INDOOR PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT COST

When first starting the idea or the development of an indoor playground business, one of the very first questions will be what does indoor playground equipment cost.

Pricing soft indoor playgrounds and playground equipment is a unique formula. The first thing you need to know is that 90% of the work indoor playground manufacturers do for party centers and childrens entertainment centers are custom designs.

There is no charge (or should not be a charge for this process) as each design should be different from the next…. your business goals differ from say McDonalds and the Jumpy Jimmy place down the road – so too should your playground design.

Indoor playground prices are based on a two factor formula...

1) The first factor is Capacity.

How big of a playground do you need to handle all of the traffic you expect on your busiest weekend peak day?

2) Factor two is Play-A-bility.

This second factor, can be the more important of the two, as play-a-bility will determine how much fun it is for your guests and the ‘nag factor’ it induces for your target demographic. Playability is driven by the kinds and amounts of activities, interactivity and challenges within the finished playground. The more activities you have the more playable and the more fun your playground will be. Ultimately play-a-bility, not only in your soft indoor playground, but in your entire center’s activity mix, drives a high repeat desire for children to return and play again and again.

We call this the NAG factor. Everyday, all week long kids are nagging mom about coming to your family fun center to play. This is the goal.

On a sliding scale based on playability, expect any where from $1,500 – $2,500 per child capacity. For example, if you need a playground that can handle 50 children at one time, on the lower, inexpensive end it could run $75 – $100,000 and on the higher end $90 – $125,000. In this price example, the playground would be close to the same size, the same color – the only difference would be the playability factor – or the amount and kind of activities contained within the playground equipment.

The Total Cost of Playground Equipment

On top of the capacity / playability formula, there can be several other factors that contribute to the total cost of playground equipment, including the decision to theme your indoor play ground, and in some cases indoor play companies may charge an additional installation fee for a “themed install crew”… we suggest you read your contract fine print. SMART Playgrounds offers a simple, one-page, inclusive agreement for equipment, theme, delivery and installation.

Playground Theme

That price range ($1,500-$2,500) typically does not include any major amount of indoor playground themeing. Although there are many types of and levels of themeing (3D relief, painted murals, air-brushed foam core, etc.) offering a wide variety of price points, as themeing can be expensive and can very quickly eat up 20 – 30% of your playground equipment budget.

In addition to the added expenses – if you are community-centric focusing on a local repeat customer the challenge with themeing is once a Castle, always a Castle, and as a child grows from 4 years to 9 years old, he eventually tires of the same themed play. Whereas if the playground is loaded with play-a-bility and brightly colored, one visit it can be a castle, during the next visit he could be flying a spaceship, and the next he could be fighting off dragons… that may be hard to do if he is always playing in a treehouse.

However, like the play-a-bility factor, themeing can help you brand-out from your competition by allowing you to develop a story-line and characters based on your theme. Look to Disney and how they use themeing to tell the story, and nurtures their characters into the retail revenue stream. Adding a retail component to most any fun center is a great idea – having a themed story-line to help you develop and build a solid brand along with additional sales from your characters, mascots and storyline has been a winner for many large and small fun center operations.

Indoor Playground Equipment Cost vs. Playability

As you surf around and explore designs and ideas from different companies you may be thinking – it would be great to have this design, but i don’t want this or that, and would really like to have that thing instead…. and that’s exactly how the Smart Playgrounds design process works. We start with your ideas, goals and concept developing a sense of which activities and layout features can best help support those goals.

Then, from an analysis of your site plan we help you discover hidden opportunities within the playability factor that can help you maximize your floor plans, traffic projections, marketing opportunities and your budget.

As discussed above, play-a-bility is central to the success of your activity mix and ultimately your overall facility. Not just for the playground, but for all aspects of games, rides and any programs you may look to offer, including your birthday party packages. The more fun both child and parent can have, especially through coordinated efforts such as your party strategy, the better the chances for a high repeat play desire and your long term success.

SMART Playgrounds is a master at creating high play-ability, creative indoor playground design. We welcome the opportunity to help you create yours. Please do reach out to us for a no-obligation portfolio presentation of a SMART indoor playground design.

PLAYFUL STIMULATION FOR BODY, MIND & SOUL

INDOOR PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT COST

Indoor playground prices are based on a two factor formula...

The Total Cost of Playground Equipment

Playground Theme

Indoor Playground Equipment Cost vs. Playability

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