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Social entertainment is big news for our industry – attractions are popping up around the world where friends, family and colleagues can meet and compete in games. Small footprints, multiple revenue streams and attractive locations, often repurposing high street space in regional locations, all make social entertainment an attractive opportunity for operators, brands and investors.
London is arguably the dominant force in this new form of entertainment. The city is full of experiences including miniature golf, darts, shuffleboard, ax throwing and more.
So the venue for last month’s conference was fitting: “Social Fun: The Evolution of Leisure and Entertainment.”Lappson Creative, a Leading Finnish creative design and construction company, organized the event in cooperation with Business Finland. It takes place at the beautiful Finnish embassy in London.
HelilettoThe deputy head of the embassy greeted the participants. Lehto emphasized the importance of play to well-being. Finns should know – Finland has been the happiest country for 6 years in a row.
social entertainment and competitive social
Rob Arthur Founder and Partner of Paguro Ltd, a film and entertainment consultancy. He explained the potential of the social entertainment scene and investors for the attendees. “How much free time do we have?” Arthur said. “Answers are not enough”. He spoke about post-COVID behavior, and friends and family wanting to meet in person. The point is the experience.
In the world of movies, it’s the same:
“When consumers have a 65-inch TV at home, it’s not enough to put it on a big screen.” He cited Everyman, the UK’s leading cinema chain, as an example. Corporate fares are the highest in the country. But because they offer such robust food and drink, stylized couches, and a variety of spaces and events, they’ve made being there an experience, as well as creating multiple revenue streams for themselves. “
Arthur also touches on examples of successful social entertainment. These include Monopoly Lifesized and Swingers in London, and Brass Monkeys in Dubai. The upcoming Chadstone Social Quarter in Melbourne, Australia is a good example of a development. This will include 17 entertainment and dining experiences.
Socialtainment’s small footprint is ideal for area entertaining. Although London is the center, it is a saturated market. Regional towns are ripe for new high-quality experiences. They often have vacant high street locations and office space that can be converted into recreational offerings. From a council/municipal point of view, these attractions help extend precinct time, retain residents and provide jobs and skills to the local workforce.
“Social entertaining is a potential renaissance for the outdoor recreation industry,” Arthur said. “We’ve got through the pandemic and we have a decade of growth to go. We have to take risks to have a future that’s different from the past.”
Two new IP-based concepts
Attendees were then shown two social entertainment concepts designed by two leading IP owners, which will be implemented by the Lappset Creative team.
frederica swallowMattel Inc.’s LBE Regional Manager EMEA introduced attendees to a brand new concept, highlighting two titles from the Mattel Games portfolio.
The popular Scrabble game has been around for over 75 years.Available in more than 30 languages, it has a multi-generational fan base, including Taylor Swift. Scrabble has a brand recognition rate of 98%.
Second, Swallow talked about Uno, the number one card game in the world. With 11 million social media followers, Uno is a cultural phenomenon, hosting events including the recent Uno Championship.
Mattel has created a unique concept that brings Mattel Games to life through a combination of physical and digital experiences. The target audience is families aged 8+ on the day. This transfers to older families, social adults and corporate guests in the evening. The ideal location might be on the high street, or it might be in a shopping mall.
Plans are under development. The concept focuses on a mentally challenging Scrabble experience where players need to solve puzzles to complete the ultimate, legendary Speed Scrabble game. In the Uno experience, gameplay focuses on sports and gaming experiences. Players will use “cards” to influence their unique visits, creating interactive fun.
The concept could include robust food and beverage offerings, retail outlets, and gaming booths for other Mattel games such as Pictionary Air, Rock Em’ Sock Em Robots, and more.
Terminator Brands Social Entertainment
then we heard ValeryThis is Rowlands Barrios Who is Head of Licensing and Partnerships at STUDIOCANAL.
With over 7000 titles in STUDIOCANAL’s catalog, there’s a lot to offer. But their most successful IP ever was a concept shown at the event – Terminator 2: The Experience.
With a generation that grew up on Terminator and now Gen Z through video game collaborations with Fortnite and Call of Duty, the brand has a very strong brand identity among these age groups Knowledge.
ashley lynch, Senior Freelancer at Lappset Creative, demonstrates the concept. Gamified experiences are spinoffs of movies. Guests need to solve puzzles to find secrets, then fight cyborgs to defeat Skynet.
Again, this new social entertainment concept is still in development, but plans include challenge experiences, a 90s arcade, a free-roaming VR arena, an esports lounge, and themed food and beverage offerings. Terminator fan art will be featured throughout the futuristic locations. It targets the children’s 11+, teens, family and corporate markets.
Participants then hear John GranholmSenior Vice President Sales and Marketing, Lappset Group Ltd, and Jerry Patanen, Director of Sales, Lappset Creative Works. They talked about how Lappset works closely with intellectual property holders and operators to design and build experiences in rides, theme parks and attractions.
The company created a 4-pillar model to assess project viability, looking at market, space, operations and experience. They can complete an entire turnkey project or provide a design or build service – whatever the client needs. They are the designers, builders and installers of Merlin Entertainment’s Peppa Pig world attractions around the world. The company also just opened the LasseMajas Deckarhus attraction in Sweden.
Overall, it’s an exciting time for attractions as social entertainment trends create new IP concepts and new opportunities for investors.
Top image courtesy of Boom Battle Bar
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