Your complete guide to

How to Start a Family Entertainment Center Business

Take a deep dive into the ins and outs of starting an FEC business with key analyses and insights from industry leaders.

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So you want to start a Family Entertainment Center business?

Among the many products and services businesses can offer these days, customer experience is the most important consideration and key to your success. You need business systems that enable optimal guest experience because when the customer thrives, your business thrives.  

It’s no longer good enough to offer goods and services and call it a day. The four stages of economic progress can be easily understood in the evolution of the humble birthday cake. During the agrarian economy, mothers made cakes from scratch using low-cost farm commodities. In the goods-based economy, moms started paying to buy premixed cake ingredients (from a box).

Eventually, during the emergence of the service economy, parents ordered cakes from bakeries, which cost about 10x more than the premixed goods, but included the type of icing and cake decoration that mothers could not easily do at home. Enter the experience economy, where time-pressed, overworked parents spend $100 or more to book the entire birthday party at businesses that stage events – the cake is only offered as part of the party package.  

The emerging experience economy, according to Harvard Business Review, is the next competitive battleground when it comes to catering to consumer demands.  

A family entertainment center (FEC) is a venue where experiences such as games, attractions, food & beverage, and other activities that appeal to different age groups or families, as a whole, are offered. 

Over the years, FECs have evolved to include a variety of attractions in their facilities as opposed to offering a single type of experience. According to the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA), these are some qualifiers for establishments to be considered as an FECs:  

  • Must be located within a commercial, tourist, or entertainment complex  
  • Typically do not charge an admission or entrance fee and may or may not be a gated property  
  • Games and attractions usually come as “pay-as-you-go”  
  • Often indoors but can be a combination of indoor and outdoor  
  • Offers a combination of at least three participatory activities (mentioned under Types of Family Entertainment Centers) as well as different types of food concession or service.  
  • Targets a specific age group or market (e.g children’s entertainment center, adults-only entertainment center) 

 

Types of Family Entertainment Centers 

FECs can range from the following indoor or outdoor amusement and attraction centers. Depending on what kind of experience you want to offer, here are family entertainment business ideas worth looking into. 

  1. Family entertainment centers, arcades, and video games 
  2. Bowling centers
  3. Cinemas
  4. Route operators
  5. Eatertainment
  6. Amusement parks & indoor parks
  7. Miniature golf course
  8. Water park
  9. Museum
  10. Zoo or aquarium
  11. Skating rink
  12. Go-Kart facility
  13. Indoor playground or soft play
  14. Laser tag arena
  15. Trampoline center
  16. Outdoor adventure facility
  17. Zipline or rope course
  18. Amusement or theme park
  19. Climbing walls
  20. Birthday party or events venue
  21. Social gaming
  22. Augmented reality (AR) or virtual reality (VR)

From venue to revenue

Starting a family entertainment center business includes various steps to success. Before taking that first step, it is imperative to understand how a venue will generate income for your intended business. Guest spending may consist of the following:

  1. Admission fees
  2. Food and beverages
  3. Tokens and other game currencies
  4. Retail
  5. Rentals
  6. Merch

The International Association for Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA)  statistics show that the frequency by which families visit FECs are dependent on memberships, passes, and casual visits. 40% of non-passholders visited once a year, 22% were at three to five times a year, and only 11% visited more than 10 times. 

For passholders, 32% visited more than 10 times a year, showing how guest loyalty through memberships helps drive repeat visits significantly. With the 2025 family entertainment revenue mix, admissions account for 40%, 19% are for attractions and rides, followed by food and beverage offerings at 16%, birthday parties at 14%, and events, retail, and other accounts for the remainder. 

In the same study, IAAPA notes that in 2024, the average FEC profit margin is between 10-20%, taking into consideration varying business models, scale, and costs. 

Not only does this support how profitable the FEC business model is, but how effective an avenue it is for creating experiences that convert to revenue.  

