Success Stories
A Quick & Profitable Draw
Some of the most innovative playground sites anywhere can be found at Chick-fil-A’s around the country. Soft Play has been designing Chick-fil-A’s play units since the ‘80s.
As Chick-fil-A’s Chief Corporate Architect, Terry Long oversees all aspects of architecture from design and quality to price. He has worked closely with Soft Play over the years. "I use things like input from focus groups and my own expertise to give Soft Play our vision," Long said. "And they always design great units that fit our specifications."
In 2000, Chick-fil-A went through some major design changes, and held a competition between five playground vendors to see who could come up with the most creative units. As before, Soft Play came out on top. "Soft Play defended their turf to the point that they came up with excellent design solutions of custom playgrounds that will soon be proprietary to Chick-fil-A," Long said.
"Soft Play is just a great company with quality products," Long said. "They’ve always been very professional, flexible and easy to work with. And as far as safety, their record is unparalleled."
"They also give excellent support to not only us, but to their sales reps," Long added. "They’re very people- and service-oriented. Moreover, when we’ve given them stringent requests concerning design parameters on our new playgrounds, they’ve been awfully accommodating. It seems like they’re always up to the challenge and they always come up with a solution."
Building Business One Smile At A Time
Entertainment is a vital ingredient for success at Chuck E. Cheese’s (CEC). Recently, the company rolled out Phase 3 of it’s state-of-the art Soft Play® play equipment featuring activities for children of all ages.
"We have Soft Play® equipment in about 400 locations now," said Gene Cramm, CEC Executive Vice President of Entertainment and Games. "I developed the first one with Soft Play in 1994, and by the end of 2001 we’ll have about 140 with new Toddler Zones and enhanced Sky Tubes."
The Toddler Zone is a special area of the Soft Play installation designed for young children, somewhat separating them from the more rambunctious older kids. This zone provides toddlers with toy-like interactive devices like Ball Poppers designed especially for their developmental level. It also encourages parents to participate with their young children when desired to stimulate learning and new skills.
The Sky Tubes are upper-level enclosed play tubes that have now been enhanced with a police car, a race car and other upgrades.
"Soft Play plays a huge role in positioning our concept," Cramm said. "Our position is that Chuck E. Cheese’s has always been innovative and current with our play elements. Our goal is to continually drive the guest frequency within our restaurants. By entertaining children, moms, dads, grandparents, adults of all ages, that translates into smiles and more visits for us."
Dream It and We Can Theme It
When the Apex Center in the North Jeffco Park and Recreation District in Arvada, Colorado, had its grand opening last September, one of the first things people saw was a giant tree house with multi-colored panels, planks and tree limbs. It was an instant and huge success.
"There is always this wonderful, positive reaction when people first see it," said North Jeffco Parks and Recreation District Marketing Director Faith Gregor. "It’s perfect because it’s so visually appealing, and there’s plenty of room for kids to run around and lots of stuff for them to do."
Gregor also indicated that the Soft Play tree house has also been great for boosting sales and customer traffic. "People are constantly coming into the center just to see it, and then they end up staying for hours and enjoying all our other amenities. It’s really an impressive value and benefit."
"It’s a giant, colorful, whimsical, fantastical looking tree house," Gregor said. "It is truly a Cadillac among play units - one of the premier Soft Play installations in the world. We get calls about it every week."
Kids Exercise Through Play at Chillicothe YMCA
Grand River YMCA in Chillicothe, MO is no ordinary YMCA. When it first opened in 1992, it offered many of the typical amenities found in a Y: free weights, Nautilus exercise equipment and the like. But in 1997, the Y realized that they need to expand their facility and offer new activities and programs, and thus kicked off an intensive capital campaign. The campaign was successful, and Grand River YMCA celebrated the grand opening of its new 13,288 square foot addition in January 1999. Although several new exciting features and activities were added to the facility, Executive Director Dave Rogers realized that something was missing: an area for "free-play" activities for children between the ages of 3-10. So, after a little creative thinking and research, Grand River YMCA decided to embark on a new campaign for a play area. They added a large, indoor Soft Play play system to provide imaginative exciting play activities for the children in this age group. The PlayPark® has been a huge success, and surprisingly, they discovered that even grandparents are treating their grandchildren to an exciting day at the Y as well!
