Page 62 - BCM July 2024

FIRST LOOK

broad range of participants. Bowling, pickleball and
arcades all t the bill.”
Seeking to make its Red Oak location a year-round
destination, B&B is investigating the use of outdoor
misters and heaters to keep their customers cool in the
oft-times brutal Texas summers and warm during the
winter months.
“ is is the rst time a B&B location has featured
outdoor activities,” points out McIntire. “So far, they have
been a huge success.”
■ Provide a luxurious, upscale experience.
eatergoers enjoy the luxury of padded, comfortable
reclining chairs (which are sometimes heated), larger
screens and dynamic surround sound. And they are
willing to pay for those luxuries.
“Our goal was to build a luxury entertainment center
The Red Oak entertainment center is the rst in the B&B The- that provides an upscale experience,” says McIntire.
atres family to include outdoor amenities, including comfort- “ at’s why we have a high-quality food-and-beverage
able seating and pickleball courts. menu, a full-service restaurant, and comfortable, eye-
appealing furniture. We wanted to enhance the experi-
ence.”
■ ere’s always a learning curve.
McIntire says learning the bowling business has been
“interesting, exciting and excruciating.”
He adds: “You can’t apply the logic from the movie busi-
ness to the bowling business. ey operate di erently.”
He emphasizes patience when adding a new attraction.
Put in the time necessary to understand how the new
attraction works.
■ Provide a clean facility and excellent customer
service.
“ ese are two things B&B eatres take great pride in,”
stresses McIntire. “We wanted to make sure we carried
them over to our bowling lanes and arcade. ese are
often determining factors whether customers return or
not.”
much-needed shot in the arm to the movie industry. ■ Keep things from breaking.
e popularity of bowling, measured by revenue, is In the movie business, lms are shown 99% of the time
estimated to have increased by 95% from 2021 to 2024, without any mechanical problems or interruptions. McIn-
according to industry reports. e game proved its tire learned that’s not the case with bowling and arcades.
enduring popularity by the demand for lanes once centers B&B thrives to minimize down time for its bowling lanes
were allowed to reopen. and arcade games. It places great emphasis on preventive
Meanwhile, another B&B attraction, pickleball, has maintenance.
been the fastest-growing sport in America the past three ■ Seek advice and take it to heart.
years. ere are 36.5 million players, and more than ere are plenty of people willing to help you. You don’t
25,000 pickleball courts are needed to meet current and have to tackle new undertakings by yourself.
future demand, according to the Association of Pickleball “ ere’s a generosity of knowledge that you can tap
Players. into,” McIntire says. “Other proprietors, operators and
“We looked at other operations that were diversifying, manufacturers are great resources.”
and we were intrigued by what they were doing,” notes While you may not be considering adding theaters to
McIntire. “ eaters, by their nature, are designed to your mix of attractions, there are plenty of lessons to be
appeal to all ages. We looked at activities that draw a learned from the marriage of movie theaters and bowling.

60 • BCM • JULY 2024 www.bcmmag.com

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