Franchise Pool Hall vs Self Owned? Who, Why and What

[TxBullDog]

I am curious about current owners and your preferred preference when starting a pool hall business. What are the advantages of a franchise vs. doing it all on your own to start a pool hall? What franchise pool hall do you think has the best advantages? What are the pros and cons and a reasonable budget? What's the return on your investment and opex for a room with 10 to 30 tables? What did you do correctly and wish you did not do the first two years of operation? Any help or ideas are appreciated.

 

[garczar]

What rooms are franchised? you in Texas? Clicks and Fast Freddies still in business? Those are only two i can think of. Is 'Slicks Willies' still around? I think one would be better off self-owning. Not a operator but i know people who have done franchises in other areas and they weren't real happy with the overall deal.

 

[Island Drive]

Large parking area.
Close to hotels.
Room Layout.
There are no franchises.

Only one I've come across in my years that had a Perfect Layout/building design/interior was Corner Pocket Pool Rooms.
Designed, and laid out by former Pro Frank McGowan with an investor.
These buildings also, were designed for handicap/wheelchair players.

 

[Zerksies]

I would rather do it myself, Startup costs on getting into a franchise is ridicilous, plus royalites you have to play. I would rather invest that money into the business then being told what to do by a franchise.

 

[book collector]

I can't think of any advantage to buying a franchise pool room.
In response to the second part , as Island Drive mentioned, one of the biggest things people don't think of when opening a pool room, is if there is enough parking.
Usually there is not. It always seems like there is plenty, but then if the place picks up business you are competing for the spots with other tenants.

 

[garczar]

Franchise is great when you're McDonald's/Chickfilet/Bueno/etc. There you have a huge client base ready to buy your shit. Pool is a niche activity and going the franchise route, imo, would be the wrong move.

 

[NYC]

You have to sell alcohol to make any pool room viable here in 2024. Here in Houston these folks have stepped up to the plate and produced a product that stays busy all of the time. Wood's Hideway has 21 8' Diamond tables that cost a flat rate of 13.00 to play on, no time limit or number of players. Free ping pong and darts are thrown in, along with modern, clean restrooms, which is important feature if you actually want women to work and visit the establishment regularly. Woodys is making their money on the alcohol sales and the food, pool, free ping, darts, 1 golf simulators and 1 baseball pitching simulator, plus TVs are in the mix also to keep you in inside their doors for as long as possible.

Woody's Hideaway | Premier Gaming Bar & Sports Destination

Experience the ultimate gaming and sports destination at Woody's Hideaway! Enjoy classic games, delicious bites, and good times.

woodyshideaway.com

 

[sbrownn]

Are there other possible option(s) like some kind of lease agreement on tables where table owner gets all the money paid for playing time and maybe some flat fee for table maintenance, and then business owner gets all money from food and drinks towards their balance sheet?

 

[JasonATX]

What rooms are franchised? you in Texas? Clicks and Fast Freddies still in business? Those are only two i can think of. Is 'Slicks Willies' still around? I think one would be better off self-owning. Not a operator but i know people who have done franchises in other areas and they weren't real happy with the overall deal.

In Texas, there are the various "Eddies" and Slick Willies. In Central Texas at least, most of the Fast Eddies or their other brands have Diamond tables or about to get them.

Clicks and Rack Daddy's are down to just a few locations in Texas, maybe one each. Slicks is down to 6 locations total. The one in Austin is going to have to move or shut down in a couple years. The property they are on got sold a couple years back.

 

[njrackless]

That's a great idea! It would really help billiard lovers become successful pool hall owners by providing a proven business model and support. Franchises offer established branding and training, making it easier to start, while going solo gives more creative freedom but comes with higher risks. Starting costs can vary widely, and it’s important to do good research and learn from experienced owners to avoid common mistakes.

 

[Fatboy]

I didn’t read this thread

I’m a biz man, I know pool.

There are no franchises, Bwick had a deal in the 60’s where they would sell you all the equipment and had a customer support plan and general ideas for room owners. There used to be a Bwick produced video from the 60’s that was 8-10 minutes long describing that factory program. It worked for a while. The channel that video was on got deleted a few years ago. I’m sure somewhere online that video is floating around. It’s pretty cool.

To open a profitable pool room in the current economy-good luck. Luck is the most essential part of a successful pool room these days.


If you’re in a city with a strong pool culture like Atlanta or Sacramento there’s already pool rooms there. It would be a scary proposition to open up near one of those rooms and take a shot.

