Have Any of you opened a paintball field befor.

[Falcon1]

OK I am think about opening a field were i live and there is only three fields in my area. Ahould I do it or do you think it is a bad idea?

And i Need to know what to do to get it up and running if i do make it...

Dont tell my were to buy guns and stuff know that.:D

[tony3]

Just get used to being poor and loosing more money then you make at first

[punkncat]

You will need a Buisiness License for starters.
You will need to make sure that the zoning where your field will be allows for such activity.
Get some good insurance.
You will also need to check and see what requirements your property has to meet to be a commercial enterprize.IE bathrooms , paved parking lot, etc.
It is helpful to have a good deal of knowledge concerning many different types of markers.
You will need to purchase rental markers and equipment.Get an account with a distributor of paintball supplies and equipment or make a deal with a local shop.This way you can stock paintballs and parts for repair.
Have a great deal of capital so that you can float your buisiness and yourself for at least one year to get off the ground.
Good Luck!

[Automaggin2]

How old are you? Do you have a business background? Do you have a Banker, Accountant, and all that good stuff? Business Liscense, Zoning, check township ordinances and get approvals, all that good stuff. It's not easy AT ALL

[Doc Nickel]

Ran a field for nearly three years. Learned a few things.

A) Give up playing. Completely. You can play in a game or you can run the field, but not both. If you're running the field as a serious business, and not just a "hope it lasts the summer" fly-by-night, then you will not have time to play. Period, end of conversation.

B) You will not make money. If you're lucky, you'll break even, and if you have a day job that leaves you tine to run the field on the weekends, you probably won't starve.

C) If there's three fields in the area already, then you have competition. Unless you have 100K to a quarter-million in population within a 30 to 45 minute drive, another field will just dilute the player base.

D) Unless you can offer something the rest don't have- IE, an Airball field while the rest have woods, or real plumbing, or noticibly better prices (which, of course, means lower profits and that brings us back to the "won't make any money" part.)

E) You'd better have a big chunk of money to start with. Depending on how many players on average you think you'll see, you'll need rental guns, rental masks, tanks, bulk CO2 cylinders, bulk N2 cylinders or a bunch of SCUBA tanks (or a compressor and/or booster.)

You'll also need tools, repair parts, extra lenses, boxes to store it all, a truck or van to haul it all to and fdrom the field, you'll need property, and chances are you'll have to fight with the local city planning office over the use of it.

F) You'll also need insurance, a cell phone, a complete, well-prepared first-aid kit, and other safety measures.

G) You'll then need something to work as barricades, whether you buy a used airball kit ($1500) or a new one ($4500) or you pile up old wood, tires, plywood or crates. You'll also need boundary tape, possibly netting, a chronograph, ref's vests, and oh yeah, some people who'll ref for you.

H) Plan carefully for the inevitable SNAFU: What will you do if you run out of paint? Air? What will happen if a group decides they want a bachelor's party for fifty people and you only have fifteen goggles and twelve functioning rental guns? Better yet, they call and reserve on Thursday afternoon for a Saturday game?

The list goes on. I ran into all sorts of difficulties, and I was also rather naive about the whole thing. I made a lot of poor choices, not the least of which was the choice of business partner (get everything in writing!) but after it was all said and done, I actually had some fun doing it.

Doc.

[Falcon1]

Well thanks all for the feed back and from what you all said im over making it lol!!:D

Maybe in 10-15 years when i have alot of money....When will that happen who KNOWS!:eek:

[robertjuric]

Is there really a lot of money to be lost or not made at all in running more of a field and less or a proshop?

My idea is to open a field, rental stuff and all, but not much gear or guns for sale, or at least not until the fields gets going. Only stock necessesary stuff like squeeqees, a few masks, air fittings, and parts kits.

I know this wouldnt be cheap, and Im not planning on doing it anytime soon, but sometime later maybe when I get tired of working and have a lot of money saved up.

[Kevmaster]

you WONT make money. If you are willing to throw tens of Gs down on the field and have a good time, then go for it. However, you will be VERY lucky to break even.

