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Editor's corner

I'm really privileged to be working on a diverse group of exciting and innovative projects with some great clients. Here are a few of our company's current projects:

• Feasibility for renovation of horse riding stables into an equine agritourism destination for families
• Development of an indoor and outdoor aquatic center with a polished casual restaurant at a resort in the Pacific Northwest
• Development of a skateboard training and entertainment center
• Development of a year-round restaurant at an agritainment farm
• Working with a mall owner on the East Coast on redevelopment of the mall, including incorporating entertainment, leisure and social experiences into the plans
• Enhancing and elevating the offerings and experiences at a food, beer and wine festival
• Development of a destination social venue in the Northwest that will include a polished casual restaurant and bar, rooftop deck and bar, upscale bowling, pickleball, interactive social games, a gameroom and go-karts.

I was recently quoted as an expert in the Bisnow article ‘Mediocrity No Longer Works': How Family Entertainment Centers Draw In Mall Traffic. This month I'll be attending Datassential's Foodscape in Chicago to learn about new food trends and the new forces that are revolutionizing eating and drinking. Then in early October I'll be heading to San Diego for the International Festivals & Events Association convention.

The out-of-home leisure and entertainment landscape is now flooded with options and variety and the numbers are constantly growing. On top of that, there are multiple cultural and demographic changes disrupting the traditional business models that worked in the past, but now are only marginally working and will fail in the future. It's for that reason that many of our articles address these many issues. No, we don't write about gloom and doom for the out-of-home leisure industry, but rather share with you a lot of the research and strategies our company is using to make sure our clients are successful with their projects not just when they open, but for many years into the future. It's only by understanding all the disruptive and competitive forces underway that you can develop new business models that will be compelling and get ample market share.

And speaking of disruption, we are pleased to have a guest article by Kevin Williams, one of the world's top experts and consultants on out-of-home digital and immersive entertainment. Kevin takes a look at virtual and augmented reality and helps us understand: Is tech better than real? Will VR have legs? and Where is the future?

I hope you enjoy these last few days of summer and you find the articles in this issue informative and helpful to you.

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