On February 23-25, we hosted another successful Amusement 360 Event, where hundreds of optimistic attendees came together virtually to learn and prepare for the industry’s big comeback.

This marks the 11th year that the Amusement 360 Event has been helping new and existing family entertainment operators improve their businesses. For the third time since the start of the pandemic, the event was fully virtual.

In all, more than 450 people registered, making it one of the largest Amusement 360 Events ever held. The event featured over 15 speakers and experts, a record for this program.

As operators strive to get back to pre-pandemic operations, we strategically curated a list of topics to help operators right now, while setting them up for success down the road.

In addition to the usual sessions about operations, marketing and financing, this Amusement 360 Event featured self-improvement and leadership topics, including how to bring energy and focus into a business, and how to accomplish more in less time.

“We brought in non-industry speakers to help attendees create not only a better business, but a better life as well,” commented Danny Gruening, our Vice President of Marketing. “The response from attendees was phenomenal, and we’re thrilled they all walked away with knowledge they can act on right now.”

In a new twist for the event, the first two mornings began with fiery motivational warmups from Mark Keene, founder of Transformation Coaching. This allowed attendees to get fired up and set the tone for a day of education and fun.

The diversity of topics ensured impressive turnout, engagement and interaction among attendees. Everyone had the opportunity to express their thoughts and network with other attendees, speakers and experts. On average, each attendee spent over 12 hours interacting on the event platform, and over 2,200 public chat messages were sent during the event.

The event was also highlighted by two insightful operator interviews with Eddie Hamann from Andretti Indoor Karting & Games, and John Losito from Sun Valley Lanes.

During Hamann’s interview, he discussed improvements and lessons his team learned during the pandemic, focusing on the customer experience, and treating every guest as if they were family. Hamann’s advice was particularly valuable, as his Andretti facilities have been recovering and performing extremely well over the last few months. In fact, some of their locations are seeing revenue numbers equal to or better than 2019.

Losito’s interview touched on the value of planning and the importance of people wanting to connect and celebrate coming out of the pandemic. He also stressed the importance of reinvesting in the customer experience. During the pandemic, Losito decided to move forward with a $4 million expansion for Sun Valley Lanes. Losito did not let the pandemic stop him or slow down his plans, and his optimism proves he’s a trailblazer in the industry.

The event concluded with an AMA (Ask Me Anything) roundtable with a handful of industry experts and consultants. This allowed attendees to gain insight on a wide variety of topics and also ask any burning questions before the event ended.

The next Amusement 360 Event is planned for August 24-26, 2021 in Indianapolis, IN, and both virtual and in-person registration options will be available in the coming months.

For a recap of the biggest takeaways from this event, visit amusement360.com/event.