[Case Study] Staying Ahead of the Curve: How Hype Innovates Its Attraction Mix
Get ready to dive into the world of Hype, the entertainment venue that has won the hearts and minds of Romanian kids, teens, and young adults with its unique mix of attractions. Through this compelling case study, you’ll discover the secrets behind their unique attraction mix. Learn how they continue to stay ahead of the game.
Join us as we unravel the strategies that made Hype a true sensation and created a wave of excitement across the country.
Get Ready to Hype Things Up: Meet Hype by Kiddo
Hype is the biggest entertainment venue in Romania, with over 43,000 square-foot. The concept was created by Cristina and Vlad, two experts in fun for all ages. They started their own business 10 years ago with the opening of Kiddo, an edutainment center for children up to 8 years old. Kiddo grew easily, so the next step was to expand to a wider demographic with Hype by Kiddo. Today, international expansion is on its way.
Cristina & Vlad: A young and ambitious couple with an old passion for the LBE industry.
Passionate about the LBE industry since childhood, Cristina debuted in the field when she opened her first business 10 years ago together with Vlad, who has over 20 years of business experience. They opened Kiddo, a 1,200-square-foot space divided into play areas designed to develop the skills, talents and knowledge of young children through play. The venue quickly became the go-to place for kids up to age 9. Soon after, a new Kiddo location was opened.
The guest experience has always been at the forefront of their business thinking.
Even though the center was having a tremendous amount of success and was doing very well with the original mix of attractions, they continued to innovate and add new attractions each year.
Frankly, I don’t want guests asking us to bring something they’ve tried elsewhere; we strive to exceed guests’ expectations with new and exciting attractions they can’t find elsewhere. So that’s why we’re always adding new attractions. To stay one step ahead of our guests’ expectations.
As more and more of Kiddo’s clients were turning over 10 years old and looking for new ways to have fun, Cristina and Vlad decided to surprise them with a new entertainment center: Hype by Kiddo. It was time for growth, growth, growth!
Hype is not just a trampoline center or just an arcade center, Hype is the everything playground.”
Under the Hype umbrella are three ingenious concepts:
Hype Arena
It has a wide mix of attractions: from climbing walls and trampolines to an arcade area, VR zone (with over 10 different attractions, including Arkadia VR Arena), ninja warrior, and many more.
Hype Escape
An advanced escape room concept that offers guests 3 thrilling themes to choose to escape from.
Hype Cube
A real-life gaming experience that trains the body and mind. It spans 900 meters, a maze with 25 rooms and each room corresponds to a game.
The secret of Hype popularity
Hype by Kiddo has an average of 200-300 guests on a regular day, which can increase to 1300-2000 guests on special events like holidays and weekends.
3 main factors contribute to the unique experience that Hype offers: The innovative and ever-evolving attraction mix, the guest-centric approach, and an authentic promotional strategy.
▪️ The innovative and ever-evolving attraction mix
Keeping up with the eight-second attention span generation requires us to constantly bring the latest innovations to our center. Certainly, it’s a challenging industry. But with the right attractions and promotional techniques, challenges turn into huge successes.”
Hype’s mix of attractions includes the Arkadia 6-Player VR Arena. The VR system has quickly become one of the most popular attractions at the entertainment venue. The VR Arena had over 24,000 players in 2022.
So when we announced the launch of a new attraction, QBIX, Cristina and Vlad quickly decided it had to be part of the Hype attraction mix as soon as possible.
QBIX, the Unattended Multiplayer Game for up to 6 Players, features game titles that offer a diverse experience for a wide range of demographics – from puzzle-solving to skill-based challenges and even a scary adventure.
There’s something for everyone: kids, teens, and families!
Plus, stunning 5D effects like moving floors and wind blasts make guests feel the action around them. The 13×13 ft cube delivers a fully interactive experience without VR headsets needed! Just three projector screens, 1 hand-held controller per player, and a lot of high-quality visual effects.
Download the Product Presentation Brochure to learn more about QBIX!
With the holiday season just around the corner, we needed a special attraction that would be easy for operators to integrate. The fact that QBIX is unattended caught our attention.”
