Striking success for the Ryde attraction with Laserquest bringing in new customers. Just don’t call them LA Bowl!
“The place looks much better, it’s more comfortable now, it’s more attractive and families love it,” says Neil Bradley. He’s general manager at Ryde Superbowl which has benefited from recent investment of more than £180,000. Neil joined the business in 2011. He left a few years ago and returned as general manager in February last year. He heads up a team of 35 employees, including 7 managers and a sales team.
“Ryde Superbowl has changed massively since I first joined the company,” Neil explains. “We’ve invested £130,000 in opening a brand new Laserquest arena. We’ve also invested a further £15,000 in our Pavilion café bar with a new menu and chef brigade and a brand new kitchen. We’ve spent £10,000 on branding and another £25,000 on new scoring system so that we can allocate more people to our lanes, allowing us to hold more people at busy times. It’s been a huge success and it’s a much better customer experience now.”
Ryde Superbowl is run by Isle Of Wight Bowling Ltd, an individual limited company with one director and two shareholders. The business makes up part of the portfolio owned by parent company American Amusements.
“Making the investment was definitely the right thing,” Neil says. “The owners invested £130,000 in capital along with the profits from last year, which went straight back into the business. Our next phase is to refit the front reception area with new seating and professional pool tables.”
The team is growing too. Neil has employed Holly Rachel MacGillivray, a new sales manager, who is driving sales through parties and corporate bookings. In the six months since Holly joined the company the revenue from parties has quadrupled. The growth in business means that Ryde Superbowl is also able to employ people for longer.
“Normally we employ some of our summer staff on a temporary basis but we’ve been able to keep a lot of our core staff on through January and February. That’s fantastic for us because we don’t like to lose good staff. Last summer was massively kind to us but it’s not just about the tourist trade. You have to develop your local base too. Ryde town is really supportive, particularly when you compare it to Newport. We have a lot of Ryde locals who are coming here regularly for food and drink as well as bowling. We’re primarily a family entertainment centre which definitely works for us.”
Neil wants to use the Laserquest to bring more people to the business. He wants to grow a junior cadet club with afterschool activities and he’s contacting every school on the Island to offer affordable weekday activities.
“We want to make this place the number one attraction on the Island,” Neil says. His other ambition is closer to home but will still require support from Islanders.
“We’ve been called Ryde Superbowl for five years now but many people still think we’re LA Bowl. It’s proving quite difficult to shake!”
First published in the May 2016 issue of Island Business Magazine.
