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Author Archives: Randy White
Eatertainment webinar rescheduled for next Wednesday
The eatertainment webinar has been rescheduled for 1 PM Easter Standard Time, next Wednesday, February 17th. Continue reading
Free webinar on eatertainment this Wednesday
Free webinar on eatertainment this Wednesday Continue reading
The Tchotchke Index is down, but has discretionary spending on OOH entertainment turned the corner?
The Tchotchke Index is down, but other consumer spending is up. What does this mean for location-based leisure venues? Continue reading
Decrease in licensed drivers; its implications
A just released study by The University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute shows that there has been a continuous decrease in the number of people with a driver’s license across all age groups over the past three decades. The younger … Continue reading
America – a no vacation nation
The percent of Americans not taking vacations is not good news for any location-based leisure venues that cater to vacationers, whether they are out-of-town on a trip or on a staycation at home. Continue reading
Looking back and looking forward at the FEC industry
Looking back through the history of the family entertainment center industry and predictions of what the future holds for its success. Continue reading
BECs still prisoners of the past
So here’s the problem with using the name BEC or hybrid bowling center for these mixed-anchor centers that include bowling. . . Continue reading
Is Chuck E. Cheese’s the Blockbuster Video of the Eatertainment Industry?
Greg Casale, the head chef at CEC, tells the press that a desire to attract Millennial mothers is behind the menu change. “Her kids know it’s a fun place to go, but Millennial moms want to provide that great experience without sacrificing for themselves,” he says. . . .Greg Chef, your new menu is still so in the past. It’s a 2005 menu in 2015. . . Continue reading
Webinar: How Digital is Disrupting the Entertainment Landscape
Join this Wednesday’s webinar on how digital is disrupting the entertainment landscape. Continue reading
FECs and LBEs now facing new competition
Now along comes another form of competition to FECs and LBEs. . . Continue reading
Daily fantasy sports coming to family entertainment centers
Fantasy sports is not exactly something you would associate with a family entertainment center (FEC). That is about to change in the near future with the acquisition of Major League Fantasy (MLF) by Latitude 360 . . . Continue reading
Mother Facebookers high in FoMO
Now along comes some data that indicates that FoMO may be strongest among mothers with children under 18. . . Continue reading
Americans still stuck in no-vacation land
62% of Americans said they wouldn’t be taking a vacation this summer at all Continue reading
Changes to the importance of work and leisure
We dug into the survey data to see if the Great Recession had any impact on how people in the U.S. value work and leisure. Continue reading
Where does pizza at FECs and Chuck E. Cheese’s fall in the four pizza groups?
Most FECs need to wake up and get with it, or they will see drastic revenue declines no different than Chuck E. Cheese’s has seen over the years due to their behind the times, non-adult appealing pizza. Continue reading
Digital video & media increasingly consuming our leisure time
Here’s some of the latest data on the disruptive growth of digital video viewing and changes to the use of other types media. Continue reading
Update on location-based entertainment spending trend
Our company has been tracking the long-term trend in location-based entertainment spending that has shown a decline started around the turn of the century. We now have new, more current data thru June 2014 . . . Continue reading
More Proof that High Fidelity is the Winning Formula
Despite a shrinking market for entertainment on trips and vacations, The Magic Kingdom . . . raised their admission price 44% faster than inflation. . . In today’s increasingly competitive entertainment marketplace, High Fidelity plays an important role in the formula for success. Continue reading
Be an LBE disrupter before you get disrupted
The LBE formulas of just a few years past are no longer future proof. Be a disrupter before you get disrupted, because that disruption is already underway. Continue reading
Vietnam’s Largest FEC Opens
157,000 SF Helio Center, Vietnam’s largest family entertainment center, celebrates its grand opening Continue reading
Smartphones are sucking the fun out of leisure time
Now along comes research that indicates a new type of disruption – that the use of digital technology, and more specifically the smartphone, is actually decreasing the fun many people have during the leisure time . . . Continue reading
The digital death of boredom and its implications for LBEs
Boredom used to be location-based entertainment’s friend. That has changed today. . . Continue reading
Movie Attendance Continues its 12-Year Decline
Hollywood has reported that North American 2014 movie theater attendance dropped 6% from the previous year and box office revenue declined by 5%. Actually, the decline is greater when we adjust . . . Truth be told, there are much more fundamental reasons why moviegoing is on the decline. Continue reading
Exactly Who Are the Affluents?
