In 2019, I used to be working as an fairness analysis analyst at UBS. I’m an avid ping pong participant, however once I moved to New York Metropolis I discovered how troublesome it was to search out locations to play. That’s once I had the thought for PingPod: 24/7 on-demand ping pong amenities that might function with out the necessity for full-time staff on-site.
We stay in a world the place experiences are valued over items—aka “the experience economy.” Immediately nearly all of Individuals prioritize experiences over items and merchandise. However it may be costly and complicated to ship experiences to individuals, particularly in city areas. Our autonomous working mannequin affords the technological key to creating extra ping pong provide in city markets—and it really works for different sports activities, as properly.
We began with a single PingPod location within the Decrease East Facet of Manhattan—the template for the 18 (and counting) U.S. PingPod shops that may comply with.
Right here’s how they work: Relatively than having workers man a location, every thing on-site is automated. Customers ebook the area with an app, and so they can solely unlock the door by way of a code on their smartphone. (For safety we faucet into one other development: outsourcing. See beneath.) The autonomous mannequin not solely cuts down on value, but additionally expands the instances of day a venue can be utilized.
Our focus was to create one of the best shopper expertise potential. We constructed from scratch the software program stack that powers PingPod. We all the time believed that someday we might license our system to exterior venue operators. Final 12 months, we bundled our expertise belongings into a completely owned software-as-a-service (SaaS) subsidiary referred to as PodPlay Applied sciences.
Immediately, PodPlay has over 70 venues (together with the 18 PingPod shops) signed up on the system throughout desk tennis, billiards, baseball batting cages, pickleball, padel, soccer, golf simulators, racing simulators, and extra. Any venue that sells reservation time slots is a possible PodPlay shopper. Because it occurs, there are various like-minded entrepreneurs within the sports activities and recreation area who’re desirous about working their venues in a labor-light vogue.
What began out as a single automated ping pong facility has remodeled right into a sports-tech firm during which we’re franchising the PingPod model and licensing the PodPlay system.
In March 2022, we obtained $10 million in VC funding to assist with our enlargement. Final 12 months, we reached $3.6 million in income, and this 12 months we count on to hit about $6 million. Primarily based on the newest spherical of financing accomplished final 12 months, our valuation is round $50 million.
Right here’s how we’ve confirmed success and maintained the magic within the expertise as we’ve scaled:
Modernize tech in city areas
PingPod has “Pods” in New York Metropolis, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Miami, Boston, and Chicago, with satellite tv for pc areas within the U.Okay. and the Philippines. The autonomous operations powered by PodPlay enabled that fast scale.
The will for experiences mixed with the truth that millennials, Gen Z , and Gen Alpha stay in a digital-first world means we will anticipate extra retail areas in city environments turning into experience-focused venues.
Earlier than PingPod, the desk tennis market in NYC provided two choices: your big “eatertainment” facility designed for F&B consumption, or your basement-style “dojo”—a specialised place for desk tennis—that hasn’t been renovated for the reason that ’90s.
PingPod is an avenue in between—a snug place to play ping pong that’s reasonably priced, accessible, and handy. Relatively than an enormous vacation spot facility with 30 tables, we provide a dozen smaller-format areas bodily dispersed all through a metropolis.
Cut back working prices
Working autonomously or semi-autonomously is a sport changer for enterprise homeowners. Along with lowering labor prices, autonomous fashions additionally reduce the necessity for bodily labor and subsequently cut back capability constraints. Most PingPods are open 24/7, 12 months a 12 months.
The elemental downside that the autonomous working mannequin solves is location unit economics. Hire is dear in city areas, however variable labor prices are sometimes an excellent bigger element of the price stack. Autonomous fashions assist to restrict labor prices and permit the enterprise to run with minimal staffing necessities.
What it boils all the way down to is the double-whammy of lowered working prices and better capability, which yields over 40% working margins in our highest-performing Pods.
Keep buyer security
Autonomous venues are designed to be as easy to function as potential. The PodPlay system allows small amenities to be run by a single, devoted owner-operator.
Once we first began PingPod, there have been legitimate issues round security and safety. The protection of our prospects is all the time our utmost precedence, and we now have devised a number of methods to make sure it. First, all PingPod doorways are locked by default. The one approach one can entry the area is by having a reservation. Second, having a reservation implies that you paid and that we now have your bank card on file to account for any ancillary expenses. Third, the PodPlay system features a devoted video-monitoring workforce based mostly within the Philippines. The workforce in Manila consistently retains eyes on all PodPlay autonomous areas and alerts native workforce members when mandatory. 5 years in, with dozens of areas and lots of of hundreds of reservation hours below our belt, we really feel comfy saying that the working mannequin works as meant.
Create a seamless buyer expertise and foster group
The autonomous Pods permit gamers to set the tone of their outing. By together with absolutely built-in audio and visible elements, the participant expertise will be “gamified.” PodPlay equips venues with prompt replay and rating monitoring capabilities that create an elevated expertise for professionals and informal gamers alike.
The moment replay function specifically is transformative for each the shopper and venue operator. It’s designed to let gamers seize nice moments with out taking them out of the move of their sport. They not need to arrange a tripod, mount a cellphone, and so forth. With the contact of a button within the Pod, a replay is projected onto the desk monitor and is emailed to the shopper and likewise lives of their account.
How usually do prospects make the most of the replay performance? Quite a bit. At PingPod, prospects are on tempo to press the button greater than 100,000 instances in 2024. The attractive factor for the venue proprietor is that many of those movies find yourself on social media as gamers share their experiences with extra potential customers.
Since we launched PingPod, greater than 100,000 prospects have signed up and greater than 260,000 hours of ping pong have been performed at our Pods, connecting gamers with pals each new and outdated in their very own communities.
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