Paintball businesses
The main requirements for setting one up includes staff that have experience in
such dealings or know how to work such an operation and how to take care of daily
events, a good game site – weather and animals along with residences nearby have
to be taken into consideration and the equipment being used should not be faulty
as, if a paintball gun were to go off on a person less than a foot away major injuries
can take place.
A paintball game business collects fees for the use of its facility, rents equipment
for the play of the game and sells the paintballs and CO2 gas necessary to make
the paintball marker do its thing.
In a nutshell, the paintball business:
1. Persuades its customers to play - Advertising
2. Needs to have a procedure that customers are required to go through by the staff
- All fees need to be collected
- Going through and checking waivers
- Making sure any equipment brought by the customer for game play is safe and isn’t
damaged
- Making sure all equipment rented is noted and forms are filled (this doesn’t apply
to all businesses, as some rent the equipment as part of the fee and thus they are
not required to fill out forms, they should however take note of any equipment provided
and make sure they are returned and are not damaged)
- Giving customers an introduction recounting
- What their schedule for the day is (this depends on the type of customer, as in
whether or not they have their own schedule (a booked appointment for say, an hour)
or they are there for a program set by the business – programs are not a necessary
requirement in the businesses but may attract more customers)
- What the types of games there are (if they don’t know and have to choose the type
they are playing)
- The rules of the game and safety procedures
- How to use the equipment and the safety precautions to be followed while using them
- Give out equipment that is up to or above the standards set by the government or
governing bodies
The business should have any upgrades the customer may want to rent such as higher
quality equipment or equipment with more features (guns) They should be able to
sell paintballs and equipment 3. Conducts games 4. Has vending machines for light
snacks (This is optional but is recommended) 5. The business may provide lunch or
a lunch break for themselves and their customers by arranging bookings or games
around it (optional) 6. Selling additional paintballs and CO2 for customers if they
require more mid play or when needed 7. Takes care of customer’s equipment and clean
up needs (during a break between games they may want their jumpsuit, goggles or
gun cleaned or changed) 8. Needs to check on their equipment on a daily basis for
any flaws 9. Every night their equipment should be counted, cleaned and put away.
Along with cleaning the equipment their office, grounds, equipment shed and front
desk should be cleaned.
Features of the game site or the grounds of the business
The paintball game site should have the following attributes.
(1) The location should
be accessible (2) There should be parking available (3) 2-3 playing fields (4) The
check in, concession, CO2 fill up station and equipment area may be at the same
desk. If otherwise, for checking in there should be a table (optional but is recommended)
The concession area, if a vending machine can be right next to the check in desk
or near the field for easy access for the customers. The equipment area can be a
desk with shelves behind it to sport the goods and for easy viewing. This can be
next to the check in area for instant access. The CO2 fill up station should once
again be an arrangement with counters or a table It is often so, that there is one
desk for all four as it saves on space (5) There should a storage area that can be
locked. (6) There should be a section assigned for staging and cleaning up (7) The
field should be divided, one section for game play and the other for target shooting
(8) A timer can be set up at the fields to remind players of how much time they have
left – this is optional (9) Preferably next to the field should be an area designated
for the team to have their lunch or just to even pass time if the field is occupied.
(10) Trashcans (11) Rule boards, safety signs and directional marks (12) Rest rooms
(13) Electricity, lights, barbeque stands, dumpsters and speed ball courts are optional
Revenue Centers
A revenue centre is a division that generates income through sale of goods or services.
The paint ball business can be a good revenue centre if run correctly. Many paintball
game businesses are started through rich players that want a place where they can
drop by with their friends and play without any beginning hassles.
It’s the same as opening a spa just so you can go and pamper yourself for free;
it ruins the business as you don’t have goals for the business to run profitably
set, you’re making it to suit your needs. The same goes for paintball.
