Planning to Build or Modernize? Start With These Five Steps

Guest expectations have changed. Today's bowling centers compete for entertainment dollars with every other night out, which means great lanes alone aren't enough. Guests want food worth staying for, attractions beyond bowling, and a space that feels like a destination.

For many operators, that means it's time to build new or modernize. And whether you're adding on or starting from scratch, the planning you do before breaking ground has the biggest impact on your return. Here are five steps to take first.

1. Determine Your Goals

Start by clarifying what you want the project to accomplish. Do you want to add staff to share the workload? Spend more time away from the center? Grow revenue? Increase your business's value for a future sale? Your goals will shape the project's parameters and tell you whether building is the right move at all.

2. Consider the Location

Location influences nearly every design decision. What entertainment options already exist nearby, and what's missing? Will zoning, lot size, and parking requirements support your plans? If you're remodeling, will the project trigger updates elsewhere in the building to meet current codes? Answer these early to avoid costly surprises.

3. Plan to Offer the Best Experience in Your Market

A market feasibility study helps you identify which revenue streams make sense for your center. For existing centers, that may mean removing some lanes to make room for new attractions. Family entertainment centers with fewer lanes are doing three to eight times the sales of a traditional center. The goal is to maximize income per square foot while delivering the best guest experience in your market.

4. Develop a Realistic Budget

Your budget defines what's possible. Construction is a major investment, but the right project can pay off many times over. If your budget doesn't cover everything on your wish list, consider a phased approach. Revenue from your first upgrade can help fund the next one.

5. Assemble Your Team Early

Don't go it alone. The most successful projects bring in experienced professionals from the start, ideally people who have developed hundreds of bowling-based entertainment centers. Even the best operators may not have deep experience planning and designing a new FEC or major remodel. The right team helps you avoid missteps and get it right the first time.

Take It From Other Proprietors

The Huish family has been in the family entertainment business for more than 60 years, with attractions like mini golf, batting cages, bumper cars, laser tag, and rides. When Scott Huish added bowling to Tukwila Family Fun Center in Seattle, he had clear goals.

"We wanted to increase year-round attendance with a cold-weather attraction and increase our corporate events business," says Huish. "Bowling is great because it's something everyone, from three- to 83-year-olds, can do."

Brunswick's planning guide helped him understand exactly what the project required in square footage, ceiling height, and more, and Brunswick connected him with architects, flooring suppliers, and sound equipment partners. "If I could go back and do anything differently," Huish says, "I would have brought the Brunswick team into the planning process even earlier and included them in every planning meeting."

For Sarah Purdy, owner of Ten Pin Alley in Hilliard, Ohio, modernization wasn't optional. "Our building was 60 years old, and the mechanicals needed to be upgraded," she says. "We were getting to the point where we were turning events away due to lack of space, and we wanted to provide a scratch kitchen, which meant more equipment and more square footage."

Her expansion added 18,000 square feet, including eight boutique lanes. "Working one-on-one with the Brunswick team was an extremely important step in our expansion process," says Purdy. "The knowledge and resources I was exposed to accelerated the definition of our concept."

Brunswick's Design and Development Can Help

Brunswick's Design and Development construction group helps you save time and money with an efficient, comprehensive process led by experienced industry professionals. Our network of planners, designers, architects, contractors, installers, and trainers supports you from choosing the right location to breaking ground to welcoming your first guests.

Ready to start planning? Talk to the Brunswick team about your build or modernization project.