Steps to Starting a Family Entertainment Center Business

Identify Business Goal & Business Type

The ‘why’ of starting a business fuels the FEC operator. Aside from the money, what value are you expecting from starting an FEC business? Is it for the challenge of developing a thriving business? Is it to provide a venue to entertain families and friends for years? Is it to be at the center of fun while earning? The ‘why’ is usually tied to an individual’s passion and drive. This same passion, spirit, and energy will come across in everything you do and will inform every single business and operating decision you make, so it is imperative you are clear on ‘why’ you want to start an FEC and enter the industry of fun. 

quote_FECs should offer social connections through shared experiences

In today’s digital age where mobile games and consoles compete for time and money, out-of-home entertainment venues like FECs should offer social connections through shared experiences with family and friends, with or without special occasions.  

The heart and goal of your business will be the main driver of loyal guests and customer returns. What makes your business unique? Guests can be entertained with the same offering someplace else, so it is the core (the ‘why’ you are in business) of a company that will inspire loyalty and returns.  

Having a well-defined business goal will help you envision what type of customers you want to cater to, what type of venue will make these customers participate actively, and what type of experience you want them to enjoy.  
customers participate actively

The goal points the business in the right direction and leads it to sustained success. The birthday party circuit Discovery Zone had a rough couple of years because they failed to create a seamless guest experience—poorly maintained games, inconsistent event staging, and paying little attention to the ‘adults’ experience—they are the paying customers after all; they matter. It is imperative to set a business goal that is tied to a value system (why you’re in business and how you want to run your operation), stay true to it, and continuously evolve and innovate to achieve it. 

According to the Harvard Business Review, before a company can charge admission or put a price on the experience it offers, it must design, market, and deliver the experience excellently. 

There are a lot of profitable and sustainable family entertainment business ideas to choose from. You also have two choices: Will you start your own FEC from scratch? Will you purchase an existing FEC franchise?  

Get inspired with these 8 Family Entertainment Center Business Ideas. 

Determine Target Customers

Members of a family have different interests and are entertained for different reasons. Will your FEC focus on entertaining the family as a whole? Will it be for children only? Is it intended to be an amusement center for adults and teens? 

amusement center for adults

Identifying your target audience will give you ideas on what your FEC needs when it comes to theme, hardware and equipment, activities to add to the venue, and so on. 

By analysing the market population in the area where you intend to open the business, you can better determine the project’s profitability.  

Market population analysis factors: 

  1. Local drive-times – The average distance people will travel within an urban or suburban primary market area to an FEC is about 15 to 20 minutes maximum.

  2. Demographics (age and household) – Based on the findings on local drive-times and identified target areas therein, how many households and people are there? This information can be accessed at the local Chamber of Commerce, Community Business Office, or the city or state’s website.

From this data set, compute how much that will equate to gross revenue. To have an initial sense of this, derive from the IAAPA statistics presented on visits:

annual gross revenue formula

Make a Feasibility Study

Conducting a market feasibility study is necessary to identify whether the business idea is appropriate, profitable, fundable, and in the right place and time. This will also help you pinpoint the risks and benefits of the business idea – whether to go for it now or shelve it for later. 

You are likely going to need to work with an FEC consultant to conduct the study. It can cost from $5,000 to $15,000 based on the level of complexity and locations being studied.  

What goes into a market feasibility study?

  1. Site selection & characteristics
  2. Competitive analysis (direct and indirect competitors)
  3. Market area population analysis (with sources of foot traffic or tourist traffic)
  4. Project design, programming, and operation characteristics
  5. Attendance projections
  6. Per capita spending projections
  7. Revenue and expenses pro forma financial projections
  8. Revenue drivers (schools, commerce zones, residential zones, etc.)
  9. Design day capacity and size requirements
  10. Cost estimate
  11. Return-on-investment (ROI) projections
  12. Break-even and sensitivity analysis

Secure Capital & Funding

A number of FECs are family-owned and operate at one location. There are also FECs that are operated by multiple location owners. As for tapping into other financial resources other than yours, funding is another crucial operational necessity.  