In our recent White Paper we described Affluents as people with personal incomes in excess of $70,000 who predominately live in households with two or more income earners with total household incomes of $100,000 or greater. We used that simple definition for brevity. However it is really more complicated than that, as household size has an impact of how much money it takes to live comfortably. Continue reading
35 Million Households Visited an Agritainment Farm this Summer and Fall
Members of over 35 million households (29%) with more than one-third of the U.S. population visited and paid for an activity at an agritainment farm over the summer and fall this year. Continue reading
Industry Label Reinforces Paradigm Paralysis
At the IAAPA Convention in Orlando this year I was part of what we believe was the first seminar ever given at IAAPA about attracting the adult market, called Growing Your Revenue with Adults. . . This is a completely new idea for most of what is called the family entertainment center (FEC) industry. And that is exactly why it is such a new idea, as for over two decades . . . Continue reading
The Tchotchke Index Tracks Location-Based Entertainment Spending
American’s spending on tchotchkes—trinkets, junk, yard sale finds, gift shop items, home decor trinkets and other decorative items for the home—is an excellent measure of their impulse spending . . . Continue reading
The intersection of personal digital technology & bricks-and-mortar entertainment
The Triple Revolution of the Internet, social media and the always-on-connectivity of now ubiquitous mobile devices is disrupting the entertainment venue industry in ways and at a speed that most in industry fail to recognize . . . Continue reading
Open Kitchens in Restaurants Increase Guest & Employee Satisfaction
Recent research findings reported in a September 2014 Harvard Business School Working Paper show the value of open kitchens in foodservice facilities and restaurants . . . Continue reading
One-of-a-Kind Survey on National FEC Attraction Preferences
Last month our company completed a national survey of over 4,000 adults on their participation in major attractions at family entertainment centers. According to the results . . . Continue reading
Evidence of Continuing Long-Term Decline in Marriages & Births
Now along comes research published three days ago . . . that finds that these two trends will continue long into the future. Continue reading
The migration of the meaning of Place
Now the physicality of place is no longer its sole meaning. The definition of place has changed due to the Internet and mobile devices, especially the smartphone. Continue reading
Is the Terminator prophecy coming true?
I found a very interesting comment by James Cameron, director of The Titanic and Avatar movies in an interview in the current issue of Fast Company magazine about whether the machines have risen. Continue reading
Millennials aren’t necessarily who you think they are
The press continually implies that Millennials are a homogeneous group of approximately 19- to 34-year-olds. Nothing could be further from the truth. . . Continue reading
Travel spending on entertainment & dining takes a staycation nosedive
The U.S. Commerce Department has reported that spending on travel and tourism during the 1st quarter of 2014 decreased at an annual rate of 1.0%. However, spending on recreation and entertainment turned down dramatically . . . Continue reading
Playing Video Games Now a College Varsity Sport
This is just one more example of how the digital world is disrupting traditional entertainment, and now sports. Not only is pure digital displacing the physical and real world versions, but we are also seeing a convergence of digital and real world experiences creating new forms of competition. Continue reading
More about the Social TV competition
Twitter and Facebook Social TV are examples of just one of the many new kinds of growing digital disruptions to yesteryear’s entertainment landscape. Continue reading
Smartphones are making TV tougher competition than ever
Now we have the synergistic combination of two digital screens merging to become more powerful and attractive than either alone. Disruptive digital at-home entertainment competition continues to ramp up its game. Continue reading
eSports, the newest spectator sport
As if eSports play and its viewership hasn’t made the entertainment competitive landscape worse enough for LBEs, now eSports is raising the bar by competing for a share of what time people do spend out of their homes at entertainment venues. Continue reading
No need to socialize, as that’s what smartphones are for
It is becoming increasing clear that digital technology is shifting our social interaction with each other from taking place in the real world to taking place in the digital world and consequently . . . Continue reading
More Evidence of the Digital Disruption of Location-Based Entertainment & Culture
So here’s what is so scary for location-based entertainment, sporting events and cultural venues, the vast majority of which are seeing a long-term trend of declining attendance. The use of mobile devices that can be used anywhere 24/7 continues to grow, and the majority of that growing screen time is being used to engage in entertainment . . . Continue reading
New research shows out-of-home entertainment & arts participation on the decline
Our analysis of the American Time Use Survey data shows a long-term trend of declining participation in out-of-home entertainment and the arts, but it is not an across-the-board trend. Continue reading
American’s Optimistic on Spending for Entertainment and Restaurants
Things have definitely turned the corner compared to early 2009 when three-quarters of consumers were planning on reducing spending for entertainment and restaurants Continue reading
How interactive location-based entertainment can bond families
In a world where our children are constantly alone on their tablets, it is so important to create environments where they can have fun with each other. It [laser tag] can even bring mom and dad together with their son to. Continue reading
Why aren’t you listening to me?
