Looking for feedback from fellow Pinsiders.
This post is lengthy, but I'd like to give you some background ... (stop reading now if you're already bored.)
I opened a small pinball lounge just a mile from my house last summer. The official grand opening was in November 2019. This is a part-time thing, Thurs-Sun. I have another full-time job to earn my living.
Now Here Pinball has 16 pinball machines and 1 virtual pin with 270+ games. All machines are set for Free Play. Customers are charged based on the amount of time they want to play.
$10 - Up to 1 hour
$15 - 1 to 2 hours
$20 - 2+ hours
Current Pinball Machines:
Aerosmith (Pro) (Stern, 2017)
Austin Powers (Stern, 2001)
Dirty Harry (Williams, 1995)
Guardians of the Galaxy (Pro) (Stern, 2017)
Gorgar (Williams, 1979)
Laser War (Data East, 1987)
Last Action Hero (Data East, 1993)
Lethal Weapon 3 (Data East, 1992)
Mousin' Around! (Bally, 1989)
The Munsters (Pro) (Stern, 2019)
Phantom of the Opera (Data East, 1990)
Slick Chick (Gottlieb, 1963)
Super Star (Williams, 1972)
Tally Ho (Exhibit, 1947)
Target Alpha (Gottlieb, 1976)
Team One (Gottlieb, 1977)
I've been closed since mid March and still not sure exactly when I can reopen. The rent and utilities are pretty reasonable, $800/mo. and I have no employees so I'm not that worried if I can hang in there for a while longer, it's more, where do I go from here once I can reopen.
I've thought of creating memberships for individuals, couples and families. I would sell just enough to cover the $800 I need to keep the place open.
By doing it this way, I'm thinking I can promote the fact that we are not open to random people just showing up to play pinball. Members would know our policies ahead of time and what we do to maintain a safe and sanitary place for their enjoyment.
Members would sign a membership agreement that covers all the essentials deemed necessary at the time ... (ie., masks must be worn, handwashing before beginning to play, etc.)
My place has never been that busy, maybe only a dozen or so people on a weekend. Cortland, NY is a small community located 45 minutes from Syracuse
and Binghamton, and 30 minutes from Ithaca, NY.
If I could sell just 20 memberships at $40 a month, it could keep my lounge going and I'd be super happy. If I was lucky enough to hit my monthly goal on a regular basis, I could create a waiting list for new members wanting to join.
Any thoughts? How about pricing? Looking at my list of games; what would you be willing to pay for an individual membership? .. a couple? .. or a family?
Any feedback will be appreciated.
If you've made it this far ... Thank You for reading!
Stay safe and be well ... Clyde