To secure funding, you need a business proposal covering your type of FEC, prospective location, your market feasibility study, financial feasibility study, and analytical report. Keep in mind that feasibility studies are written and conducted with prospective investors in mind.  

To get capital and funding, business proposals should…

  • Project potential financial performance.
  • Provide a good estimate of operating costs for the next 2-3 years.
  • Identify a ballpark figure for development costs.
  • Provide justification for total development costs needed to achieve return-on-investment (ROI) to investors.

If you’re looking for funding, here’s a list of 5 Proven Sources of Funding for an Arcade or FEC Business. 

Start-up investments are usually 20 to 30% personally funded. If this is over your capacity, there may be a need for equity investors. These professionals will provide investment dollars in exchange for a percentage of the business.

Create a Business Plan

Market and financial feasibility studies are different from an FEC business plan. The former shows the potential performance of the business venture, taking into consideration that it is managed effectively.

The business plan is the ‘how’ of achieving optimal management and operations that will back the identified potential in the feasibility study. In simpler terms, the business plan is proof that you can make the dream happen. 

It is good to note that a positive feasibility study does not necessarily guarantee a successful business. A business plan, however, can help you determine the course of the business – from operations, management, and everything in between to make the possibility a success.

A business plan should include attendance projection, per capita spending, revenues, expenses, replacements, and cost estimates, among other things.

Family Entertainment Center Business Plan Sample

Table of Contents
  1. Industry Overview
  2. Executive Summary
  3. Products & Services
  4. Mission & Vision Statements
  5. Job Roles & Responsibilities
  6. SWOT Analysis
  7. Market Analysis
  8. Target Market
  9. Sales & Marketing Strategy
  10. Sales Forecast
  11. Publicity & Advertising Strategy
  12. Pricing Strategy
  13. Startup Expenditure (Budget)
  14. Sustainability & Expansion Strategy

Whether it’s a business plan for arcade operation or a business plan for a children’s play centre, get started and download this FREE business plan template here.

 

Conceptualise & Design

Depending on the type of FEC, scope, audience, and location, an initial design and concept development work is essential to wow prospective investors and lenders. This is generally required for FECs seeking an investment of $2 million dollars or more. For smaller businesses such as a simple indoor soft play, this may not be required in the proposal.

The FEC’s theme should cater to the ‘why’ of the business, its estimated foot traffic, target audience, location, and activities and attractions offered.  FACE Amusement started as a single claw machine in 1978. Over time, it has expanded into a multi-location FEC with unique offerings and entertainment concepts, including the famous Downtown Flavortown, an F&B concept with celebrity chef Guy Fieri. 

When doing this, it is smart to work with professional design firms in the amusement industry to stay consistent with your FEC’s theme. Here are 5 Family Entertainment Center Interiors Inspirations to get your creative juices flowing. 

Apart from the theme and design, this is also the point where the floor plan and construction blueprint are finalised. 

In IAAPA’s 2025 Entertainment Center Benchmark Report, arcades (redemption and non-redemption) are the most common attractions for FECs and are mostly managed in-house. At the same time, arcades and video games account for more than one-third of the front-of-house footage of the floor plan.  

The statistics also show that arcades represent the top revenue sources for FECs. This data is essential to conceptualising and designing your business. 

Get Licenses & Permits

Once funding and permits are secured, you can start building the FEC from the ground up. Running any business requires significant paperwork, and there are specific licenses and permits needed to operate an FEC. These depend on location, nature and scope of FEC, among others:  

  • Zoning approval 
  • Health permit 
  • Environmental permit 
  • Fire department permit 
  • Special state licenses (for businesses that serve alcohol)  

Choose the Right Technology

The FEC industry has been heavily impacted by advances in technology in a span of years. Advancements in home video game console technology in the 80s caused a great decline in the ‘Golden Age of Arcades,’ resulting to a huge gap in revenue from $8B in 1981 to $2.1B in 1991.  