In LA for example there hasn’t been pool rooms for 25 years or longer in most areas as the rent and lack of customers just makes it an impossible biz to run.

Buying a building doesn’t make sense as any tenant will out perform any pool room. So buying a building and putting a dead biz in it is like adding cancer to your body. Bad idea.

It’s a sad truth that in America pool just doesn’t work very well in most areas. Which is why there’s no franchise ideas. If there was, I’d sell the idea myself as I’ve been around pool 40 years and biz almost as long. But I’m not gonna throw people under the bus. Opens a hotdog or pizza joint and make $.

Best
Fatboy <——-not a negative person, just keeping it real. The market shows that as well. Clicks in Dallas had a great formula 35 years ago……

 

[muskyed]

Open a Culvers. The average Culvers owner makes $514,000 per year, 2024 figures.

 

[garczar]

Open a Culvers. The average Culvers owner makes $514,000 per year, 2024 figures.

You talking Culvers dairy/food places? Those are the nuts. My sis lives in Wisc. and i love going to Culvers.

 

[muskyed]

Yup this place. Great burgers, fries, and strawberry malts. Reasonable prices also.

 

[7stud]

Which is why there’s no franchise ideas.

Hooters Pool & Brew

$45/person all you can drink and play til closing. Table dances every hour. Start by opening 1,500 stores across the nation with the goal of opening 4,500 stores. If the first 1,500 struggle, change the name to Jersey Red's Pool & Brew and charge $45/person for all the subs you can eat, brew you can drink, and pool you can play until closing. You'll become a billionaire!

I'm an idea man. (Hmm...feed mayo to tunafish??!)

 

[Fatboy]

Hooters Pool & Brew

$45/person all you can drink and play til closing. Table dances every hour. Start by opening 1,500 stores across the nation with the goal of opening 4,500 stores. If the first 1,500 struggle, change the name to Jersey Red's Pool & Brew and charge $45/person for all the subs you can eat, brew you can drink, and pool you can play until closing. You'll become a billionaire!

I'm an idea man. (Hmm...feed mayo to tunafish??!)

Let’s do it!!!

 

[Hungarian]

You're better off opening an Ice House and buying one old beat up Gold Crown. Stick it out on the covered patio. Open the pockets up to 7". Advertise free pool. If you get a zillion people wanting to play pool add another beat to shit Gold Crown. Tighten up the pockets to 6.5" for the better players.

 

[Hungarian]

Hooters Pool & Brew

$45/person all you can drink and play til closing. Table dances every hour. Start by opening 1,500 stores across the nation with the goal of opening 4,500 stores. If the first 1,500 struggle, change the name to Jersey Red's Pool & Brew and charge $45/person for all the subs you can eat, brew you can drink, and pool you can play until closing. You'll become a billionaire!

I'm an idea man. (Hmm...feed mayo to tunafish??!)

There used to be a place in Houston called "Ye Olde Brew and Cue". So I think you should change the name. Other than that, great business plan!!

 

[Hungarian]

You're better off opening an Ice House and buying one old beat up Gold Crown. Stick it out on the covered patio. Open the pockets up to 7". Advertise free pool. If you get a zillion people wanting to play pool add another beat to shit Gold Crown. Tighten up the pockets to 6.5" for the better players.

I thought my comment was hilarious. Glad someone else finally did too. Thought I might be slipping..

 

[ChrisinNC]

I am curious about current owners and your preferred preference when starting a pool hall business. What are the advantages of a franchise vs. doing it all on your own to start a pool hall? What franchise pool hall do you think has the best advantages? What are the pros and cons and a reasonable budget? What's the return on your investment and opex for a room with 10 to 30 tables? What did you do correctly and wish you did not do the first two years of operation? Any help or ideas are appreciated.

Owning a pool room is a labor of love for an addicted pool player desiring that lifestyle, but not in it to get rich. A franchise is out, as you want the control to make all the decisions and you’d better get it right.

Location is critical, knowing your market. The majority of your sales will be food and alcohol, preferably both. The hours that you put in as the owner/manager will be long for many years until you are well established and running smoothly.

Having the absolute best equipment - tables, cloth, balls, lighting, seating, etc and maintaining it all in top condition is an absolute must. Your customers need to always feel this is the best around. Keeping the entire place clean, especially the tables, flooring and restrooms.

Hiring good people, good employees, treating and compensating them well is a must. They need to see on a daily basis that you put in the hard work more than any of them.