When the Grand River YMCA expanded into its new facility, it offered a new gymnasium, gymnastics center, weight room, youth activity center, and even an Olympic Pool - quite a lot of great amenities. But Dave Rogers, Executive Director, realized that was not enough to complete Grand River’s offerings. 'We offered a lot of structured programs to a wide variety of age groups, but we realized we didn’t have much to offer children between the ages of 3-10, especially in terms of ‘free-play’ activities." So, after deliberation, Grand River had a grand idea: to convert one of the racquetball courts into a Kid’s PlayPark®, featuring a 19-foot by 29-foot indoor Soft Play playground, topping 18 feet high.
The Kids’ Play Park® has been a hit. Currently, it’s open three hours a day, Monday - Friday during peak hours (in a supervised environment), and on Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon. In addition, the Kid’s PlayPark® is available for parents and grandparents to reserve during non-peak times - giving parents the ability to check out a key at the courtesy desk and supervise their children while they play (the room is also designed with seating and magazines). "It provides a nice option for families who wish to let the children play – while they relax and enjoy themselves," noted Dave Rogers. But that’s not all - the Kids Play Room is also utilized for birthday parties, Teen Lock-Ins and other community events. Moreover, while Grand River YMCA suspected the playground would be a hit - they did not foresee its use by their older members. As it turns out, grandparents enjoy treating their grandchildren to a day at the YMCA just as much as parents. "Surprisingly, quite a number of seniors have been bringing in their grandchildren to use the Kid’s PlayPark ®. It’s a great outlet for the kids to play, have fun and burn energy while the grandparents watch."
Another notable feature about the Soft Play playground is the 18’ Command Tower that is close to the 2nd level window, enabling children to look directly into the exercise room. "It allows parents to see their kids playing - and it let’s the children see whether their parents really are working out!" The Kid’s PlayPark® has turned out to be the hit Grand River YMCA had hoped it would be, completing the wide variety of programs and amenities offered to its members.
For Regent Mall, Soft Play’s more wonderful the second time around.
After enjoying an original Soft Play installation for about 10 years, Regent Mall in Fredericton, Canada, challenged Soft Play to create something even better in less space.
"We went back to the same manufacturer," said Operations Supervisor Paul Johnston. "It’s good quality equipment with really good professional design. Our new installation was totally built right for the space I had - actually a new space that we moved it into. It’s a beautiful piece of equipment that children love here."
Johnston said he likes not only the new play components but also feels "it’s a lot safer than others I’ve seen. Yet they managed to get a lot more activity into a smaller area. I didn’t have to use as much floor space, so I’m getting more for my money."
Regent Mall prides itself on providing customers with extra conveniences. In addition to the Soft Play playground which is free of charge, the 550,000 sq. ft. mall offers a lounge for nursing mothers and other family-friendly accommodations. "When children want to come here, the family may stay longer because of the playground." Johnston said. "We see kids of all ages playing there from the time we open at 10 in the morning until night time. We feel it definitely benefits our business."
The Fitness Equation: Combining Fitness With Fun!
General Manager Marty Thomas knows fitness. He also knows that dragging kids along to the gym can be a feat in and of itself. That’s when he decided to add a "wow" factor when he was planning The Fitness Equation. The secret? A dynamic Soft Play contained playground outfitted in the Kids Zone, a 2,000-sq. ft. supervised play area. Since adding the playground, it has become a significant tool in the recruiting process in both attracting and keeping new members. "When we give a tour of the facility to prospective new members, kids’ eyes light up when they see the playground!" explains Thomas. The playground offers children an opportunity to exercise and burn energy while their parents work out. Equally important, "Adults love it because the kids have fun and it wears them out!" added Thomas.
Donnie Harrelson, Sales Representative for Soft Play, helped Thomas design a large contained Soft Play playground, complete with a Cobra Copter, Aerial Batbox, and two Vertical Climbs. The playground was custom-designed to meet The Fitness Equation’s site. "Donnie was great. He made it very easy to visualize a design, had quick turn-around, and provided designs and digital pictures of the play area."
The Kid’s Zone has been a successful component to The Fitness Equation. "While I can’t tell you how the play area has impacted our business in terms of dollars, I can tell you it’s a huge factor in our success. In fact, I recently recommended Soft Play to another one of our clubs, and I think they will be installing a playground this year," added Thomas. The play area is open between 8:30 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. every day, and is quite popular in the summer. It’s also used for Birthday parties, where parents can rent out the area for $100 per hour ($150 per hour for non-members). The staff loves the playground because it’s - a safe mechanism to occupy the children and let them play." The playground makes supervision easier for staff.