Since then, almost every touchpoint of the business has been automated. Those that fail to jump on the wagon and follow tech trends cease to continue because they have become irrelevant. However, arcades can now be supercharged with hardware solutions that bring even retro games to the digital age.   

Technology is considered a business essential in this digital day and age. Consumers will not tolerate a poor guest experience due to a low-tech business. This is why you need to stay up to date if you want consumers to come over; otherwise, it will lead to poor customer reviews and negative advocacy.  

Websites account for 23% of overall ticket sales,  according to IAAPA’s 2025 Benchmark Series. Tech-driven ticket distribution channels like this can be adopted early in your operational year to leverage guest preference for cashless means to pay and play.  

When used strategically, business operations and management can be conveniently integrated in a way that reduces operating, labour, and maintenance costs. Most of all, the guest experience is enhanced.  

Selecting the right hardware and software for your FEC is just as important as picking the best people for the business. With the right combination of hardware and software, these technological business solutions can already stand as your 24/7 employees.  

FEC software should collect data, pinpoint problems, and generate results and notifications in real-time to reduce costs while increasing profitability. In short, the software should simplify the backend of the business. At the same time, it should be backed up with a reliable tech provider, or solutions powered by the world’s best tech partners like Amazon Web Services, Google, or Apple.   

From a customer standpoint, consumers desire seamless, personalised, socially shareable, and convenient tools that keep them immersed in the experience with little to no disruptions. The speed and immediacy of the experience are critical to your success. In the fast-paced world today, guests are intolerant of wasting time waiting in long lines and outdated or no technology to ease transactions that should be seamless.  

Depending on the nature of your FEC business, here are some of the hardware and software solutions worth your consideration: 
hardware and software solutions

Types of FEC Technology

  1. Secure and reliable internet & IT infrastructure – FECs are heavily reliant on digital devices and online systems to provide a seamless guest experience. It is crucial to obtain networking technologies such as WiFi-6 and 5G to ensure there are fewer interruptions to the customer experience. Software-defined wireless area network (SD-WAN) creates a predictable experience and enhances user protection from external threats. For stronger security with improved remote access, a multi-cloud network can be implemented to withstand potential cyber-attacks while complying with Data Protection regulations. 
  2. New-tech games – Games should grow with the gamer, and a digital-savvy customer expects to stay trendy. One of the latest trends is virtual reality or VR. Compared to traditional arcade, VR is a more immersive experience, usually without the need for staff assistance, similar to what LAI Games offer.
  3. Progression games – From the name, this kind of game allows customers to save their game progress through game cards, enabling them to earn rewards and loyalty points.
  4. RFID wristbands –The currency of family entertainment center businesses today is wearable media that aren’t just means of payment but can also act as a key to your loyalty programmes in the future. Disney’s MagicBand was used by 99% of its customers during its day and forms the central part of the magical experiences they offer in the parks, as well as connecting data to guests in a reliable system that enables Disney to drive return visits via promotional offers.

    Today, what evolved to Disney’s MagicBand or MagicBand+ and the addition of MagicMobile app make payments more accessible and streamlined for park guests, while also enabling data-driven offers. 

    Part of the magic is the Disney branding on these payment methods, so it’s good to be on the lookout for suppliers that offer wearables customisation—an excellent way to put your FEC branding on a guest touchpoint. 

  5. Self-service kiosks – These full-service devices can act as an FEC’s 24/7 employees, complete with built-in server, cashless mode of transactions, and convenience. The effectiveness of self-service kiosks leads to cost-cutting, more upselling features, and additional revenue like in Cosmic Adventures experience of a 35% boost in game card reload revenue since going cashless—attributing this success to convenience, customisable upselling features, and even custom kiosk skins to match the FEC’s branding.  

    When sourcing kiosks, look for options that offer a unified system with a POS, allowing you real-time sync between your kiosk transactions and backend system for better business visibility and control. 
     
