them to come in and enjoy what you have to offer. The key is to make them lose track of time. You want to exceed their expectations. The longer they stay and play, the more money they spend.

Here’s another example, let’s say you have a trampoline park with only trampolines to jump on and nothing else to do. Children and teens can only last 30-90 minutes jumping on them, parents last even less. However, if you have arcades, ninja warrior courses, air bags from high jump points, etc, then everyone can have time to rest from the trampoline to go enjoy other games (and spend more money) or explore your food and beverage options.?

But, if you only have trampolines the time will be limited at your park. The customer will remember this and turn their attention toward your competitors for their future entertainment needs.?

Work towards 4-hour experiences/tickets and all-day experiences/tickets vs the 30-90 minutes normally spent. This will help you gain the maximum value and dollars spent by your guests.

Location

The location of your attractions are critical as well. If you have attractions hidden behind other attractions and no park maps or signs, the smaller attractions will get used less and the ROI and payback period will be much longer just because you did not place the attractions in a more visible area.

The most popular arcade video and redemption games need to be displayed in prominent locations to draw the customers “into” the arcade as well as games strategically placed to lure people “through” the arcade to play the newest or hottest games. As you get drawn towards the hottest games, guests will pass other games and play them along the way. These are commonly considered to be filler games. Guests will play them if they must wait for the most popular games.?

So, placing popular or new games advantageously around the arcade will draw in more players to the filler games.?

The flow of a park layout or arcade game room should provide opportunities to attract more spending. It should be designed to sell food and drinks, retail items, other premium attractions and rides as well as have close access to bathrooms. This will maximize the opportunities for additional add-on revenue and profits. If left as stand-alone revenue generators the volume, frequency, and profitability will be lower.

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?07-09-22

?Tim Murphy is CEO of APX Operating Company, dba Boomers Parks, under the ownership of Cerberus private equity ($55B assets). Boomers Parks owns six family entertainment centers and two water parks with locations in California, Florida, and New Jersey.

As CEO of Boomers Parks since 2020, Tim took these eight parks from bankruptcy to profitability in just a year – in the middle of a global pandemic. When Boomers acquired these parks, they were operating at a $10 million loss. Tim transformed the customer experience and added new revenue streams to generate a 180% increase in revenue in 2021 (and on track to be a 250% increase in 2022).?

Tim launched his 35+ year career at Walt Disney World and has since served more than 150 entertainment, restaurant, and food & beverage brands across more than 10,000 locations in C-suite and senior positions.

?Additionally, Tim is a Board Director with Coney Park, Happy City, and YuKids - Family Entertainment & Amusement Parks, part of The Carlyle Group ($275B assets), a private equity firm that operates 150+ family entertainment centers and amusement parks in Latin America.?

?Tim has worked with top-tier entertainment and restaurant brands including Disney, Rebounderz Trampoline Parks, Darden Restaurants (Olive Garden, Bahama Breeze, etc.), Red Lobster, Jimmy John’s, Applebee’s, Sonny’s Bar-B-Q, Denny’s, El Pollo Loco, Hardee’s, Golden Corral, and Firehouse Subs.?

Tim has overseen more than 35 purchase transactions involving over 1,200 restaurants, stores, and park locations.?With extensive experience in buying and selling businesses, handling negotiations with buyers and sellers, and creating strategic partnerships to build strong brands, Tim has facilitated deals ranging from $11 million to $350 million+.

?Tim is a member of IAAPA, CAPA, FAA, AAMA & WWA. He is a licensed commercial real estate broker in the State of Florida. Tim earned a BS/BA in Accounting from the University of Central Florida and?an MBA in Finance from Orlando College.