While The Fitness Equation is great for attracting members and keeping kids happy, it also plays an important role in children’s health and exercise. Play is a critical part of children’s neurological and physical development, aiding in fine and gross motor skill development as well as social development skills. Unfortunately, in today’s world, play is becoming increasingly absent in children’s lives. Children are less active and are playing less - even at school, as many schools are removing physical education from their curriculum. Fortunately, health & fitness centers, such as The Fitness Equation, are increasingly offering playgrounds and programs which help promote healthier living for children - an invaluable benefit!
Quotes
So far so good. We are very pleased with the product and installation."
Bill Seiler
Dale Jarrett Ford
Indian Trail, NC
Our company Rollerplex, LLC, a roller skating facility purchased a play center through Soft Play in 2001. It has been a great plus to our business. Especially our birthday parties! Kids of all ages love it! We even have had some adults enjoy it. Bob Twiss was very helpful and great to work with. Everything was installed properly without any problems. We would highly recommend this company to anyone who is interested. A Soft Play play center would be a great plus to any business!!
Rich Wright & Mike Crane
Rollerplex, LLC
East Liverpool, OH
“After having been negatively impacted by a new Burger King with a playground, we added an indoor PlayPlace to our Ludington restaurant. The jungle themed PlayPlace is a wow! We have a competitive advantage in our local market due to the PlayPlace. Sales immediately increased and we continue to outperform the competition.”
Larry Lounsbery
McDonald's
Ludington, MI
“The new indoor PlayPlace is the “best and coolest around! Customers love it. Parents like the fact that they can come for lunch and let their kids play safely. Plus, they like the fact that the ball pit is gone.”
Randy Buchko
McDonald's
Strongville, OH
“I’ve remodeled three of my stores in Ohio and have added Soft Play playgrounds to each one. The indoor playgrounds have helped increase sales by 20%. Before the rebuild, dinner sales were slow - bringing in only $150 - $200 per hour. Now the store is bringing in $600 - $700 per hour each night, busy with lots of families and kids”
Steve Payne
McDonald's
Brunswick, OH
“The new playground really makes a statement. It has brought back families old and new to our store. The return on investment has been great!”
Jim and Marcia Papp
McDonald's
Tamarac, FL
“Since replacing my old playland with a new playground installed in a Modified Indoor Playland, my sales are up almost 20% to $2.3 million.”
Tom Fewster, Jr.
McDonald's
Fort Meyers, FL
“Replacing my old playland unit with a new playground was the right decision to make. We saw an instant jump in sales and our restaurant was up 10% for the entire year.”
Keith Austin
McDonald's
Enterprise, AL
“The new playground looks great. I think it has added significant highway visibility. We have received many positive comments from our customers on it.”
Keith B. Muller
McDonald's
Dawsonville, GA
“There’s no question that the new PlayPlace has had a very big impact on sales. Happy Meal sales are up 40%. January sales were up 31% from the previous year. February is shaping up to be 45% ahead of last year. By the end of the year, we anticipate reaching sales of $3.5 million.”
Mark Heinz
McDonald's
Marleton, NJ
“I took out an old, outdated unit and replaced it with a new Soft Play unit. The playground is very nice - sales are up because of it. The playground is great at attracting kids and their families,” After the installation, the store realized a 10-12% increase in revenue.
Mike Grimm
McDonald's
Danville, VA
Since installing the space-themed playground, sales are up. Happy Meal sales have sky rocketed 30-40%, and total sales are up 15% this year. “Families love it. They think it’s terrific and state-of-the-art. It’s very busy. We see about 500 kids playing in the PlayPlace per day.
Dan Gardner
McDonald's
Lompoc, CA
“Before the new playground, I thought there was no way we were going to squeeze anymore revenue out of the store.” Endrusick explained, as revenues jumped from $2 million to $2.369 million. “Customers love it. It’s been outstanding in terms of generating excitement and attention to the store,”
Andrea Endrusick
McDonald's
Oxford, NC
"The Children's Play Gym has been a major draw for our new facility. It has allowed our YMCA to better serve our child care participants, families within our YMCA , and also schools within our service area. The Play gym has also been an unexpected revenue producer through our rental program. As a Program Director this equipment is a very valuable tool." "We would seriously recommend that YMCAs explore this type of equipment to make stronger connections to both youth and families."