    Likewise, check for booking integrations and capabilities. State-of-the-art kiosks now enable guests to book experiences like laser tag, bowling, and go-karts from a kiosk and add their passes or tickets to media like game cards, wearables, or mobile wallets for faster access and entry. For operators like you, this means higher guest spend as your customers will have more time on their hands to enjoy other offerings in your facility instead of waiting in queue at their chosen attraction. You can also look for kiosks with digital waiver integration that automatically send guests e-waivers to their email addresses. Less paperwork for you.  
  6. Arcade debit game card readers –With hardware like readers, token or ticket jams can be avoided. This lessens game downtime - a window when you’re not making revenue - and game maintenance cost, which can significantly cut into your profit. At the same time, integrating games with game card readers lowers overall cost of goods as tickets will be added to guest cards instead. 

    Game Over Arcade saw an opportunity to adopt cashless technology into the business, and with arcade debit game card readers, owners Chris and Jennifer Donner are now able to step back from carrying thousands of dollars in quarters to the bank once a week and focus more on the guest experience.  
  7. Game cards – Aside from their typical usage as currency and a tool for loyalty programs, game cards are considered as your business branding that customers have on hand, keeping your brand (and brand experience) top of mind. 

    For Funtrackers, offering game cards means giving guests better value for their money while racking up higher revenue per game. And with game card customisability, these FEC currencies can become a new revenue stream if done right and bundled with high-value, low-cost offers. Look for providers that offer special themed cards for different holidays or occasions to boost sales and encourage collectibility.
  8. Mobile Wallet integration - One of today’s most consumer-demanded way to pay, this family entertainment center software is found to be an effective way of driving revenue. Embed’s Mobile Wallet metric results show a 5x increase in average reload value in Mobile Wallet transactions versus cash or credit cards, with 60% of reloads happening before guests arrive at a venue.

    In today’s low-touch economy, contactless and cashless mobile payment solutions increase guest spending as they remove the hassle of losing time in long lines and leaving a game or attraction to top-up or reload the game card, which is a revenue interrupter. With a mobile wallet, the guest can top up anytime, anywhere, without leaving the game. An operator’s aim is to keep guests gaming (driving revenue). Vouchers from Klook (food, admission, etc.) can be added to a user’s mobile wallet or smartwatches for a more convenient experience. 

    FEC industry expert and consultant Jim Bennington of No Cash Value LLC recommends adopting a mobile wallet technology to reap the benefits of its full ecosystem, enabling operators to customise the UX with their branding and preferences, higher customer engagement thanks to ease of use, and better returns compared to other payment methods.  
  9. Point-of-sale (POS) system - Operating a POS system maximises upsell workflows or promotions an FEC is currently running. Some family entertainment center software systems have couponing, customisable UI, and other management capabilities. The strength of a POS system is the ability to bundle offers that drive upsell and cross-sell—the revenue generators that increase spend and drive profit). 

    To bring payment and transaction convenience straight to where your guests are in your facility, opt for POS systems that have roaming capabilities from tablets or other digital devices. A roaming POS untethers your staff from a corner and unlocks more upselling opportunities when they can take the counter to the floor. 
    Operating a POS system maximises upsell workflows or promotions an FEC is currently running. Some family entertainment center software systems have couponing, customisable UI, and other management capabilities. The strength of a POS system is the ability to bundle offers that drive upsell and cross-sell—the revenue generators that increase spend and drive profit). 
  10. Prize redemption – This family entertainment center software frees up cashiers and reduces wait times by handling tickets electronically and manages and maintains prize inventory. As a result, prize redemption rates are higher and costs on tickets and maintenance are lowered. 
  11. Customer loyalty & referral system – Acquiring a new customer costs around 5 to 25 times more than retaining a loyal one, according to the Harvard Business Review. However, increasing customer retention rates by 5% can increase profits by 25% to 95%, which is Bain & Company’s “Prescription for Cutting Costs”—building loyal relationships with customers and other stakeholders. A customer loyalty and referral system creates an avenue for rewarding customers for returning to the FEC and possibly bringing new customers—both of which future-proofs your business. 
  12. Reservation, ticketing, or booking platform - Having such a system means improvement in an FEC’s ability to manage group events or party capabilities. This allows seamless booking, prepayment, and other customizable packages at a customer’s fingertips.

