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Hi! I’m Tony Hunnicutt, one of the original founders of Premier Amusement Developers and
I’d like to welcome you to our website. I hope you’ll stick around for the next
couple of minutes because the information that I’m about to share with you is extremely
important. It might impact your short-term decisions, and it will definitely impact your
long-term business results as a business owner or operator with a new mini golf course, go-kart
track, batting cage or bumper boat pond! I’m about to tell you the 3 most important factors
that you need to know and understand before selecting an amusement development resource.
Naturally, we’d like to be that resource for you. After all, we named our company for
a reason. However, this video is really about you! It’s about avoiding costly mistakes
and it’s about insuring your long-term success! So, keep your eyes on the screen and let’s
talk about how to maximize your potential for long-term business success in the amusement
industry.
Priority #1: Plan for Success.
Everybody’s heard the phrase, “most businesses don’t plan to fail, they fail to plan.”
That being said, educating yourself is an initial process in planning for success. The
first step is to understand your market and it’s potential. After spending a few hours
researching on the web, you can assess your market conditions. Consideration needs to
be given to many factors such as demographics, competition and location. Every entrepreneur
should draft a business plan with all the local market information gathered from this
research. Some lenders may require a more detailed market feasibility study along with
your business plan. After assessing your market the next critical step is determining the
best location. Once the land’s been identified your business plan will progress to a stage
that you can start talking with lenders and potential investors. Traditional financing
methods such as an S.B.A. program have been successful in the industry for many years.
Priority #2: Effective Site Selection.
As I mentioned before, I can’t stress enough the importance of understanding your market.
It’s critical that you build to your market size. The mix of attractions is directly related
to the existing competition, or lack thereof. Knowing your direct competition, as well as
your indirect competition, will help you determine which attractions to provide for your customers.
The results of this analysis will generate not only your amenities, but also it will
define the amount of land required. Most F.E.C.’s require between 4 to 6 acres of land. Keep
in mind, additional consideration needs to be given for future expansion opportunities
at your center. Factors for consideration in searching for that perfect location include
zoning, access, traffic counts, land configuration and obviously, cost.
Priority #3: Contractor Services.
After you’ve completed all your business planning and site selection, the next logical
step is determining who is going to design and build your facility. A visit to your local
municipal building department will provide you with important details that are needed
in the design stage. Set-backs, easements, flood plains, ingress, egress and local building
codes are some of these issues that can affect the design of your facility. Every construction
project requires detailed planning and design. Several professionals may need to be involved
in this process. Those including local surveyors, engineer, general contractor and a specialty
contractor. Depending upon the scope of your project, it may be beneficial to use local
trades people to provide common services such as excavation, site drainage, utilities, landscaping
and fencing. For your feature site attractions though, like your go-kart track, miniature
golf course and batting cage, a specialty contractor should be utilized. Local contractors
have no experience in designing and building go-kart tracks, miniature golf courses or
batting cages. A specialty contractor can assist in project management while assuring
timely completion of your construction schedule. In choosing this specialty contractor, you
should seek one with a track record of success and a large network of industry resources.
Their experience is invaluable.
In summary, planning for success requires lots of due diligence. After researching your
market and securing your site and funding, the most important decision is who will build
your facility. Premier Amusement Developers has over 50 combined years of experience in
the amusement industry. Let our experience help you become successful.
Take the next couple of minutes to review our website further and to learn about the
benefits of using Premier for your project. If you’d like to learn more or have further
questions, call us at (423) 598-9994. While you’re here, please fill out our brief contact
form just to the right of this video and we’ll promptly follow up and guide you to success
in the family entertainment center business. We look forward to hearing from you very soon.