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Recent Posts
- Our April Leisure eNewsletter is now available April 19, 2022
- Our March Leisure eNewsletter is now available March 14, 2022
- The February edition of our Leisure eNewsletter is now available  February 15, 2022
- What they fail to explain about vaccines, Delta, and masks September 13, 2021
- No, the pandemic hasn’t ended. It’s still having a significant impact on indoor family and children’s venues July 8, 2021
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Category Archives: Out-of-home
Our March Leisure eNewsletter is now available
This month’s issue looks at what past and current trends indicate the “new normal” may be for out-of-home entertainment in the post-pandemic world. It’s for sure we won’t be going back to the pre-pandemic 2019 normal. The two-year pandemic has … Continue reading
Comfort continues to increase for out-of-home leisure activities
A return to normal, but a new one might not be that far away. Continue reading
The importance of human connection to Americans’ happiness
Post-pandemic, many people will find their happiness by maintaining their social connections with family and friends at home and less than in the past at location-based leisure venues. Continue reading
Will vaccinations create a roaring rebound to attending in-person events?
What affect will vaccinations have on the return to in-person events, including dining in restaurants and attending entertainment and cultural events? Continue reading
The light at the end of the tunnel is getting brighter
As infections decline and vaccinations increase, comfort in going to restaurants and out-of-home entertainment & arts is trending upward. Continue reading
Is a return to out-of-home entertainment and its previous normal on the horizon or a mirage?
Major changes that took place with consumers during the pandemic will have a long enduring impact on the post-pandemic location-based entertainment competitive landscape. Continue reading
Some bad and some good news
Here’s some bad and good new about people returning to out-of-home entertainment and arts venues Continue reading
When will the out-of-home entertainment and arts industry recover?
Here’s discussion and my projections on when and to what extent the out-of-home entertainment and arts industry will recover. Continue reading
When will we be able to take our masks off and return to normalcy? – part 2
Here are several caveats to if and when we might reach herd immunity based on the Pfizer and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines. Continue reading
The surge in coronavirus infections is causing increased concern for in-person gatherings and public activities
The surge in coronavirus infections is causing increased concern for in-person gatherings and public activities Continue reading
Will increased cooking at home, restaurant takeout, and meal delivery become the post-pandemic future normal? If so, what are its implications for location-based entertainment?
How the pandemic has changed our dining behaviors and its impact on our post-pandemic dining and visits to location-based entertainment venues. Continue reading
Hometainment’s impact on the post-pandemic entertainment landscape
When the risk of the coronavirus finally disappears, will our current levels of hometainment continue or will our out-of-home entertainment return to its 2019 levels? Continue reading
Using slices of Swiss cheese to make people feel safe from catching the coronavirus at public places?
The coronavirus is an existential threat for getting people to participate in public activities. How Swiss cheese to make them more comfortable to attend. Continue reading
The great location-based entertainment decimation event
The pandemic and its continuation into 2021 are a genuine existential threat to location-based entertainment and FECs. Continue reading
Comfort levels going to public places creeping up
Since lows in August, comfort levels going to different out-of-home public activities is now creeping up Continue reading
Covid-19 accelerates the socioeconomic bifurcation of out-of-home entertainment and arts
If you thought the 2019 out-of-home entertainment and arts market was gentrified, just wait for how gentrified the post-pandemic market becomes Continue reading
Covid’s impact on pumpkin time out-of-home public activities
Lots of people are going stir-crazy and craving some sort of ‘safe’ out-of-home entertainment they can visit. This fall it look like agritainment/agritourism will be the winner. Continue reading
The gap in comfort between millennials and all adults starts to widen for some activities.
We’re seeing an uptick in Millennials’ comfort visiting different out-of-home entertainment and cultural activities Continue reading
There’s a nesting trend underway
Location-based entertainment and cultural venues face new headwinds from the nesting trend. Continue reading
When will people return to restaurants, museums, and location-based entertainment?
The data indicates that we won’t be getting back close to 2019 levels of visitation and attendance at out-of-home dining, social, cultural and entertainment activities any time soon. Continue reading
People’s comfort returning to out-of-home activities on the decline
Here’s the most current poll results on people’s comfort levels and intentions on returning to out-of-home leisure activities. Continue reading
How Covid-19 is reshaping the out-of-home leisure competitive landscape
The pandemic has reshaped the competitive out-of-home leisure competitive landscape, changing the leisure activities people will choose to do. Continue reading
Comfort for visiting leisure, entertainment and cultural destinations continues to decline
Morning Consult has been polling Americans every two weeks on their comfort levels of engaging in different out-of-home leisure activities. For every activity tracked, the comfort level was on an upswing into the second week in June, after which it … Continue reading
The post-Covid out-of-home entertainment competitive landscape
Pre-Covid LBE and FEC business models are all facing a true existential threat. Their existing business models will all suffer accelerated Darwinism if they don’t adapt and innovate for the new post-pandemic future with customers who are fundamentally different than the ones we knew before. Continue reading
Consumers’ comfort visiting leisure activities falls with Covid-19 infection surge
Consumers’ comfort levels visiting leisure and entertainment activities has declined with the Covid-19 infection surge. Continue reading
It’s a long road ahead for location-based entertainment to recover to pre-pandemic business levels
There’s been a lot of press coverage on consumers returning to reopened restaurants, location-based entertainment (LBE) and other businesses. Yes, the trend is up with increasing attendance. However, moving up from zero attendance doesn’t mean you will soon be at 100%. Here’s what all the polls and research is telling us about a recovery. Continue reading
Peoples’ Covid-19 fears and its impact on out-of-home entertainment & dining activities
Following is some very recent polling data that I sorted through from multiple sources on the current state of consumers’ fears that they or a member of their family will catch coronavirus and the impact of this fear on their … Continue reading
When will people return to out-of-home entertainment and dining based on their income, education, generation & age?
