SHOW NOTES
In this episode, Curt introduces Sean Nash from Escape Room Novi in Michigan. With co-host Chris absent, Curt and Sean dive into Sean’s journey from England to Michigan, his experience as a general manager, and his passion for puzzles and immersive gameplay. Sean shares the history of Escape Room Novi, discussing their wide array of themed rooms. They also talk about the challenges of maintaining and running escape rooms, the joy of watching players’ ‘Eureka moments’, and the innovative ways they engage customers with unique party packages and mobile escape rooms. The episode concludes with a fun speed round where Sean reveals his favorite books, escape room experiences, and aspirations for the future.
LINKS
- Escape Room Novi
- Operation Arctic Storm and Neighborhood Watcher
- Forbidden Island board game
- Ordinary Adventures (YouTube)
KEY TAKEAWAYS
- Purchasing turn-key games from other companies can be a great investment for your escape room business, especially if you don’t have the skills in any of the typical game-build areas like tech, carpentry, design, electrical, etc.
- A new employee is trained on a game by playing it first (taking as long as they need and getting as many clues as they need), having a veteran staff member walk them through the game and explain what goes on and how it works, resetting it, doing a speed run (playing again), watch the game being played by a group, then running it themselves with someone supervising/shadowing them.
- They run around 200 kids’ birthday parties a year. They partner with a local pizza place and provide pizza, soda, and paper products and give the group 2 hours in the party room.
- They hook up the CCTV so parents in the party room can watch their kids play in the escape room. When the kids come out of the game, the TV goes back to a static picture that says ‘Happy Birthday’.
- An adult chaperone can be in the room at no charge, but they do not require an adult to be in the escape room if the kids behave.
- Need a new t-shirt design? Hold a contest.
- Mobile trailers and tent games are a big part of the business. The mobile trailers are better but some people want a game set up where trailers cannot go, like in an atrium or barn. In that case, tents are good to have as an option.
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