    Embed’s BOOKINGS family entertainment center software features not only party or event reservations. Using this solution, you can accept different bookings for your in-venue attractions through a kiosk or POS. Plus, with the eCommerce BOOKINGS feature, guests can pre-book their chosen experiences anytime, anywhere. 
  13. Reports generator - Smart reporting tools can provide useful insights you can utilise for effective family entertainment center marketing. From guest and games data, you can design promotions and bundle packages that will give patrons more value for their money, widening your bottom line.  

    Smart reporting capabilities include real-time data reporting, comparisons across key sales periods across different days and the revenue and profitability thereof, inventory updates, trend identification, assessments, and goal management. These analytics are part of the defining numbers of the business, enabling early detection of small issues and avoiding large-scale problems in the future. Without analytical reports, a business cannot optimise to increase profitability, such as being unable to pinpoint what days and time you should offer a specific promotion. 
  14. Product and game management - A subscription-based, third-party supplying software and hosting application over the internet is called Software as a Service (SaaS) or cloud-based software. This allows usage minus the hardware upgrades. For the FEC owner, this means having overall control over machines, including changing game prices for different promos, loyalty rewards, and game updates. The most compelling propositions of SaaS are the elimination of the risk of losing business data and the ability to access the information anytime, anywhere. Cloud-based solutions are not the same as accessing software from a lone server in the midwest that is at risk in a natural disaster or power outage—that is the same as having the server on your premises without a backup. 

    Likewise, a cloud-based  family entertainment center software can provide business visibility you need as you are starting your business operations. Real-time data is invaluable to your decision- making and increasing foot traffic through data-backed family entertainment center marketing strategies. 
  15. Ambiance technologies – To elevate the customer experience, pay attention to the sight, sound, and smell in the FEC. Some of these are interactive floor light display games and automatic scents and disinfectants to avoid lingering smells of cigarettes or socks. The sensorial experience makes or breaks your brand. 

Hire Your First Team

Hiring the first team for a new business can make or break its success. The number of employees needed to run an FEC can differ from one business to another. It will also vary depending on the business size and location.  

In the 2025 Entertainment Center Benchmark Report by IAAPA, it was found that employee payroll remains the biggest expense for FECs, accounting to 29% of a facility’s budget, the highest among all expense categories. This is one of the reasons why business owners must invest in the correct people. Manpower is an asset; wrong hires are liabilities. 

At the same time, retaining a strong team is more ideal than repeatedly hiring and developing new people. Don’t forget to include regular training programmes for your new-hires and regular staff to boost operational efficiency and increase sales. 

Embed offers FREE GoTrain™ Express virtual training to educate FEC staff on tips and tricks to driving faster adoption, more guest sign-ups, and higher reload value with the Mobile Wallet. This type of programme enables staff to increase sales and develop new guest engagement techniques. 

For more insider tips like this, check out this FREE essential guide to your’s transformational growth: the FEC Blueprint for Success. 

To lead you to the right people for your new FEC’s vacancies, you can also discover the necessary steps in this FREE how to hire the Right GM for your FEC guide. 

Start Branding & Marketing the Business

As with any new business, developing the branding and marketing plan is crucial to creating top-of-mind awareness of customers. Most FEC owner-operators become too focused on operations, especially family-run, single location FECs; any marketing efforts is done in reactive mode versus proactive mode. This stunts business success. It is also good to note that the average spend operators allocate annually for family entertainment center marketing accounts for 4% of a facility’s budget, according to the same IAAPA benchmark report above.  

Create a brand bible. 

This is the go-to reference for all things pertaining to your FEC such as the logo, brand colors, slogan, brand tone and voice, and other indicators of your business. While it is best to have this done by a professional marketer, you can always do it in-house to get started. 