▪️ A guest-centric approach
Tip: You can’t deliver a great guest experience without a good mix of attractions. But just having a good mix of attractions won’t get you there either. It takes more.
RELATED: Create Amazing Moments in Your FEC | Guest Experience
Guests’ experience at Hype starts as soon as they Google the center’s location and find all the needed info. When guests enter the center, they can easily find their way around because the design is intuitive and the operators are friendly and always willing to help. Attractions like QBIX, which offers boarding with in-game characters, make the experience more authentic. Guests receive follow-up emails and offer for future visits, so the experience doesn’t end when they leave.
All these details make the guests’ experience one they want to repeat, over and over. And the word of mouth travels fast. Even faster if it’s backed by a promotional strategy.
▪️ An authentic promotional strategy
Having an online presence is a must. Gen Z uses Tik Tok more than Google to find information. That’s why working with popular influencers on Tik Tok has given us a boost we never expected. For instance, our influencers are just having fun at Hype and showing it to their followers.”
@hypebykiddo ✨Te surprindem mereu cu activități noi la Hype pentru că vrem să ai parte de cele mai tari experiențe! 🪐👾 Nu uita să-ți iei prietenii și să intrați în lumea QBIX! @bianca11c👽 #hypearena #virtualreality
RELATED: Digital Marketing Strategies for Family Entertainment Centers
QBIX: The Perfect Fit for Hype Attractions Mix
After half a year of running QBIX, Cristina and Vlad have concluded: QBIX fits like a puzzle piece into the Hype attraction mix. It’s a guest magnet that reaches over 2000 players a month!
When looking for the right attractions that would fit their mix, Hype had the following objectives:
Social and group fun
When guests spend time in entertainment centers, they want to connect and have fun with their friends, so multiplayer games that allow player interaction are usually their first option.
Fun and active game content
The best attractions come with fun and thrilling games, whose story and gaming experience stick with guests, making them want to come back again and again.
Easy to operate attractions
The more easy-to-use or unattended attractions are in a center, the more time operators have to improve guests’ experience. Even if an attraction offers a great experience, if it’s not practical, it won’t withstand high traffic.
Immersive technology
Guests expect more from the entertainment experience, so immersive technology can be a key differentiator. 5D effects can also greatly enhance the guest experience. Let them live the experience, not just play the game.
Small footprint attractions
For Hype being “the playground for everything”, the space has to be optimized to allow for the widest possible mix of attractions.
Technical support
What’s more frustrating than guests walking past an attraction because it doesn’t work? Technical support from the supplier must be 24/7.
QBIX ticked all of our boxes. It quickly became one of our most popular attractions. Certainly, it’s an excellent investment, it pays for itself!”
How QBIX benefits Hype
A crowd-pleaser that drives repeat plays
Like a guest magnet, QBIX mainly attracts customers aged 7-25. Reports show that QBIX attracts over 2000 players per month. 2 out of 5 guests have played more than 2 times. Most of them appreciate that it’s interactive and multiplayer.
Facilitate family and group fun
QBIX games are easy to understand so that the little ones can play them, but difficult to master so that the grown-ups are challenged as well. Parents can get involved in the gameplay with their kids instead of just watching.
Operator’s favorite attraction
Staff finds QBIX simple and easy to use. In short, all they have to do is open it up in the morning and close it up at the end of the day. They haven’t found any drawbacks yet.
It’s a unique gaming experience
QBIX games are fast-paced, interactive, and multi-sensory experiences that never cease to amaze guests. The moving floor and wind blasts are a real hit with players! The lack of VR headsets, or any type of hardware, except for a hand-held controller makes the experience more authentic, social and active.
Just one more thing about Cristina and Vlad. They opened Hype just before the outbreak of the panic. Despite all challenges, they have managed to open up a new niche of business in Romania. Their courage and passion are unstoppable and combined with the vision to be one step ahead of the customer, always looking for innovation in what already works, helps them to remain market leaders.
Where do they go from here?
International expansion and 2 new Hype Centers in Romania.
And yes, QBIX is in it.
Attending Amusement Expo?
Meet us and test QBIX, the Newest Unattended Multiplayer Game at the upcoming Amusement Expo International on March 29-30!
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