Warren Buffet once said "The easiest way to become a millionare is to first become a billionaire and then buy an airline." Paintball is much the same way.

[hAppy]

Originally posted by Automaggin2
How old are you? Do you have a business background? Do you have a Banker, Accountant, and all that good stuff? Business Liscense, Zoning, check township ordinances and get approvals, all that good stuff. It's not easy AT ALL no matter what business you start, it won't be easy

[GT]

My idea is that when the wife and I retire I will open a feild or a little store...

I would be retired so who cares if I make any money or spend boat loads of time for little to no profit.....

I am 25 now so look for GT's feild and proshop in 2044!

[chunk_daddy]

i started a feild for this church, they had paid for insurence and everything needed to get started, it can be NO fun at all, little kids that don't know what they are doing,and you don't get to play at all, and if you do it looks bad to parents and they don't want to bring their kids back, i don't have time to run the feild ne more and its really not that big of a deal to me, but u better be ready to not have fun, but it also can be fun helping kids learn how to play

[jayloo]

Originally posted by Doc Nickel
Ran a field for nearly three years. Learned a few things....

Doc.

Doc hit all the nails on the head. You will break even if you are lucky.

[stondroopy]

sorry to bring up such an old thread but i did have a few questions in mind.i guess number one is where can i look up info on insurance cost,wholesale prices if there is such a thing for paint and gear.A friend and are seriously looking in opening a field(indoor).Im also wondering how you only break even,it seems there would be some good money to be made but ill take your word for it.right now i got about 40k and my buddy will apply for a business loan for roughly the same amount.I am a lil bummed though to hear that ya dont get to play much but hey there is always a cost. :cry: oh well any ifno i can get about the things i would need to get started would be much appreciated




P.s. A.O.ers get half off :D

[Enemy]

ok i worked/work at a privately owned field.. you can get a chance to play if you have a good group of people working with you i always try to get the field owner who is 72 in a game or two when it cools off every once and a blue moon!!! fields arent cheap but a good run field will bring in enough money to pay for itself and then some extra i think we came to around 100k a year but thats neglecting expenses so much much less than that!!! umm definatley go to tech classes or find techs to have out there cuz alot of dumb people bring broken guns that need a fixing!!! reffing needs to be maintained unless the group playing is very experienced I.E. field workers/ team. be ready to handle aroun 30 plus people at once and you wont have any problems and if you need help offer people free entry and paint at cost to help out.. just make sure they get to play atlest a game per day!!! other than that good luck and best wishes!!!

[jesseyo13]

Its not really worth the money it makes in my area. I work for my local field and he says that he barely brakes even. I even ref for free! Its also very hard to find a ref that will actualy show up I noticed. Most people say that they will show up, but after a few weekends they never come back. In my area the nearest field other than the one in my arean is 1 houre away and we only get about 10-15 when the weather is good. The owner also told me that he invested $60,000 in markers and equipment and land. About 2 or 3 times a year we get a huge group. Like thursday we had 45 people show up and I was the only one there working. Needless to say it took me over 1.5 houres just to hand out stuff and crono them all in. So you need at least 2 people working there all the time.
Then you have to make fields too. Its almost impossible to set up fields by your self unless they are airball fields. There are 5 wood fields were I work. It took about 3 months working every day to make them all with 3 people. So be prepaired for a lot of work and not a lot of profit your first 2-3 years.

[punkncat]

There is money to be made with a field , otherwise noone would do it.

Private parties , air and rentals are a good part of the profit. Many fields make a good profit on paint too , but I feel like lower prices on paint attracts more people to the field.

Refs are a big issue. Some fields pay the refs , I am compensated in games or paint. It works out nice for me and the owner that way. Paint cost him much less and to play is free for him.

Get a good working relationship with you local pro shop. Many prospective customers come there looking for somewhere to play. If you get them to supply your parts or have a mutual "reference" system in place it will be good for both parties. IE.- he suggests your field to play , you suggest his shop for parts/service.

