Connecting the (Indoor) Play Community

Since it was established in the 1970’s, the Indoor Play Community has been a fragmented and disparate group of organisations taking an individualistic and short-term approach; we can see the results today, a community that consistently underperforms its potential in a fight for survival.

The characteristics of such zero sum markets are typically decisions based on short-term self interest, fear, incomplete information, emotion and attachment to the familiar rather than business rationale and creative embracing of the possibilities of change; ultimately, this limits potential and investment causing markets to shrink and in time, disappear.

Not a pleasant picture and so in 2009, we started ShareAndComparePlay with the objective of raising the standard of play provision in the UK; we hoped that this in turn would encourage investment and innovation, reversing the trend.

Although our small company started life as an exciting experiment, the three key values we embraced to achieve this objective were freedom of information, transparency throughout the value chain and collaborative working.

In some ways, our progress has been in advance of what we anticipated whilst in others resistance has meant that we have taken time to find alternative methods of spreading the word. In recent months, we have been working on several key initiatives to broaden the impact of such values and more of our services are being designed to better support existing operators; if we can help operators to become more successful, the circle of possibility raises upwards.

One such initiative is the collaboration between ShareAndComparePlay and Play Operators to form a new Community of Play, Play Connected. As the name suggests, our medium term aim is to create a more connected industry incorporating suppliers, operators, associations and parents / children who use the play experiences that we create.

The first meeting has taken place with astonishing results for the participating operators, the open nature of the meeting resulted in breakthroughs in terms of access to Management Information that can potentially transform the profitability of the play industry.

The next meeting is scheduled for April when more details will be agreed regarding the organisational structure but an interim progress report (requested by several people) is as follows:

· All organisations in the Play Community will be encouraged to participate; membership will be free although certain standards will have to be achieved to become a full member (membership is restricted for a little while as we implement the programme)

· ShareAndComparePlay.com and Play Connected will work together to introduce the best possible value deals from suppliers of all items needed to start and operate an indoor play centre; suppliers will have to pass an approval process to be certified by Play Connected

· The benefits that each member receives will be in direct proportion to the contribution that they make to the community

· Play Connected will explore innovative ways of generating additional revenue streams for soft play centres at both an individual and collective level

· The organisation will not be run by committee; we would like in time to create a full time role but it will generally be a democratic organisation ran by its members

· Play Connected will work with ShareAndComparePlay.com to produce quality content that will raise the profile of indoor play and encourage investment

· The structure of the collective is to be clarified but it is likely to be a co-operative of partners working towards common objectives

· Play Connected will aim to provide “Thought Leadership” and research in mission critical areas such as Information Technology, Social Media and Child Wellness

Our hope in time to provide a path to success for indoor play; we aim to inspire creativity, best practice and innovation throughout the play industry so that ultimately we can provide the best play experiences for children.

If you look at successful industries throughout the world, there is an acceptance that no organisation exists in a vacuum. In IT for example, the degree of interconnectedness will often determine the level of overall success, we hope this is the first step towards using these principles to grow the pie for all.

We will update again soon but if you have any comments, questions or wish to register interest in participating, please get in touch.

ShareAndComparePlay.com is the Indoor Play Supplier Comparison Website that Saves Play Operators £10,000s. The only source of independent reviews on every Supplier to the Play Industry, ShareAndComparePlay.com works to revolutionise the Play Experience for Children and to enable Businesses to profitably understand and meet the future needs of Families.

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Questions to ask when starting an indoor play centre

This is the first week in a month that we are not running one of our “how to start a soft play centre” seminars; we are taking the opportunity to update content and plan the schedule for the next few months.

One of the most enjoyable aspects of running the seminars is the convergence of creativity, enthusiasm and curiosity as prospective play operators evaluate the viability of starting an indoor play centre.

Reflecting on the latest seminars, there are three key questions that together we seek to address on the website and in more detail at the seminars, these are as follows:

1. What are you aiming to achieve by starting a play centre?

The answer to this question will impact upon every subsequent decision. In simple terms, there are some people that wish to create a lifestyle business (earn a living and improve the play experience) and there are others (increasingly so) that are serial Entrepreneurs wanted to build shareholder value. Each has its merits; it is however important to understand your personal motivations and objectives and develop your business plan accordingly.

2. What kind of play area do you want to build?

The Indoor Play Centre business is due a revolution in terms of business model and design. The design is perhaps the easier to address in this short note but I would suggest you ask yourself a simple question and explore the answer fully; “If an indoor play centre had never been built, what would your perfect play centre look like?” Seek the answer and build accordingly.

3. What does a Sustainable Play Centre Business Model look like?

This is the fundamental question of our time (not just in the soft play industry); the traditional model of “Pay and Play” has yielded only limited success and is unsustainable, (certainly at the scale we have seen in the last few years). We need to work together to re-think and re-imagine a new play experience and accompanying business models of which there will be many.

Asking the right questions is merely the start. The possibilities will only begin to reveal themselves once you, we and the entire play community begin to experiment and are open to the answers; I happen to believe that the future is rosy for the brave.


ShareAndComparePlay.com is the Indoor Play Supplier Comparison Website that Saves Play Operators £10,000s. The only source of independent reviews on every Supplier to the Play Industry, ShareAndComparePlay.com works to revolutionise the Play Experience for Children and to enable Businesses to profitably understand and meet the future needs of Families.

Follow us at Twitter.com/shareandcompare or (Un)subscribe to our Blog by e-mailing us.