Learn as much as you can. Maybe work for an operator. Work for a bar.

And they don't just hand out licenses. For liquor, arcades, games, barcades, etc.

Check with the city hall in the city you want to do this in. Find out what you can and can't do. Zoning ordinances, licenses, insurance, etc.

If there is a distributor or AMOA organization in your state, they can be a source of info.

I would suspect a heck of a lot of money to start up, remodel, meet any building requirements. Etc. Etc.

Might be worth doing. Just think it through and go forward with a plan. Best wishes.

LTG : )

why Not rent the space to some other more viable business? If you are pressed for time, why on earth do you want to open up a new business?

Owning a small business requires a huge time commitment OR you need the funding to be able to hire people to run it in your absence, and you need to make sure those people are trustworthy. So that’s what I would look into first.

What about making a private club. Paid membership to play the games and a byob or no alcohol. I thunk there are a few club style pin arcades now. I know a few have it so members bring in games so it’s more of a coop. But it keeps the random public out and allows for less human over sight.

Demographics important.

If your primary desire is to commercially operate the arcade equipment, I'd start by leasing out the building to another interested in opening a tavern or otherwise, and work your equipment usage into the deal. This way you're not suffering any problems or losses with the tavern, (and its employees), while gaining experience running your arcade equipment at the same time.

If you expect to place 25+ used or vintage arcade pieces in this lounge, it's probably safe to assume 2 or more visits per week, (collections and minor repair), and a very busy cell phone. Also you'll need to have a few games "Ready for usage" in your storage area for games with major break-downs, monitor repair, etc.

Carefully consider jurisdiction licenses and liability insurance on your equipment as well.

This guy out here turned an empty store in a building into this as basically a tax write off for his game collection. https://flynnsretrocade.com/ Seems to be doing well.

You still need to look into local zoning and license issues.

LTG : )

Know your audience. who are the people in your town? What are their interests? For example we have a barcade in Burlington that caters to the hipster college kids with super fancy craft cocktails served by guys with mustaches. It's always packed and they are opening another location so they seem to be doing pretty good.