It’s the frontline staff that gets the feedback from customers. It’s just downright stupid for companies to block that communication channel and wait for customers to directly communicate with management. . . What a missed opportunity for companies . . . Continue reading
Movie attendance continued its long-term decline in 2013
2013 North American movie box office results are in. On a per capita basis, movie attendance declined . . . the 2013 attendance decline is a continuation of a long-term trend of declining per capita attendance from its peak in 2002. Continue reading
American’s Favorite Leisure Activities
Here’s the favorite leisure activities of American Millennials and Gen-Xs. If we exclude reading, although today much of it takes place on a tablet screen, four of the most popular five leisure activities for both Millennials and Gen X take place on a screen. Continue reading
Travel expenditures since 2005 and the Great Recession
Earlier this year The Bureau of Labor Statistics posted a graph showing that 2011 household travel expenditures had decreased 6% from their peak in 2007. However, they didn’t adjust for inflation. The decrease is actually much more severe. Continue reading
College-degreed households biggest spenders at location-based entertainment venues
In 2012, households where the highest education level of a household member was a Bachelor’s Degree or higher accounted for the majority of all spending at location-based entertainment venues . . .Those households make up only 38% of all households. Continue reading
Composition of households has changed over time
The composition of American households has been shifting over time. The chart shows the changes from 1990 to 2012. Continue reading
More High Fidelity Proof
I believe this past weekend’s success of the movie Gravity is additional proof in the movie theater industry . . . Continue reading
Households increased entertainment spending in 2012
American households increased their average spending for fees and admissions at location-based entertainment venues in 2012 . . . Both the bad and good news is that the staycation trend is still going strong. . . These continuing long-term trends have serious implications for location-based entertainment. Continue reading
Has Chuck E. Cheese’s Turned the Corner on Comparable Store Sales?
Results are in for their first two quarters of 2013 and . . . Continue reading
Vacation Deficit (Staycation) Trend Appears Headed Up this Year
A recent poll found that the staycation trend that started back in 1996 is continuing into 2013, with less people confident they will take a vacation than last year, but those that do expect to spend 12% more. Continue reading
Bowling as a third place
Contemporary bowling centers as well as other types of LBEs can have great success if they become third places. Continue reading
Amusement park goers are young, affluent & checking Twitter
Read about the results from Scarborough’s survey of amusement park goers, how they are young, affluent, social media savvy and more likely to be non-white. Continue reading
Baby Bust Continued into 2012
The latest statistics just released by the IRS show that the baby bust has continued into 2012. Continue reading
Social Stratification of Location-based Entertainment Spending Continues
The Bureau of Labor Statistics just released for the very first time consumer expenditure data on a mid-year basis, for the twelve months from mid-2011 through mid-2012. The data shows that the social stratification trend is continuing. Continue reading
Is the baby bust the death of children’s entertainment centers?
What does the recent baby bust mean for children’s entertainment centers? Continue reading
More Evidence of the Staycation Trend
Our February 2013 Leisure eNewsletter featured an article, Evidence that the staycation trend is both real and long-term. In that article, we examined household entertainment participation and spending on trips and found that since the year 2000, overall participation has … Continue reading
Foundations Entertainment University Attracts 63 Attendees
The 28th Foundations Entertainment University held in Las Vegas March 18-19 in conjunction with Amusement Expo attracted 63 attendees. The next Foundations will be held in Chicago July 16-18, 2013. Continue reading
Are High School Seniors Using Less Media Than We Think?
It appears that high school students spend a lot less time watching TV, on social media or playing video games than many reports would have us believe. Continue reading
Is AMC Bowling’s bankruptcy the harbinger of the death of bowling?
On November 13th, AMF Bowling Worldwide, Inc., the world’s largest operator of some 262 bowling alleys in the U.S. and Mexico, filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection. The company will continue to operate while it tries to reorganize by restructuring … Continue reading
2002-2011 Changes to Household Location-Based Entertainment Spending
The world of entertainment is evolving and toppling old models. . . The changing landscape of entertainment is having an adverse impact on location-based (bricks ‘n’ mortar) entertainment. Continue reading
2011 U.S. Household Composition
2011 household data has just been released by the U.S. Census Bureau from the 2012 Current Population Survey. We prepared the following infograph on the household composition of the U.S. Continue reading
Interesting Facts about the Grandparent Market
Contrary to popular belief, the majority of today’s grandparents are under the age of 65. . . The sweet spot for grandchild-grandparent interaction is with grandchildren ages 6 to 11. . . 82% of grandparents report that they spend money to entertain and have fun with their grandchildren. Continue reading
Infographic on how Americans spend their leisure time on weekends and holidays
As part of our company’s continuing analysis on how Americans spend their leisure time, we produced this infographic. Continue reading
Youth bowling participation declines less than for adults
I decided to take a look at the 10-year trend for children and youth bowling versus adult bowling to see what that looked like. So I examined bowling changes to participation between 2001 and 2011 for ages 7-11, for ages 12-17 and for adults who had bowled more than once during those years Continue reading
What age households are the big spenders for location-based entertainment?