Check out more family entertainment center marketing strategies here. 

Now that the business is all set, it’s time to open the doors. The grand opening itself must be a statement of what your business promises. Here’s a quick checklist of what you need to prepare for this launch day: 

  • Operations plan - Based on anticipated foot traffic, create a manpower strategy for maximum efficiency, with the following key points as your guide: 
    • Demand, capacity, and pricing design – Before building or leasing a place, model peak-hour demand, anticipated queue length, and game floor or party room utilisation.  
    • Product and price architecture – This includes admission, timed play, bundles, memberships, events, and group sales, along with your determined targets to each like hourly throughput per attraction, utilisation percentage, average minute in queue, turnouts, demand forecast, staffing curves, floor layout, and dynamic pricing rules for both peak and off-peak hours.  
    • Labour model – Assign staffing per post and dedicated schedule and rotation for regular training, reporting, and meetings.  
    • Safety and compliance – This should have all SOPs for attractions, inspections, F&B handling, guest safety, and accessibility, including insurance certifications, safety permits, evacuation plans, and drills. Likewise, it should cover your preventive maintenance calendar for games, attractions, kitchen, inventory, and vendors.  
    • Revenue control – This is where you can map different revenue streams and assign their respective owners and KPIs. Create your targets and the corresponding implementations and tools to achieve them like going cashless, loyalty programmes, and comp controls.  
    • Daily rhythm – Outline different controls and tools staff and management will access every operational day, like POS integrations, game and reader access, CRM, reporting tools, and dashboards.  
  • Marketing plan - This includes game promos, free memberships, loyalty programmes, exclusive merch, promotional materials and announcements, and other freebies. Get online and stay online as a tactic to keep your brand on top-of-mind. Craft easy, straightforward campaigns to engage active participation of your target audience and reward them with something so good, they’ll be enticed to go to your venue. 
  • Food & beverage - Some sample food & beverage offerings you can do as opening promos are free dinner for every game pass, free round of drinks with an order of any 2 appetizers, or free salad bar with dinner. Get creative with your offering but remember that the mechanics should be easy enough to get consumers to visit your venue and spend. 
  • Thematic décor and setup - To complete the package, dress up your venue to impress. Stage the experience in a way that is seamless, consistent, and excellent. The first look is always crucial – how you make guests feel in that first encounter will affect their decision; will this be a one-time visit or will this be their go-to?

 

Download the full FEC Grand Opening Checklist here. 

Adopt Family Entertainment Center Software for Business Management

To run operations smoothly, you need an effective family entertainment center management system—an integrated platform that unifies different touchpoints and aspects of your business. 

What are the core modules of a modern FEC management system? 

MODULE 

WHY YOU NEED IT 

CAPABILITIES TO LOOK FOR 

E-commerce booking, reservation, and capacity management 

Revenue stream for parties, venue rental, attractions, and other offerings that guests can pre-book and pre-pay for reduced queuing and faster entry 
  • Online booking and payment 
  • Configurations for different sessions like single entry, general admission, or play privilege 
  • Digital waivers integration 

Point-of-sales system 

Source and tracker for all transactions 
  • Cloud-based, unified system with kiosks 
  • Customisable UI and upsell workflows 
  • Split, combine, or apply coupons to tabs 
  • With sales, games, and guest management integrations 
  • Roaming POS flexibility/tablet or hand-held device integration 

Payment gateway 

Payment processing integration for different modes of payment 
  • Transparent cost or rate analyses (no hidden fees, batch fees, review trackers, etc.) 
  • Getting charged with effective rates instead of published rates 
  • Safe and secure features against fraudulent activities and chargebacks 

Cashless payment solutions or software 

Mobile Wallet 

Guests can pay and play with their phones by adding a virtual game card to Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, and reload even before entering an FEC 
  • Backend customisation 
  • Advanced security and encrypted mobile technology to protect game card-related information 
  • Reports that can be utilised for marketing purposes 

