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Pinball cafe / showroom ?

Ross Hamilton said:
I've just spent a bit of time measuring up. I think I can comfortably fit about 12 pinballs in there with a coffee counter, and maybe five coffee tables for 4 people per table. Probably room for a couple of novelty items, maybe a couple of arcade cabs, tabletops...
Is that enough, what do people think?
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If you need any advice on the coffee front or anything in general... DM me your mobile and i'll give you a call and happy to answer any questions you have
 
I quite like the idea of the board games. I take on the comment about bums on seats and low income but, as I said early on, it doesn't really have to make any money but i would prefer it to break even or at least come close.

The local mayor and deputy mayor have been privately positive about the idea, and a friend with a cafe nearby thinks that more trade in the town is good rather than competition, he has offered to help me to equip it.

I'm also seriously thinking about getting it sorted in time to host this year's Christmas Cracker Pinball... although I'll probably be short on machines still so will be looking for people who can bring one or two for the day. But it'll be better than it used to be, no stairs!
 
Martywolfman said:
I meant it as a lame joke, adding something that's the very opposite of your sensible game suggestions for games that would be quick and easy for people to pick up for a casual game.
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I know :) I just didn’t want @Ross Hamilton to take you seriously ;)

AlanJ said:
so you’re gonna get a bunch of geeks spending £3 on a single cup of coffee with 5 straws and sit there for 6 hours playing d&d and complaining about the noise from the pinball machines. 😂😂😂
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I should mention that some of those ‘geeks’ are the people who will keep *your* hobby going when they realise A:IQ is basically Crokinole with the ruleset of a medium-weight eurogame :cool: [Also, the way pinball pricing is going, the CEOs of tech startups are soon going to be the only people who can afford pins…]

On a more serious note, there are board game cafes in central Croydon (Ludoquist) and in central London/Hackney (Draughts) that seem to be making money. Ludoquist charges £5 per person for 3 hours of unlimited play, with drinks charged separately, and also offers a membership scheme, which is a similar model to Pinball Republic.
 
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There’s a gaming club in deptford which I’ve been going to for the last couple of years. The nerds are good at buying drinks but I’ve yet to see a single one drop a coin into either of the pins or the pool table.
Occasionally young hipsters wander in and everyone gets confused 😂
 
johnwhitfield said:
There’s a gaming club in deptford which I’ve been going to for the last couple of years. The nerds are good at buying drinks but I’ve yet to see a single one drop a coin into either of the pins or the pool table.
Occasionally young hipsters wander in and everyone gets confused 😂
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If you’ve got board gamers in, you need to:
  • Put the pins on free play and include the pins in the game hire charge;
  • Print out and laminate a rules sheet, and stick it on the wall next to the pins;
  • Plus some beginner‘s tips for play (e.g. one flipper at a time). If I was going to go really high tech, I’d have a TV up on the wall showing Abe’s Flips on repeat when it wasn’t showing football or similar.
Basically, if you want to get people who don’t play pins to play them, you need to:
  • Make it risk-free to make mistakes playing (i.e. you don’t lose a pound for draining in 10 seconds);
  • Explain the rules. If you’re going to offer board games, you can have games as complex as A:IQ, but you do need a rules sheet. Board gamers expect games to come with rules;
  • Reduce frustration by showing how to play.
Choice of pins is also important. Newbies like theme and toys. They also tend to like easier pins, but this isn’t a hard-and-fast rule:
  • The most popular pins on location in the UK, in my anecdotal experience, are Star Wars, JP2 and Ghostbusters - you can never get a game on those pins, despite them being hard;
  • Likewise, The Addam’s Family is popular on location in my experience (again, theme plus toys);
  • EMs have a nostalgia/charm factor and, ideally, you need one with a big bank of drop-down targets (so obvious what to hit);
  • The other modern Sterns, again my experience, are using open for play, despite A:IQ having an accessible theme.
Everyone who comes to my house just plays Godzilla - from asking, it’s my only easy pin…
 
It’s more surprising that the two pool tables at Badgerbadger aren’t ever used. Everyone roughly knows the rules. They’ve got a Spider-Man and a monopoly in there,so one of those tends to be popular in different sites.
I honestly don’t think I’ve ever seen another person ever go into the small anteroom whee they are based. The rest of the bar is generally busy and drinks and food do well.
I’m guessing their business model works for them though and they give out free dog treats so Belle’s onto a winner every Wednesday.
 
johnwhitfield said:
It’s more surprising that the two pool tables at Badgerbadger aren’t ever used. Everyone roughly knows the rules. They’ve got a Spider-Man and a monopoly in there,so one of those tends to be popular in different sites.
I honestly don’t think I’ve ever seen another person ever go into the small anteroom whee they are based. The rest of the bar is generally busy and drinks and food do well.
I’m guessing their business model works for them though and they give out free dog treats so Belle’s onto a winner every Wednesday.
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I didn’t even know that was there! I’ve been into the bike cafe, but not the board game one 😍

I think you’ve highlighted a couple of things there.
  1. First, ‘small anteroom’ - you need to have something pretty impressive (e.g. Neil’s collection of modern Sterns) in a small anteroom to get people to do more than stick their head around the door, and leave again;
  2. Second, if you look on BadgerBadger’s webpage and insta, they don’t mention that they have pool tables or pinball machines - just board games. So, they’re not going to get anyone who hasn’t come for a gaming event or already pre-arranged a game with friends;
  3. Why the flying flamingo would you put a Monopoly-themed pin in a modern board game cafe?!! You may as well have a Robin-Reliant-themed pin in a caf for Formula One enthusiasts!
Personally, I don’t know the rules of pool. The thing we tend to play a lot in arcades is air hockey.

