Arcade Owner Hits Jackpot!!!

Noels Beard · Post by **Noels Beard** » Mon Oct 22, 2012 2:20 pm

I'm sorry that the strength of my conviction annoys you so greatly in this instance.

However, to say things such as your electricity costs cannot be predicted is drivel. Knowing your opening hours, and the equipment you use you can make an estimate, and for businesses running year on year their Kwh should remain the same (assuming no additions, or changes to opening times). Yes they put the price of electricity up in the winter, and drop it down in the summer, but they do tell you about this in advance...it's not just sprung on you.

And by the same token as you reinforce the original intention of your message as to "disagree with how easily that you reckon it is to run an arcade, with no experience behind you", my message was not to suggest that it was easy, but it was a damn site easier than running most other high street outlets. I have no management experience at all, but I have an acquaintence with a little thing called logic, and a good friend known as forward planning.

Subject to looking at the previous years accounts, any company should be able to predict best and worst cases outcomes for the following year. Planning should reflect this. An Arcade may not be a good choice of business to run (as per Harry's thoughts), but should be a predictable one.

mr lugsy · Post by **mr lugsy** » Mon Oct 22, 2012 3:38 pm

see, that's the thing.firstly you assume that i'm annoyed, i'm not. i tend to swear a bit if i am.

secondly,you assume that i know my opening and closing hours just as you assume this is business 101.you know what they say about assuming, you make an ass out of u + me. unfortunately this is one of the variables that you dispute the existance of : closing time is dependant on trade in my hyperthetical arcade. sometimes it's a late one and sometimes i'll get home in time to see 'great forum pedants of the 21st century' on bbc4. closing times have been dramatically different from one season to the next aswell. conveniently ...for the benefits of this posting of course.

oh, and we have the weather of course .....this is another anomalous variable that you can't factor in and don't tell me you can predict a total washout summer season, like we've seen a couple of lately.it would obviously be a little pessimistic for me to factor this in to my yearly business plan, i might aswell attempt to sell up now.

"a damn site easier than running most other high street outlets"................opinion , nothing more. if you're saying running a shop is harder work and more complicated then........

.....you are skipping merrily down the winding garden path, hand in hand with another acquaintence,a spotty little chap named absurdity.

second lastly, what you are saying in your last paragraph is fine... in theory.

ultimately , i'm bored now so you can wallow in your own ignorance on the matter.

Noels Beard · Post by **Noels Beard** » Mon Oct 22, 2012 4:11 pm

Hmm. Ok the weather is a decent point, hadn't factored that in. But a sound business plan covers its bottom line in all but 95% of scenarios. So I'd hope you were staffing, etc... accordingly, and having the flexibility to recruit temp staff if necessary. That shouldn't be too hard given the level of unemployment. As for opening times, well a decent arcade should have regular hours in my opinion!

mr lugsy · Post by **mr lugsy** » Mon Oct 22, 2012 4:27 pm

"As for opening times, well a decent arcade should have regular hours in my opinion"

easier said than done if it's been a rubbish day and people start walking in late and rowing b3's last thing at night, you have to go with the flow.

Captain.Tattybojangles · Mon Oct 22, 2012 5:17 pm

The Quicksilvers round here has had signs blaring out a 10pm closing time for a week or so...I walk past with a mate at about quarter past 9 and it's shut up for the night. IMO they *should* have regular opening hours, but a lot of the time they don't.

Drpepper · Post by **Drpepper** » Mon Oct 22, 2012 8:25 pm

An adult gaming centre which is properly run is a license to print money IMO, just as much as a badly run one/acrade is a license to burn money, it's just all about the person running it.

Oscar · Post by **Oscar** » Mon Oct 22, 2012 10:25 pm

Noels Beard wrote: I have no management experience at all,

This single sentence renders most of what you say redundant. Personally I think buying/running an arcade at this present time would be a catastrophic failure. I recently conveyed my opinions to a distant mild aquaintance who was/wasn't planning to plough some capital into opening an arcade. There can't be a worse time for it, but despite this people are still trying to open arcades in small towns, with no previous experience.

Although if you were to open an arcade tip 1 would be pick a poor area. People who live in upmarket areas are wealthy. And they are normally wealthy for one reason, they are financially astute, and therefore usually have a better use for spare cash other than chasing B3 machine or whatever.

Noels Beard · Post by **Noels Beard** » Mon Oct 22, 2012 10:58 pm

Well your Petrol Pump attendance career will no doubt enthuse those following your advice. Usually people of your standing offer promotional JML merchandise, or suggest we might like a large bar of chocolate for just £1. You go beyond this, offering investment advice! Maybe you could help them choose their numbers in the local bookies too.

Real Pro gamer · Post by **Real Pro gamer** » Tue Oct 23, 2012 12:49 am

I'm an Irish one armed dwarf,my second occupation is being a magician

Real Pro gamer · Post by **Real Pro gamer** » Tue Oct 23, 2012 12:51 am

My main line of employment is being a professional impostor!

Oscar · Post by **Oscar** » Tue Oct 23, 2012 1:40 am

Noels Beard wrote:Well your Petrol Pump attendance career will no doubt enthuse those following your advice. Usually people of your standing offer promotional JML merchandise, or suggest we might like a large bar of chocolate for just £1. You go beyond this, offering investment advice! Maybe you could help them choose their numbers in the local bookies too.

Nothing wrong with gainful employment, beats signing on.

Now run along you silly little boy, go and earn your allowance by sucking daddy off.

blackmogu · Post by **blackmogu** » Tue Oct 23, 2012 3:33 am

Oscar wrote:This single sentence renders most of what you say redundant.

I've plenty of successful management experience, which qualifies my opinion somewhat. What Will says with respects to running an arcade as a business is pretty much accurate. In some cases, experience can merely confirm what you have already learnt to be true.

Glendale · Post by **Glendale** » Tue Oct 23, 2012 8:41 am

Love it when beardy gets grief and trys to act clever! :-)