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Opening up arcade? Ideas?

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snekse:

Someone mentioned it earlier, but I thought it was worth repeating....

If you don't already own a house, put that money away for a down payment.  Just because you have money doesn't mean you have to spend it.

With that said, I'll also give you another suggestion.  You could always buy 1 or 2 games, place them in bars and split the profits with the owners.  Don't take anything less then 60% (unless it's an *extremely*  good location).  I know standard practice is 50/50, but that's when the bar owners are seeking you (the vendor) out.  

Also, decide which games you want to buy based on potential revenue, not because you like it.  Golden Tee, DDR and that damn Derby Owners game all make a ton of money.  My choice would be Golden Tee or EA's PGA Tour or EA's new Madden football game because they cost a lot to play and there is a hard core fan base out there.  Plus the tourneyments will bring people back over and over again.

Be aware though that you probably won't make money until you sell the machine you buy.  A GT machine costs about $5k.  Even at $4 a play you're not going to make your money back any time soon, especially when splitting the profits with a bar.  When you sell that game for $3k in 3 years and you've made a couple of grand off it, that's when you make your money.

Which brings me back to the "find other things to do with your money" argument.  The stock market averages at least 8% return per year.  Go buy some S&P 500 shares (Ticker: SPY) and don't touch it until you're 65.  It will be one of the best decisions you've ever made.  Remember, saving and investing are like voting.  You should do it early and do it often.



StarChild:

I know this was already mentioned above, but rental properties are also a grand investment.  Someone else lives in the house and essentially pays your mortgage payments.  The principle is yours :)  After the mortgage is payed off/down...it becomes residual income.

There's a million books out there on how to do this...from choosing locations, negotiating prices, making offers to choosing a mangement company and budgeting the renter payments into improvement and maintenance funds.

-*

MonitorGuru:


--- Quote from: GGKoul on October 03, 2004, 06:12:24 pm ---Save your cash and buy a house... you'll make more from the house then you would ever make at an Arcade.

--- End quote ---

And add a PERSONAL arcade to that house. Much more enjoyable in the long run.  fix up the games and they'll appreciate (if you pick the right ones) over time just like your house.

Google the rec.games.video.arcade.collecting newsgroup and you'll see tons of similar posts "can I open an arcade".  The basic answer is NO.  THe last time it made sense was the early 80's. Nowdays the insurance and the fact that everyone already has locations locked in, makes it impossible to make any money let alone keep from loosing money.

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