George Mueller, Executive Director & Troy Curtis, Senior Program Director
YMCA
Camden, Maine
"We are quite happy with the play areas in our furniture stores. The squeals of delight from the children who visit our stores make us happy to know that we can offer them some type of entertainment while their parents are shopping! Maintenance of the play area is a breeze and it wipes off easily. I even found our cleaning lady going down the slide one day with her duster! I was quite pleased with the installation process. Your men were neat and efficient. They also supplied me with information on maintenance and were very professional."
Linda Shapiro
LEVIN FURNITURE
"As an owner/operator with McDonald's, I have observed my customers and their reactions to the Soft Play equipment in use at my restaurant. It is uplifting to see the delight of the children enjoying the play area and reassuring to know that the parents are secure in allowing their children to play there safely. The crew is most appreciative of the ease of cleaning and keeping it appealing to our young customers. Working with Bob Twiss has been a pleasure. I recommend Soft Play highly to everyone."
Jim Sweeney
McDonald's
"We discovered Soft Play at a trade show here in Las Vegas last year. We had the equipment installed in September, and we’ve been very pleased. Our Soft Play system is part of a large multi-use entertainment complex, and it’s been a big hit. The equipment is exceptional and the amenities are superior to anything else we’ve seen. Plus, we had a couple of special requests, and everyone from the sales rep to the installers was more than happy to accommodate us. Job well done Soft Play."
Ron Fry
Coast Resorts
Las Vegas, Nevada
"We’re a family entertainment complex with video games, rides and an ice-rink. The Soft Play equipment we had installed last August has been a great addition. Everyone from the sales rep to the installation crew was excellent. But more importantly, our customers love the way it looks, and all the tubes and slides really attract the kids - it’s one of the most active and busiest parts of the complex. I just wish we had more space to accommodate a larger unit."
John Nielsen
Rinkside Sports
Gurnee, Illinois
"I just wanted to let you know how pleased we are with the Soft Play equipment located in our Kids Place Play Park. The equipment gives our customers an opportunity to sit down and relax while their kids play. This way both adults and children can enjoy it, which makes us happy. Thanks again Soft Play."
Rocell Melohn
Carolina Place Mall
Charlotte, North Carolina
"We are extremely pleased with the Soft Play playground installed at our store. We were pleased with the entire process, from initial sales contact, to design all the way through to installation. We were however most pleased with the 22% increase in our same month comparative sales. We can without hesitation recommend Soft Play to any Dairy Queen operator."
Guy Hill
Nocana Dairy Queen
Nocana, Texas
"The work out of a project with Soft Play Europe has always been a "hand in hand" cooperation. From planning the playground up to the installation of the equipment, Soft Play has always been a perfect partner. We have choosen the Soft Play equipment for the modularity, high play value and quality. The parents and our young guests appreciate the different play components and over-all safety. We plan on installing 10 playground in 23 of our existing restaurants and all new restaurant builds will contain a Soft Play playground."
Kevin Murphy
Egypt
"I just wanted to let you know that since we replaced our outdoor playground with ballpit with a new playground without ballpit, we had an increase in sales. I would also like to let you know that this unit is far easier to care for than other playgrounds I have had."
Gloria Noday
Cincinnati, Ohio
"I wanted to express how pleased I am with the performance of the Soft Play playground I purchased for my business. I am very satisfied with the increase in sales, as well as by the comments of my customers. Kids enjoy playing in the park, and parents appreciate the security of the excellent visibility of the playground's design. I would recommend Soft Play to anyone looking to add a play environment to their business."
Luc Harvey
Dorion, Quebec
"After doing a lot of homework, we purchased our playground from Soft Play, and are very satisfied with the end results provided by them. Soft Play was a cost-effective choice. They worked with us every step of the way to meet our budget and to provide the best overall value. We would not hesitate recommending Soft Play to other businesses looking to create a winning play area or party area.
Joe Pistilli
Anjou, Quebec
"Just a short note to tell you how pleased we are with the new Soft Play playground we chose to install in our new restaurant. The positive reaction of both parents and, more importantly, the children is both encouraging and rewarding. The Space Buggy is a big hit. I'm proud of our playground installation and would recommend Soft Play for other play areas."
