Before I pull the trigger... am I making a mistake?

[WSBC]

Much safer to go with Diamonds rather than Rasson tables, for many reasons including resale value. Sorry, but I don’t know what black ball is?

If you are going for family friendly with no alcohol, you’d better plan on having a strong food operation with a hood, as that will account for the majority of your $ sales. I mean it must be good enough to draw in numerous regulars to eat there multiple times a week who may never play pool there. To do that, you need to have a really good experienced full-time cook/chef that offers daily specials every day.

We’ve made our poolroom work for 30 years with that concept, but it’s not easy. The labor situation these days which you’ll need with a grill operation (servers and cooks) is a constant challenge, and comes at a considerable cost, as these days even young employees expect to make at least $15-$20 / hour. You’d better love the lifestyle, because there are certainly better investments out there.

We are getting the Rasson tables at cost and will be the local dealer for them.

For Blackball, look under the English Pool forum and there is a thread on Blackball that will tell you all about it. They are trying to get it to catch on in the states. My business partner is bringing them in on his dime, so it won't cost the business anything.

The plan is to have a smoker and offer smoked foods along with traditional bar foods.

 

[insidesp.in]

100% you are doing the wrong thing. If you think its as black and white as you are describing it, it most certainly is not. The costs of things are so ridiculous right now and there are so many entities reaching in your pocket for money you wouldn't believe it. I hope you can find a better way to spend 260k. Just being honest.

 

[WSBC]

I can't find a spot to lease in my area right now. So I'm going to put this on the shelf for awhile, probably until early '27. We'll see where we're at.

 

[U-Turn]

I can't find a spot to lease in my area right now. So I'm going to put this on the shelf for awhile, probably until early '27. We'll see where we're at.

I'm curious, have you checked your local banks for CD interest rates and terms?
With a LB of cash you should be able to find something that includes High Rate Returns.

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[U-Turn]

(i'd rather play than own)
Swin in the Ocean with an Anchor,
and then......
Try passing the Anchor to the next Swimmer.
(i'd rather play than own)

U-turn

 

[Bigdaddi44]

As a new owner with just over 2 years in the business, I'm going to suggest you add about 25% to your budget. I started with about the same amount and I'm currently running at a deficit. For you food service and yes I would suggest food. Depending on your customer base it may not need to be the best thing on the block but it should make people happy that it's good. You could look at Turbo-Chef Ventless Ovens and Perfect-Fry Ventless Fryers. One of our top sellers is fries and tenders. You get them par cooked and frozen. We run a convection oven and do personal sized pizzas. The goal is to make you stay and if you have decent food they don't need to leave. As far as leagues...remember leagues don't pay table time so your only income will be from you food and beverage service. Most league night run approx. 4 hours and depending on the size could take up half of your tables. I also if you go with several leagues you check with the operators for scheduling. If you have a team that plays BCA on Monday night and you have APA on Monday, you may have a issue with getting players in your room. In house leagues are great. They are usually there to have fun, they spend more money on food and drinks and best of all they're not pool players. Pool players don't spend money. People that like to play pool, DO!
I'm not going to tell you not to do it but just think about where and how your going to make it work. Mentally, Physically and Mentally.