There are very few among us who don’t like a bit of leisure. Going to a leisure facility is a great way to spend some time with friends and forget about the stresses of everyday life.

But what if you made a leisure facility part of your everyday life? No, I’m not saying you should sneak into one and live there, or that you should go play at one every day. I’m asking if you’ve ever considered starting a leisure business. If you have a keen interest in a particular leisure activity, you could be a perfect fit for running a business yourself. Here’s a look at some of the considerations and how-tos of three popular leisure businesses.

Golf course

A golf course is probably one of the trickier leisure business propositions you can make. It requires quite a lot of land, for sure. There are also a lot of laws and regulations regarding the surrounding areas. But it is doable and can rake in a profit if you maintain it correctly.

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A lot of golf business owners make the mistake of not making their course accessible enough. There are too many businesses out there that are tailored, for lack of more appropriate words, solely to rich people. Golf is often erroneously seen as the activity of the “rich male”. This leads businesses to put too much marketing focus on that demographic. The idea is that these high-salary figures will spend enormous at the clubhouse and on their golfing equipment.

There are two mistakes being made here. One is the assumption that golf fans are a homogenous, affluent group that are easily exploited for cash. The other is putting too much into the clubhouse. So many business owners pour more effort into creating a luxurious clubhouse than they do designing a great course. The overhead costs of the clubhouse eventually become too much.

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So the lesson is to put your efforts into the quality of the play areas themselves. You also need to keep the food and drink affordable and provide entertainment for children. And, of course, you need to keep the grass trim and proper! We’d recommend getting some help from a company like Jim’s Mowing rather than doing the whole course yourself, though.

Laser tag

Lasers! Tag! Mix your two favorite childhood things and you’ve got laser tag, the popular alternative to urban warfare. Getting hold of the appropriate area for laser tag is considerably easier than with a golf course. Most sturdy interiors will do. A lot of business owners begin with a warehouse and build it from there. Of course, you can also take such a business outside. But an interior laser tag facility accessible in a popular town is your best bet here.

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Laser tag requires very particular lighting. The actual game areas themselves will have very little regular light. They require the hooking up of ultraviolet light. The decoration of the obstacles and goals in the arena must be ultraviolet or neon. You need to keep these strange visibility settings in mind when you’re designing the place. Not only are people’s eyes focused on the lasers and the neon decorations; they’ll also be on the lookout for other players. It can be difficult for them to keep an eye on their surroundings, so you need to ensure it’s completely safe. To the effect, you will need to install CCTV throughout the game areas. These will have to be able to discern all the necessary details in the low lights. While it would be ideal to have several monitors in the arena at all times, it’s wise to try to limit this as a necessity. They’re great, but they can get in the way of play!

You need a strong HVAC system. Heating won’t be so much of an issue, but ventilation and air conditioning need to be perfect. Customers will get very hot when running around, so you must make sure they can cool down adequately during and between game sessions.

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The trick is to provide a unique interior design that people want to play in. You need to detail the game zones on your website quite thoroughly. People won’t be able to see the arena if they’re passing the actual property, so you generally have to hook them online or rely on word of mouth. Hire a laser tag game zone designer. You could even look to video games for some inspiration, as that’s where many people get the urge to play laser tag in the first place. (Due to all the ducking, covering and shooting.) Speaking of which…

Arcade

You may think of arcades and think instantly of really old-school gaming. If you don’t go to many arcades yourself anymore, it can be hard to see why they’re still popular. After all, video games are so easily accessible from home. Why leave the house if you want to play games? Even if you do leave the house, mobile gaming surely has you covered?

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But arcades are a place to play multiplayer favorites in a colorful, thrilling environment. They’re great places for blowing off steam, as well as for social gatherings and gaming tournaments.  They draw in a lot of passers-by because there’s not much of a time commitment. People can go in for a few minutes or they can spend several hours in there with friends. You can spend as much money or time in there as you like. And with surprisingly low running costs (they’re very low-maintenance), the profit potential is high.

If there’s a retail outlet available for rent in an urban area, chances are that several people in the area would love to see an arcade there. Getting a good variety of games is the key. Perennial cabinet favorites include Bishi Bashi, Street Fighter, Dance Dance Revolution and Time Crisis. When it comes to getting cabinets for new games, however, it can be a little tricky. One current example is Street Fighter V, 2016s installment of the Street Fighter franchise. You may have to speak directly to the game’s distribution company, Capcom, to inquire about cabinet sales.