It’s the older age households that have the greatest aggregate out-of-home entertainment spending, not younger age households that marketing myths have us believe. Article includes infographic and historical trend data. Continue reading
Get unstuck; It’s really all about social-tainment!
The location-based entertainment industry has paradigm paralysis, continuing to believe build the entertainment and they will come. Get unstuck with social-tainment. Continue reading
The Potential of the Stay-at-Home Mother Market
Many businesses, including entertainment facilities, fail to recognize and capture the potential from the stay-at-home mother market. Continue reading
Infographic on entertainment spending on trips
Infographic illustrates the changes to household entertainment spending on trips by quintiles of income Continue reading
Out-of-home entertainment spending continues to decrease
Decreases in out-of-home entertainment spending since the start of the recession are only part of a longer term trend. Continue reading
Social Stratification of Out-of-Home Entertainment
An increasing share of out-of-home entertainment spending is shifting to higher socioeconomic households Continue reading
Video Games Taking Share from Out-of-Town Entertainment Spending
Analysis shows a definite trend of entertainment spending shifting from out-of-home entertainment venues to video games and software. Continue reading
Household Spending for Out-of-Home Entertainment and Restaurants Seriously Declined in 2010
Household out-of-home entertainment and restaurant spending saw a serious decline in 2010. Continue reading
Per person restaurant expenditure trend
The 20-year trend of per person restaurant expenditures is very similar to the trend of household expenditures Continue reading
Are restaurants reaching equilibrium of supply and demand?
Restaurant expenditures are on a long-term decline versus reports to the contrary. However, the population per restaurant is on the increase. Continue reading
Software is eating the bricks-and-mortar world, including entertainment venues
The value chain of many industries, including location-based entertainment, is being eaten by software and the digital world. Continue reading
Climbing the wall of FEC success
There’s a financial hurdle that all family entertainment centers need to meet if they are going to have long term success rather than become road kill. Unfortunately, many FECs fail to make it. Learn about many of the reasons why FECs fail due to inadequate budgets and investment. Continue reading
Attracting Millennials to location-based entertainment venues
Attracting Millennials to location-based entertainment venues is a challenge. Learn some of their unique qualities and some pointers. Continue reading
Upscaling the guest’s LBE facility experience
Most independent FEC and LBE owners fail to understand the importance of the quality of design and ambiance of their facility to their success. Continue reading
Trampoline centers a flash in the pan?
Indoor trampoline parks are popping up everywhere in the U.S. But is this deja vu all over again in the children’s entertainment center industry ? Are they nothing but a fad that will shortly die off, especially because many children are being injured? An industry veteran gives his candid opinion. Continue reading
Bowling: Death and Rebirth
Bowling is undergoing a significant change with the decline of league bowlers and bowling alleys and the emergence of upscale bowling centers catering to casual open-play bowlers. Between 2007 and 2010, the number of serious bowlers (13+ x/yr) declined 22%. Continue reading
Fast food restaurant delivers food on a roller coaster
Restaurant in Europe takes fast food to the next level by delivering in on a roller coaster. Continue reading
Chuck E. Cheese’s Leaking Bucket
Learn how Chuck E. Cheese’s has the highest new customer defection rate of almost any restaurant and how restaurant defection rates are now improving post-recession Continue reading
Be aware of guest homophily
When it comes to applying the concept of homophily to location-based entertainment, it is critical to know what socioeconomic/lifestyle group you want to attract. Continue reading
The Architects of Service
Poor customer service experiences are often not the fault of frontline staff, rather the blame falls on the architects of service who design the customer service procedures, staff training programs as well as the actual physical facility. Continue reading
Feasibility studies – a combination of art and science
A feasibility study for location-based entertainment is both science and art. Properly prepared, it becomes the strategic plan for the entire project. Continue reading
The decline of bricks-&-mortar consumer businesses
The Internet distribution channel is taking market share from bricks-and-mortar consumer businesses. In some categories the Internet has won. It’s scary stuff for retail and shopping center developers. Continue reading
What’s happening with Chuck E. Cheese’s?
Update on Chuck E. Cheese’s 4th quarter 2010 results, their rollout of a new pizza and their remodel, expansion and franchise plans. Continue reading
Community-Based Eatertainment Venue Sales on Increase
Comparable store sales at a number of public eatertainment companies are showing increases, indicating an increase in consumer spending at community-based entertainment-oriented venues. Continue reading