[XbeasleyX]

My buddy was in the process of opening an indoor hyperball field with his father. Would be the second field withing 80miles. Long story short, father sunk $20,000 into this place and that was before the city told him he needed to flush and fill the entire buildings (3 story, about the base of a suburban middle school) fire sprinkler system, and put self generating fire fans in all stair wells. The flush and fill and fans totaled another $30,000 . So in short - have a good demographic and have VERY deep pockets.

[Lohman446]

Rules of general business (they are general, but taught in most business classes):

Most businesses will loose money in day to day operation for the first three years - this is not counting the initial investment of capital, thats just keeping things at that level and paying the bills, salaries, etc. - in other words if you are the owner you need to be prepared to live without income for awhile including the ability to pay back any capital loans you took out.

It will generally take about seven years to just break even if you count the initial investment of capital - this is assuming a "reasonably" good business model, if I dropped four million dollars into a paintball field where I live (middle of nowhere) I would be out of luck ever getting it back.

You can make money in paintball - assuming again a decent business model. However there are risks involved. Where everyone mentioned insurance I would think that you would run without it or a minimal general liability policy. Incorporate, and rent the land to the corporation that "runs" the field from a trust account that is judgement proof - also rent major equipment and the buildings in the same way, even if you are renting them from yourself (but not legally renting them from yourself). So if you get sued and the general liability policy does not cover it all, you don't loose anything except what the corporaton running it has (rental equipment, inventory, etc) - get a lawyer to set it up.

Don't expect the profits to be outrageous... look at the field owners around you. A general (note this word general) rule of thumb is that the vehicle you drive is worth about half of your yearly income - are they driving Mercedes? The profit is not super as you might expect, but it is there.

Be prepared to kiss major butt. I dont care how good you are, or who you are. These people are your customers, you have competition, you have to be polite, helpful, and leave your opinions on manufacturers, teams, etc. at home. I don't like SP, I don't particularly like Dynasty. Guess how many people I upset with those opinions, if I was dependent on making money on this, a business relationship, I would keep my mouth shut.

These are general rules, most people who have the knowledge to profitably run a paintball field also realize the amount of work that goes into it and don't. Those that think its some super investment dont realize the amount of work it takes and generally fail. Those that realize what it takes, have the resources, and the ability are few and far between. Good luck, jsut don't go in thinking it easy.

[GT]

Rules of general business (they are general, but taught in most business classes):

Most businesses will loose money in day to day operation for the first three years - this is not counting the initial investment of capital, thats just keeping things at that level and paying the bills, salaries, etc. - in other words if you are the owner you need to be prepared to live without income for awhile including the ability to pay back any capital loans you took out.

It will generally take about seven years to just break even if you count the initial investment of capital - this is assuming a "reasonably" good business model, if I dropped four million dollars into a paintball field where I live (middle of nowhere) I would be out of luck ever getting it back.

You can make money in paintball - assuming again a decent business model. However there are risks involved. Where everyone mentioned insurance I would think that you would run without it or a minimal general liability policy. Incorporate, and rent the land to the corporation that "runs" the field from a trust account that is judgement proof - also rent major equipment and the buildings in the same way, even if you are renting them from yourself (but not legally renting them from yourself). So if you get sued and the general liability policy does not cover it all, you don't loose anything except what the corporaton running it has (rental equipment, inventory, etc) - get a lawyer to set it up.

Don't expect the profits to be outrageous... look at the field owners around you. A general (note this word general) rule of thumb is that the vehicle you drive is worth about half of your yearly income - are they driving Mercedes? The profit is not super as you might expect, but it is there.

Be prepared to kiss major butt. I dont care how good you are, or who you are. These people are your customers, you have competition, you have to be polite, helpful, and leave your opinions on manufacturers, teams, etc. at home. I don't like SP, I don't particularly like Dynasty. Guess how many people I upset with those opinions, if I was dependent on making money on this, a business relationship, I would keep my mouth shut.

These are general rules, most people who have the knowledge to profitably run a paintball field also realize the amount of work that goes into it and don't. Those that think its some super investment dont realize the amount of work it takes and generally fail. Those that realize what it takes, have the resources, and the ability are few and far between. Good luck, jsut don't go in thinking it easy.


Awsome post! ;)

[TeamNausea]

yup i think he covered it