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Editor's corner

Welcome to our year-end issue, our largest issue ever. There's plenty of great reading for over the holidays in 12 informative articles that you won't find in any other industry publication.

In this issue

The road to success in the community leisure venue (CLV) industry, which includes what has been mistakenly been labeled as the family entertainment center (FEC) industry (most entertainment-oriented CLVs no longer target families) is no longer about looking down the street to see what competing CLVs are doing, but rather understanding how the consumer, their lifestyles and values and their many leisure options, expectations and behaviors are changing. Competition is now all the many other options consumers now have and will shortly have for use of their leisure time and discretionary spending. In this issue we have a large number of articles that look at these issues and the disruption it is bringing to today's CLV business models.

Some travel tips

I fly a whole lot, at least 30 trips a year. I'm no germaphobe, but over time, I've learned a few tips on how to stay healthy, meaning not getting sick while on the road. Here are four:

1. I'm sure when you've stayed at a hotel, you've noticed the fancy way the Kleenex sticking out of its container have been arranged. Who did it? Of course it was the room cleaning staff. Do you think they washed their hands or changed gloves before doing it? No way. So you can only imagine the germs that are on those Kleenex. First thing I do is toss the ones sticking out of the container in the trash.
2. Somewhere along the line, I'm sure you've had to ride an airport train between terminals or a bus that takes you to the car rental. Often the train or bus seats will all be taken, so you have to stand. If so, don't hold the pole with you hand. Can you imagine how many other people have done so in the last few hours? Instead, I wrap by arm around the pole to hang on so I don't touch it with my hand.
3. We all know we're supposed to wash your hands a lot. I do including after going thru the TSA check point where you handle bins that 1,000s of people also do. If you have a carry-on bag you're rolling along with you, its handle is instantly cross contaminated with any germs you picked up from the bins. So when I wash my hands, I take the moist paper towels and wipe off the handle of my carry-on. It might not be perfect sanitation, but it sure removes some of the germs. Of course if you're a germaphobe, you will use a sanitizing wipe.
4. Research has shown that the risk of infectious disease transmission aboard a plane is very low. In fact, the risk of airborne transmission is probably higher in the departure lounge, where air isn't rigorously filtered.

Today, the quality of aircraft cabin air is carefully controlled. Most modern aircraft recycle about 50% of cabin air after it is filtered through HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) filters like those used in hospitals to trap dust particles, bacteria, fungi, and viruses, with the remaining 50% being fresh, outside air. Cabin air is exchanged through the system about 20 to 30 times per hour!

So to take the greatest advantage of the filtered air, keep the air nozzles above the seat on and pointed forward of your face so to maximize the amount of that air you breathe.

Honored in client's blog

If you're a regular reader of our Leisure eNewsletter, you've read about the Ocean5 and Table 47 project we've been working on in Gig Harbor in the greater Seattle-Tacoma region. I'm honored to have been featured in a blog by the project's impact entrepreneur and founder, Troy Alstead, the former COO of Starbucks. Check out Building An Impact Business Starts With a Great Team on Linkedin Pulse.

Linkedin article

In November, I published an article on Pulse at Linkedin you might want to check out - How technology is swallowing reality; the disruption of out-of-home experiences

Wishing you a joyous holiday season and prosperous New Year.

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