BadgerBadger are also offering workspace facilities - not sure how well that would work as a business model in Lincolnshire as property prices are cheaper (so, fewer adults with desk jobs in pokey flat shares).
 
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Not to be rude but disregard anything @VeeMonroe has said.

@Ross Hamilton has reached out via DM but i'm always happy to share real-life experience of running a business that involves pinball for 7 years through COVID-19 and the current living crisis...

First and foremost never consider pinball as the primary source of income, it will always be a secondary... Otherwise, you'll be broke and out of business pretty fast...

I have always said Tilt is a craft beer bar first and a pinball venue second... If I relied on pinball I would have been bankrupt two months in... 🤣

In Ross's case... He has a venue, he has pinballs... So he now needs to focus on the offering which will pay the bills day to day...

Pinball cash is a bonus

Board games - don't bother its a pain in the ****... Chance and counters best company currently doing this relies 100% on food and drink but uses board games as their USP

Tilt hosts two monthly board game meet-ups, soon to be three... They all have their own organizers who bring everything they need to run the meetups including games etc... They draw in 50-70 people making us the cash off drinks sales.
 
Tilt_Birmingham said:
Not to be rude but disregard anything @VeeMonroe has said.
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No offence taken. I’ve never run a cafe - I’m doing the best I can to help with next-to-no experience :)

All my experience is going to venues (board game and pinball) and seeing what gets played :)

I wouldn’t dismiss board games though. My experience is board gaming is now a MUCH bigger hobby than pinball - so, if you want a USP, and there’s not another board game cafe for miles around, you’ll get people through the doors just by advertising you have modern board games and having a shelf of them along with the pins. Bear in mind, if no one plays the board games, they sit there needing dusting.
 
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Taking your own food into a pub/club that sells it really is taking the ****.
One of my close friends runs a pub in East London and her overheads are absolutely jaw dropping.
 
Pinballs a loss leader here but they bring in non locals.

With locals not going out the video games and air hockey and even bandits have collapsed

In the end its mine and Courtneys private collection given a public space

Most popular games here are godzilla stranger things then simpsons party .

We have a group of boardgamers and a d n d group but they aren't the worlds greatest spenders .

The pool players are very loyal but like air hockey you need space for these

Consider bar football. Always popular. Set up comps on it too
 
agree with Kirk and Steve. Gotta have a lead business idea that works. whether it’s coffee and cake, or ales n pies, or greasy spoon breakfasts, or american burger joint, etc.

I was determined to have a pin bar but in the end i realised i don’t want to be a publican or a restauranter.

A pinball led themed evening out (think junkyard golf, axe throwing, 10-pin bowling or escape room) MAYBE could work but is expensive to set up - you need lots of space - booths of say 3-4 pins each - themed, a host to take drinks orders, guide customers through what to do, practice session followed by food then into a mini comp, etc etc). Free business idea to anyone who dare………😃
 
Thanks for all the suggestions everyone. I had a good talk with the town Mayor yesterday, he has convinced me that what I ought to do is start low key, on an occasional invite/members basis for a while. He also talked me out of my idea of setting up a quiet back room as my office, pointing out that it would be dingy and a massive step down from what I am used to. I currently have a bright, warm and airy first floor office that looks out over a nice marketplace, while the new building is north facing onto a not very wide street. Even though it has massive bay windows it will never be as bright (with natural light) as my current place. And after all, I'll be the one who is there all the time. So the space needs a bit of reworking to make it more attractive for me to enjoy!

I'm thinking that I will get the place looking nice, make myself a comfortable and securable area for working from, and then see if I can drum up some interest for once a week or fortnight evening gathering. As I've said before, there's no real necessity for it to make any money, it's more about sharing the hobby. I already know quite a few people within a 40ish mile radius who've shown enthusiasm for it, and I'm *sure* that up and down the Skegness/Ingoldmells/Mablethorpe coast here there must be no end of people with some pinball nostalgia.

Regardless of whether it is a goer in terms of a cafe / daytime venue I'm definitely intending to have a dozen machines here for the Christmas Cracker pinball competition. I'll update that website early Nov with details.

I'm so impatient, I just want the tenant to get out and empty the place so I can get in there and make serious plans!
 
How far from skeggy as a group of pinheads are off to another music weekend at Butlins in Feb
 
It’s called the bootleg ball and is a collection of cover bands. We were there last weekend for an alternative music weekender.
3/2/23-6/2/23 get yourself along and if your pincafe is open I’m sure we would visit
 
Hmm, my plans have been thrown into disarray... the tenant has asked me for a 3-6 month extension instead of moving out in a fortnight.
I'd be daft not to take the money, so it looks like this is going on the back burner for a while :-(
 
Ross Hamilton said:
Hmm, my plans have been thrown into disarray... the tenant has asked me for a 3-6 month extension instead of moving out in a fortnight.
I'd be daft not to take the money, so it looks like this is going on the back burner for a while :-(
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The best things come to those who wait. A Pinball location in Lincolnshire is worth waiting for.
 
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