Ccin /Jt11clrine Oppc,-tunitieJ
III
by HAROLD S. KAHM
Author of "New Business Opportunities for Today"
Many coin machine operators, searching
for new and profitable locations, have over-
looked an important fact: namely, that a
great many coin machines are easily port-
able, and that a complete penny arcade, or
other collection of games and automatic
vendors, may be easily and safely trans-
ported from one place to another in a truck.
Following herewith are some of the op-
portunities that are open to portable units:
1. CARNIVALS. There are a good many
carnival companies operating in the United
States, Canada, and South America, that
still do not have penny arcades, or a coin-
game concession. The attractions of these
travelling carnivals consist, usually, of a
number of riding devices, such as a merry-
go-round, ferris wheel, whip, Tilt-a-whirl,
etc., a few shows, and a number of varied
food and amusement concessions of various
types. The concessions generally pay a flat
weekly rate, ranging from $10.00 to $25.00
for space, light and, in some cases, trans-
portation.
The carnival assumes all responsibility
for booking, and all the concession operator
need do is to accompany them, and set up
shop in each place where the carnival plays.
A great deal of money has been and is
being made in the carnival game, and there
are plenty of opportunities in this field for
coin machine operators.
The necessary equipment, in addition to
the machines, consists of a suitable tent in
which to set up the "arcade", and strong
wooden boxes, with handles, to facilitate
packing and moving the machines easily
and safely. In many instances, a truck is
not required, because a good many car-
nivals travel by train, and in such cases
the weekly rental for the concession privi-
lege includes train transportation for the
operator and his machines. The carnival
company frequently owns its own railroad
cars.
2. PICNICS. Here is a brand new
field that has not even been scratched by
coin machine operators. All summer long,
throughout the country, large organizations
sponsor big picnics, the attendance at which
occasionally amounts to several thousand
people. In the course of the day, a great
deal of money is spent, because the people
come to the picnic for the sole purpose of
having a good time. Merry-go-round owners
have found it profitable to book picnics,
despite the fact that the average merry-go-
round weighs more than ten tons, and
requires a crew of several men to erect it
and operate it. A coin game concession, on
the other hand, may be operated by one
man, and perhaps an assistant if it is a
large concession. A smaller outfit can be
manned by one person. And-here is the
important fact - an adequate-sized coin
game concession can gross as much money
as a merry-go-round.
Because of the fact that a fairly large
coin machine arcade can be carried in one
truck, it is easy for the operator to play
a different picnic every day. Another fact,
equally important, is that whereas it takes
an average of six hours to erect a merry-
go-round, a coin machine concession can
be set up in two hours or less. A merry-
go-round cannot play a different picnic
daily, because it requires an extra day just
to unload and set up the device.
To secure picnic engagements is a simple
matter: it involves first, a subscription to
a press-clipping bureau for a couple of dol-
lars. The press-clipping bureau sends you
clippings announcing all of the picnics in
your operating radius, which may include
several States. Then, with the aid of a map,
you mark off the picnics you wish to play,
according to geographic location; in other
words, you plan a route so that you can
jump from one picnic to the next nearest
one continually. Then, you drop a card or
letter to the chairman of the picnic commit-
tee ( the names and addresses are invariably
mentioned in the clippings) and ask for
a booking.
3. FAIRS AND CELEBRATIONS.
County and State Fairs are excellent loca-
tions for coin machines, and the field has
scarcely been touched. Fairs are always
anxious to book new attractions, and their
rates are often very small. Profits are big,
because the farmers in each district often
save up for a whole year to have money
to spend for a good time at the annual
Fair. The fairs last from one to five days
each, and it is easily possible to book a
string of fifteen or twenty.
Celebrations are usually of one-day dura-
tion, and they are also big money-makers.
A whole town is decorated for the day, and
the whole population turns out for a good
time. There are many types of celebrations
-Fourth of July, Labor Day, various
Homecoming days, Centennials, etc.
A press-clipping bureau can keep you
informed, well in advance, of these impor-
tant dates.
4. CHURCH BAZAARS. In the winter
season, the same portable outfit may be
used to play indoor dates. Church bazaars
are very profitable, because they are alwa~
given to raise money, and by paying a
percentage of your gross receipts, you have
the privilege of getting a substantial share
of the take, as compensation for your time
and the use of your machines.
In some cases, it pays to offer as much
as fifty per cent of your gross, because Iew
church organizations can resist a proposi-
tion of this kind, and you can afford to
do it because your overhead has been re-
duced to a minimum. The bazaars are held
indoors, and you needn't erect a tent; you
merely set up your machines in the hall,
and take in the money.
The opportunity here is a very special
one, for the reason that most bazaars are
eager for new attractions. Many of the
bazaars held by the larger churches receive
city-wide publicity, and they are attended
not only by the church members and their
families, but by the general public as well.
Bazaars sometimes last a week, and attract
thousands of people.
5. AUTO SHOWS. Automobiles have
proven to be only one attraction at auto
shows. Other entertainment, as has been
found, must be provided for the thousands
of people who attend the shows-and these
people come largely for entertainment. A
coin machine concession can make a great
deal of money playing these shows, because
entertainment offerings rarely hold the at-
tention of the people for a long time, and
they are free to walk around, inspect cars,
and find their own amusement. The attend-
ance at a single large auto show may run
into forty or fifty thousand people.
7
COIN
MACHINE
REVIEW
6. CLUB DANCES. All through the
cold weather season, large clubs, lodges
and organizations sponsor dances and en-
tertainments. The purpose is usually to
raise money, and concessions are welcomed
on a percentage basis. This is virtually a
virgin field for coin machine operators.
The same portable outfit that operates
in the summer season with a carnival com-
pany, or at independent picnics and cel-
ebrations, continues through the fall with
county and state fairs, then through the
winter with bazaars, auto shows and dances,
thus making it possible to keep booked
solidly on a year-round basis.
There is no limit to the type and variety
of machines that may be included in the
unit, although it is best to specialize in
amusement games of all kinds, both of the
penny and five-cent variety.
♦
In this, the third of the series of articles on Coin Machine Oppor-
tunities, Harold S. Kahm, author of the hook "New Business Oppor-
tunities for Today," discusses some unusual opportunities open to
the enterprising operator. Maybe just the thing you have been con-
sidering is discussed herein.
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