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Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2004
Location: Chesapeake Va. occupation: Chiller.
Posts: 2,125
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Starting up a public paintball field
please note that i did not type this up myself, if i did than my arms and fingers would be in so much pain.......but anywayz i take no credit.
its from a google search.
And if you are planning to make a prviate feild than dont bother reading this, only read it if you have any intrest in making a public feild. thank you.... -dustin
Before you begin.
I think it’s wonderful when people want to promote paintball and make it more accessible to potential players. That being said, starting a commercial field is a major undertaking and should not be taken lightly. Ninety percent of all businesses close their doors within the first year; and that of the ones that make it, 90% won’t be around within 5 years. (In other words, 1 in 100 businesses that open today will still be here in 5 years).
Before you even decide whether to open a commercial fields, you should do your homework:
Check out all commercial fields within a hundred mile radius of you. These are your potential competitors, or perhaps allies.
What works and what doesn’t work about the fields? How does this translate to what you want to achieve?
Is there one well-established commercial site, with tons of fields and streams of players? If so, you have to consider whether you really want to expend the capital, energy, and nerves that it would take to compete. Sponsored Links
If the field is far away enough, you could ask if the owner would be interested in creating a “branch” field on your land. You could benefit from the owner’s expertise, and share the profits from your site.
If there are no major fields in the area, then you are in a better position to start off. (On the other hand, you should be asking yourself why none of the fields have made it big.)
Another important thing to do early on is approach your local zoning to make sure you have permission to use the land as a paintball field. You may need to get the property rezoned or obtain a special use permit. If city officials are unfamiliar with paintball, you may have some convincing to do. It's very important to get permission -- otherwise, you may face stiff fines and you will probably not be able to do other business-related things things like get field insurance or start-up loans.
Going CommercialPlease note that the lists below are not meant to be exhaustive, but just to give you an idea of what it takes to start a commercial paintball field.
Price out how much the following would cost:
incorporating your business (a must to limit your liability)
business insurance
clearing (and possibly paving) land for a parking lot
clearing land for a speedball court
buying bunkers
thinning wooded areas
getting a CO2 tank, at the minimum (you will later want to add a nitro tank)
uniforms for referees (you don’t want them to get accidentally shot because players can’t identify who they are!)
bookkeeping (either hiring a bookkeeper, or at the very least getting some business accounting software)
If there is a pro shop without a field near your site, you might want to talk to them about joining forces.
Otherwise, you should also price out:
buying a cash register
becoming a credit card merchant
buying equipment (definitely goggles, markers, barrel plugs, air tanks, hoppers; and maybe clothing and pods) for players to be able to rent out
buying paintballs wholesale
having a physical store within which to conduct transactions (can be a mobile home)
electricity, phone, running water (you’ll need a bathroom!)
advertising (billboards, banners, radio spots, website, postcards, flyers, tshirts… there are a range of possibilities – and expenses—but some advertising is crucial to your success
Is your head spinning yet? Starting a paintball site is not cheap! Of course, that doesn’t mean you need to have all that money upfront. As long as you have good credit and a solid business plan, some banks will be happy to lend you start-up money for your new business. The more money you start with, the easier it will be to grow a successful business – and the more you risk losing if your business fails
The buisness plan
If after checking out the competition and getting a rough idea of what it would cost to open a new field, you still feel like going into business, the next step is to make a plan. This is critical! If you are thinking “Hey, what do I need a plan for? All I want to do is have some fun and make some money”, then definitely don’t start a commercial paintball field. All you will end up doing is developing ulcers and losing money. The reason most businesses fail is that nobody bothers to do a business plan.
The plan irons out what you want to achieve, how you will go about doing it, and how much business you have to make to break even (and when it comes to paintball, the break even point is pretty high).
You will have to make decisions like whether you want to open with just two fields (and thus risk boring your customers or making your competition look better), or if you want to wait until you have half a dozen playing fields. What will your hours be? What will you charge? Will you accept walk-ons or reservations only? You will also have to flesh out an advertising campaign.
At this point, you might realize that you may not be able to get enough players to make your loan payment every month or to recoup the capital that you put into the field. (If you aren’t sure what I’m talking about, you should check out a few small business books from your local library before you decide if you really want to start your own field).
Turning dreams into reality
If you still think opening a paintball site is a good idea, write out your business plan in as much detail as possible. Then, make an appointment with a bank or loan officer to present your polished idea. If you get approved – congrats! If not, don’t give up! Ask why you weren’t approved, work on your business plan some more, and go to another bank.
All that work and you haven’t even broken ground yet! After you’ve been approved for a loan (or figured out some other way to finance your venture), it’s time to turn your business plan into action. Talk to several contractors, check their references. Go for the one that can give you the most value (ie, give you what you want when you want it with the least amount of headache possible), not the cheapest one.
Start talking to wholesalers about buying in bulk for rentals and paintballs, or perhaps about becoming a retailer. Put an ad in the paper that says you are looking for part-time referees. Buy a few books about different game formats (there are literally hundreds, but on a day-to-day basis, if all the refs know half a dozen, you should be able to keep players interested). Have a lawyer review any liability forms.
Remember, that a paintball field is a business. For it to be successful, you have to reinvest in the business. That means that you should put any profits you receive (and it might take months or years for you to do more than break even!) into helping the field grow. For instance, you can create another field, buy more rental equipment, upgrade your bunkers, create a proshop, open up a snack bar, expand your hours, buy a nitro tank, start holding big games or scenarios, put more money into advertising, or sponsor a tourney team. Only after your business has been successfully growing for some time should you put any money in your own pocket. If you want to make money right away, look somewhere else, because if you fail to reinvest, your field will ultimately fail, too.
To Own or Not to Own?
Don’t be discouraged by all the work ahead of you. There are thousands of paintball field out there and many of them are successful. Your chances of being one of the successes increases tremendously if you plan ahead and think like a business person. But you must be willing to work hard, keep meticulous records, and be willing to learn a lot about the industry and business management in general.
If actually starting a commercial field sounds like too much trouble, you can use a wire to create a playing perimeter within land you own and set up some bunkers (planks of wood or hay bales) so you and your friends can play informal games.
Remember to follow the same safety procedures as a commercial field – masks on at all times, safety and barrel plugs on when a marker is not in play, etc. Also, please check with a lawyer and/or your insurance company regarding liability before you start holding informal games on your land! You may end up in a world of trouble otherwise.
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And I heard, as it were, the noise of thunder: One of the four beasts saying: "Come and see." And I saw. And behold, a white horse. And his name, that sat on him, was Death. And Hell follwed with him.
Last edited by predator14 : October 22nd at 08:52 PM.
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Starting up a public paintball field
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