Here’s some very recent data on when adults expect to return to restaurants and out-of-home (OOH) entertainment and cultural venues based on their incomes, education, generation and age. Continue reading
When, if ever, will location-based entertainment become profitable again?
There are a number of factors that will determine when LBEs will be profitable again including the share of the population at high risk of Covid-19. Here’s the latest data and predictions. Continue reading
The economics of operating location-based entertainment in corona-time
As stay-in-place orders are lifted, reopening LBEs will face financial challenges. Continue reading
What out-of-home activities consumers are now willing to do?
We’re seeing improvement in the percent of consumers ready to return to out-of-home entertainment, but it isn’t where we need to be. Continue reading
Readiness to return to out-of-home entertainment, arts and dining based on income and education
A May 5-9 poll gives us insight on whether and how peoples’ incomes and education will affect how soon they will return to restaurants and location-based entertainment and cultural attractions. Continue reading
Who’s ready to return to out-of-home entertainment and cultural experiences?
Now that states are starting to allow businesses to open and the lockdown is winding down, will people return to out-of-home (OOH) entertainment and cultural experiences? Our company has access to a large number of national U.S. polls with very current data. So, I dug into the data of some of them to see what people are saying. Continue reading
The accelerated digitalization of place is disrupting the real estate landscape
It was first back in 2015 in our company’s Leisure eNewsletter that we wrote about the growing trend of the digitalization of place – that the internet and digital technology is making it possible to acquire things or to have experiences at-home … Continue reading
The inconvenient truth – almost all location-based entertainment business models are now obsolete
Our company prides itself in using research to identify trends and guide our clients to future-proof their location-based entertainment centers (LBEs), which includes the categories of family entertainment centers (FECs), social eatertainment venues and agritainment/agritourism farms. As they say in … Continue reading
Will no longer doing some things we used to do pre-Covid become a permanent habit?
While bunkered down at home, I’ve been taking long walks everyday whenever the weather permits. Here in Kansas City in the Spring, it’s a great time to take walks as all the greenery is emerging. Winters here are very gray. … Continue reading
Will your entertainment or cultural venue be ready for the post-lockdown guests?
Now is the time to start thinking about what changes need to be made to both facility design and operations to attract the post-lockdown consumer. Continue reading
Predictions on the post-pandemic location-based entertainment landscape
What will the post-pandemic out-of-home entertainment competitive landscape look like? Continue reading
The impact of virtual entertainment experiences during the lockdown on the post-pandemic entertainment landscape
What might the long-term impact be on our out-of-home entertainment behavior once the corona-crisis is over? Continue reading
The out-of-home entertainment blood bath
There is massive over expansion of out-of-home entertainment options occurring in many markets. At the same time, in-home entertainment options are becoming more alluring. Jim Kessler, owner and operator of two Lasertron venues, just posted a blog on what it … Continue reading
Digital disruption changes industry definitions
This year two major trade organizations changed the definition of their industries. Both are telltale signs of the major digital disruption that is occurring to all types of out-of-home (OOH) B2C businesses, including OOH leisure and entertainment. According to the National … Continue reading
Dave & Buster’s continues its decline
Yesterday Dave & Buster’s reported record revenues in the third quarter, up 12.9%. Sounds all rosy, but it really isn’t when you drill down into the results. The revenue increase is attributable to an increase in the number of stores. … Continue reading
Nascent new technology will be a game changer
Live streaming 360 virtual reality isn’t just an exciting new technology. It’s a new type of media and a game changer that has high potential to change the way we live, especially our leisure lives. Continue reading
First mover doesn’t succeed unless its also best mover
The conventional wisdom is that first to market can establish a stronghold in the market, a first mover advantage, making it difficult for later entrants to capture market share. However, a first mover advantage is never a sure thing. Being a first mover at the expense of being the best mover will often lead to a competitive disadvantage. Continue reading
Pokémon Go introduces a new disruptive entertainment technology
Pokémon Go introduces a totally new disruptive technology to the consumer entertainment landscape 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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
It’s time to kill the family entertainment center industry
Now don’t panic. I’m not suggesting we close the centers. What I am suggesting is that it’s time to do away with the inappropriate industry term for the type of venues that the FEC industry claims to represent. Using family … Continue reading
Don’t count on cabin fever to drive attendance
Relying on people having cabin fever to drive attendance at a family entertainment center type facility is wishful thinking. The world of out-of-home entertainment has changed dramatically in the last decade or so. Several decades ago, short of playing Monopoly … Continue reading
Why so many FECs have marginal success or fail
Over our company’s 22-years working in the location-based entertainment (LBE) and family entertainment center (FEC) industries, which include bowling and other community-based out-of-home entertainment venues, we have been retained by many clients to analyze their poorly performing centers and develop … Continue reading
Thoughts on the Future of LBEs & Digital Out-of-Home Entertainment
Recently Kevin Williams, publisher of The Stinger Report, an ezine that covers the digital out-of-home interactive entertainment industry, contacted me and several other industry leaders and asked about our take on the future of location-based entertainment and digital out-of-home entertainment. … Continue reading