In order to run a paintball business successfully, your main motive should be profit
making. This helps in keeping costs low and drives you to find out what it is the
market is seeking. It also encourages new and improved games and equipment due to
competition. If your starting the game just to increase on your self-worth, you
should change your priorities as this has a higher probability of your business
going into a loss – which will cancel out the driving reason as it will end up bursting
your ego bubble rather than blowing it.
In paintball your main revenue centers will be from game fees, paintball sales,
CO2, vending machines, air refills, equipment upgrades, equipment repairs, group
lessons, promotional items and depending on your contacts and if you’re willing
to you can even sell in wholesale to smaller businesses in your vicinity.
Your main revenue centers. Game fees This will differ from the type of game being
played to the type of field being used to the number of participants. It could be
charged per single individuals, pairs or a party depending on the type of packages
you offer. Game fees on average may vary anywhere from 60 DHS to 300 DHS. Paintballs
Paint being a consumable product makes the costs a spending variable depending on
the player. Your main concern is to maximize use of paintballs. It’s common for
customers to use 250 – 3000 paintballs in a day. Your gross profit can stand from
60% - 75% of your selling price.
CO2 (rental)
CO2 tanks are an inexpensive purchase for a game operative. Buying these in bulk
provides a large margin for your business. CO2 sales may generate a minimum of 500%
mark up over your cost if distributed properly at the right prices. In the Middle
East you can easily find whole sale cylinders from 20 kg – 40 kg that you can easily
distribute into various 9, 12, 16, 20 or 24 ounce cylinders.
Food
Energy drinks, soda, sandwiches, crisps and other such quick picnic foods are cheap
on wholesale and large on demand.
Promotional items
In many areas fans of a particular business are willing to buy their promotional
items, namely key chains and t-shirts with the company’s logo with a catchy phrase,
one such for a paintball game business may be ‘Survived being shot’ on a backdrop
of a paintball splat with your company’s logo (make sure to mention it’s a paintballing
themed shirt to avoid misunderstandings – to make sure of this you could add a picture
of a paintball gun at the back)
Equipment sales
Selling equipment may bring in a large amount of revenue but a major drawback is
storage costs and trying to sell equipment to customers who come to play a game
as it is likely they will be acting on impulse if they decide to buy it. It would
be profitable for the business to offer repairs or upgrades to the customer’s existing
products and then offer better paintballing gear.
Tutorials
This can bring in large amounts of revenue as all this needs apart from equipment
which is already in hand is a professional instructor, however they may not only
be hard to find but they may ask for a higher salary.
Whole sale
Selling to other paintballing businesses not only helps with creating contacts but
also allows you to gain a greater discount for you self as you’re buying in bulk.
This also helps in diversifying your business and helps get rid of excess stock
which reduces storage costs.
Paintball is an industry that is making a steady climb. There are many opportunities
for investors and interested entrepreneurs to prosper. Paintballing having just
recently become international, its possibilities for future growth are endless.
Not only is paintball gaining recognition internationally, it’s also a business
that’s cheap and easy to set up. It has a history of being unpredictable, rough
and on coarse grounds. It was then that the operators noticed that there wasn’t
a sense of longevity and started to shapen things up into even grounds and made
it mandatory to have safety gear while playing. It was through these thoughts that
paintball is what it is today and may come to change in to future.
Competitors should not worry you. Paintball is a business which can benefit from
competitors (to a certain extent). Your competitors have already introduced paintball
to the market, thus lack of knowledge doesn’t have to be worried about in your locality
(in some cases). What you are is technically ‘another ice rink’; you are now just
another place to skate. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. By providing paintball
in a different area, you attract new customers. Your competitors, if they have done
a good marketing job, will have already tempted potential customers to try their
hand at the sport. By opening a new place they may come to you instead as you may
be closer, or you may have learnt on your competitor’s mistakes and improved on
your location and equipment. Paintball is a sport that keeps attracting customers.
Potential for improvement is endless.