Kiosks and game card readers 

Accepts cashless payments to eliminate coin jams or ticket dust, with higher value for guests and upsell opportunities 
  • Customisable screens and UI 
  • Fast processing power and big data storage 
  • Mobile wallet-ready 
  • Sleek design and small footprint 

Unattended payments 

Seamless cashless payments for vending machines, photobooths, claw machines, and other unattended machines 
  • Fast payouts in just 3 business days or less 
  • Low processing rates, best effective rates 
  • No midterm price hikes 
  • Transparent pricing 
  • Optimised fees by card type 

Redemption 

Streamlined prize management for faster redemption and real-time inventory updates 
  • Serve multiple guest transactions from one terminal 
  • Real-time inventory updates and secure returns 
  • Supports electronic packing lists 
  • Supports large format guest display 

Reporting and analytics 

Business visibility across multiple locations and different devices 
  • Cloud-based, real-time sync 
  • Customisable report formats and data visualisations 
  • Automatic report delivery 
  • Deep insights from games performance, guest activity, manpower analysis, and inventory management 

Games management 

Central solution for games across different locations and touchpoints 
  • Universal games database for unified naming that boosts reporting outcomes 
  • Central reporting to identify low and high-performing games at different operational hours 
  • Management of charge groups, charge rates, promotional pricing, and card statuses 


INDUSTRY INSIDER RECOMMENDATION 

“Go for an integrated ecosystem instead of siloed apps and software stitched together. ”

 Embed Ecosystem

From front-of-house to back-office, run your workflows from one source of truth for a more streamlined management. This means:  

  • Fewer spreadsheets and reconciliations – Less paperwork and manual data and reports alignment = less manhours dedicated to tasks that can otherwise be automated.  
  • You can have it all without needing to plug it all – Since a centralised FEC management software or ecosystem is in play, you can lessen hardware footprint on your game floor and eliminate unnecessary software subscription costs for multiple platforms.  
  • Connecting to the cloud to sync it all – When cloud-based systems free up your onsite servers, you have more bandwidth to operate and accept payments even during downtimes or outages. Plus, you have visibility and access over your FEC data and reports from anywhere, even across multiple locations as you scale the business.  

 

How do FEC management systems benefit you as an operator?  

  • High revenue per guest/visit 
    With an automated system, you can have higher FEC profitability through designing pre-arrival upsells, bundles, packages, and other FEC revenue models from your reports insights and guest database from your unified ecosystem.  
  • Lower operational costs 
    All your data and management in one place streamlines your operations, boosting manpower and eliminating admin costs with reduced manual tasks and error reconciliation.  
  • Data-driven decision-making 
    You have the numbers and insights to avoid guesswork—monitor games performance, peak hours, guest activity and spending on a regular basis to better understand the business.  
  • Superior guest experience 
    You can focus more on improving the guest experience with every visit thanks to family entertainment center software that frees up you and your manpower of manual tasks.

 

How should you choose the best FEC software for you?  

Check on the following capabilities and features when considering the FEC management system that suits your business:  

  • APIs, integrations, and ecosystems – Be on the lookout for API customisability, deep integrations with your range of games and operational software, and technical capacity for expansion as your business grows.  
  • Reliability and support – Ensure that your solutions providers are backed and powered by reliable tech providers to ensure minimal downtime and issues especially during peak times. Double-check support team’s availability, channels, implementation timelines, regular training schedule, and after-sales care. 
  • Hardware compatibility – Based on the games and attractions you will offer, go for solutions that will work best together, like a compatible system of kiosks, scanners, tablets, prize hubs, and card readers.  
  • Cost of ownership and maintenance – Keep in mind the cost of licensing, payment rates, installation, support, updates, hardware, maintenance, and other factors that will affect your operational costs. The real win is scoring a system that pays for itself over time.   

 

Overwhelmed with your choices? 

Our Embed Mavericks can walk you through these and go through technical and operational aspects step-by-step to help you arrive at the right decision. 

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