Robert Mignault
Saint-Bruno, Quebec
"About 13 percent of our customers bring their children when they visit the mall. We've estimated that about 2000 kids use the playground installation everyday. Of course that means there are also about 2000 parents bringing these kids. So the playground has really made an impact."
Mike Payton
Carolina Place Mall
Charlotte, North Carolina
"We became the birthday party mecca when we installed our Soft Play playground. Kids love it! It’s great for them because it’s not only fun and durable, but they love playing on it. My trading area has expanded dramatically because of the playground."
Jay Morgan
Tamaqua, Pennsylvania
"We couldn’t have asked for a better attraction - over 750 children play on it a day! Not only have our sales increased 57 percent since we installed it, but the minute the kids arrive in the restaurant, they run to the Soft Play playground. Needless to say, we feel this is an outstanding product!"
Larry Buchman
Minneapolis, Minnesota
"Soft Play is a very reliable product. And our customers continue to give us positive feedback about their children’s response to the playground. Many of them would rather have their kids play on it than pay for entertainment elsewhere."
Dave Parachomiak
Lloydminster, Alberta
"We have Soft Play playgrounds in two of our franchises. When we installed our first one, we saw an 18 percent increase in sales the first year! We installed our second one last March and have already seen a 14 percent sales increase at that franchise. Soft Play is great to work with. We were very pleased with their installation service and they follow-up regularly to ensure we’re satisfied with the products."
Jose Longpre
Sherbrooke, Quebec
"I’ve never seen anything like it! We installed a Soft Play play system in our franchise four months ago. Since then, customer response has been overwhelming. It’s great for business because it brings in families instead of just individuals. Soft Play is truly an innovative product."
Tim Funderburk
Cookeville, Tennessee
"Soft Play’s product presentation really attracted us. And the playground colors certainly attract kids! It’s a very good product."
Guy Lemay
Repentigny, Quebec
"Your Soft Play representative and I worked together extensively to design our PlayPark® with what our customers needed. We achieved maximum utilization of space along with maximum toy usability. We have seen different choices which can be used. We continue to receive positive feedback from our customer base. It has been a great experience."
Larry Fisher
McHenry, Illinois
"As we were preparing to open Bullwinkle’s, we knew we wanted some kind of playground equipment. After doing some serious research, going to trade shows and talking to lots of people, we chose Soft Play because of their experience and unsurpassed maintenance reputation. It was definitely the right decision. We love that Soft Play was willing and able to build exactly what we wanted. Plus, it’s been a great personal relationship. Everyone from the Soft Play sales rep to the maintenance crew has been first class.
Robin Rose
Bullwinkle’s Family Food & Fun
Cary, North Carolina
"When we went into a large expansion and remodeling mode about four years ago, we had a Soft Play playground installed at nearly all of our 48 locations. It’s really worked well for us because it’s a stand-alone system and we can cluster many of our children’s games around the equipment. It’s kind of a focal point at our restaurants. Plus it’s very easy to clean and maintain. Soft Play even designed a purple vinyl panel on the front of our play parks to match our mascot."
Beverly Downward
Peter Piper Pizza
El Paso, Texas
"I have had a Soft Play playground at my franchise for a little over a year. We see over 100 children using it daily - day care centers even come weekly to play. We have been very satisfied with Soft Play’s service and products."
Luis Hernandez
Red Oak, Texas
"I am dropping you this quick note to thank you and your staff for the professional installation of my Soft Play equipment last week. The installation went completely to plan in both timing and construction. What hiccups that did occur, were dealt with both professionally and with absolutely no fuss or complaint."
David Williamson
Bournemouth, UK
"I had Soft Play install a playground at my Dairy Queen in Waco, Texas. The children in the area were very excited and came by quite often during the install asking when they could play. The installers did a good job and the sales rep, Pam Johnson, came by and took pictures to send back to the home office to make sure it was done to their satisfaction. Our business increased every month between 8 and 16%, with only one month not increased, May, which was flat. May was unusually wet. The installers left extra materials for minor maintenance which has not been needed the first year and the playground has kept excellent color through the Texas heat. Thanks again, Pam Johnson and Soft Play."
Gary Linthicum
Dairy Queen
Waco, Texas