Chuck E. Cheese is the world’s largest family entertainment chain brand with over 600 locations in over 16 different countries/territories and counting.
The CEC Entertainment brand was founded in San Jose in 1977 by Nolan Bushnell, a founding father of the video game industry and founder of Atari. The brand was named Pizza Time Theatre at the time. After accidentally stumbling upon the rat costume that has made the brand so famous, the marketing team decided upon the name Chuck E. Cheese, and adopted it as the mascot. The Pizza Time Theatre name stuck until 1990, when the brand simply became Chuck E. Cheese’s Pizza, and finally became Chuck E. Cheese in 1994. In February 2014, CEC Entertainment was acquired by Apollo Global Management, and later that year, acquired its competitor, Peter Piper Pizza.
Chuck E. Cheese is a leader in family dining and creating a wholesome environment, delivers a kid-friendly atmosphere and feature a broad array of entertainment for kids including arcade games and skill-oriented games, rides and live entertainment shows – with the opportunity for guests to win tickets and redeem prizes such as toys, plush dolls, and branded merchandise of the brand mascot, Rick Rat. There is consistent demand for wholesome entertainment and family dining in all types of macroeconomic environments, and the combination of entertainment and dining with a strong value proposition creates a differentiated experience that appeals to guests. The brand is a leader in the food and drink space and providing an experience in entertainment.
The industry has undergone a rapid evolution, and Chuck E. Cheese is leading the way to serve new generations. The brand is a forward-thinking franchise of family entertainment centers that are consistently raising the bar in gameplay technology, entertainment, birthday parties, and culinary innovation. With over 2 billion game plays – it has the expertise to match demographic profiles of a location with the right games mix.
Chuck E. Cheese offers turnkey branding tailored for local markets, an attractive ROI, and leads the world in game knowledge, sourcing, and innovation starting with our Play Pass/E-ticket technology.
Holding over 1 million birthdays every year, Chuck E. Cheese is a leading kids’ party franchise boasting a 99 per cent brand awareness in family entertainment.
Internationally, the brand has adapted its concept to cater to local cultures and customs for an improved experience for guests in all areas of the world.
How does the Chuck E. Cheese franchise model work?
The business model has been carefully created to offer lasting bonding experiences for families and franchise partners worldwide. It’s a formula that works to spread joy while bringing in profits. Current franchise partners have found success and continue to expand throughout their territories and often adding new territories to their development plans.
CEC Entertainment’s Chuck E. Cheese offers a variety of footprints ranging between 750 – 1,400 plus square meters for in-line, mall, and stand-alone locations.
For select markets, the pizza restaurant also offers a master franchising model that allows for a more rapid and profitable growth plan for qualified franchise partners. The master franchise partner needs to meet certain qualifications prior to being authorized to begin sub franchising.
What kind of franchisees are Chuck E. Cheese looking for?
To maintain the brand’s reputation and to structure a successful partnership, CEC Entertainment looks for the below criteria in potential partners who meet the following requirements:
- A resident of the country to be developed and have knowledge of operating businesses including local regulations, real estate, and local cultures
- Have a passion for the brand, commitment, and a drive to succeed
- Strong leadership skills
- Strong business and financial acumen
- Good interpersonal and administrative skills
- An entrepreneurial mindset
- Capital to grow
Existing franchisees who have experience owning/operating businesses in the real estate, entertainment, arcade industries or large multi-restaurant groups in their local markets and are looking to add an exciting highly profitable brand to their portfolio.
Current franchise partners discovered that Chuck E Cheese offered an opportunity to diversify their investment portfolio in a market with little competition. A number of our existing franchise partners have since expanded their territory and continue to develop annually through both additional franchised location openings or sub franchising.
The quick-service restaurant brand is searching for multi-unit and master franchise partners in available markets across the globe.
What kind of support can Chuck E. Cheese franchisees expect?
Chuck E. Cheese offers prospective franchise partners an in-depth discovery day to walk through the franchise model, support system, and more. During the pandemic, the brand had also developed an online version of its in-person discovery day that helps work around travel restrictions.
After signing a letter of intent, the international support team will work with potential partners in aligning their business plan for the brand’s franchising model in preparation for executing a development agreement.
Upon signing a development agreement, new franchisees will work with the international support team in several different phases to structure the development and launch of the business in their local market. This includes training/support in the following:
Brand manager/Owner training
- Menu & pricing structure guidance
- Turnkey new market opening guide
- Creative asset library
- Four seasonal global campaigns
- Campaign guidance and evaluation
- Marketing team hiring support
- Marketing & advertising outlet support
Operational training & support
- Coordinates operational projects to achieve optimal work production across the board
- Provides an updated client, customer, contractor and supplier management system
- Assist the business operations manager in P&L management
- Consults on expenses and budgets
- Provide recommendations and suggestions for increased performance
- Assists in training support as necessary
- Communicates procedural changes
Other ongoing support
Chuck E. Cheese offers ongoing support in the following areas: real estate, site selection, architecture, market mapping, lease terms, project management, supply chain, menu, pricing, operations, ongoing training, marketing, advertising, games support/ buying, content creation, and financial analysis.
Why should entrepreneurs go with Chuck E. Cheese?
Chuck E. Cheese benefits from strong and consistent demand for its entertainment offerings from families with children ages two to 12 who desire high quality, safe, clean, convenient and affordable ways to spend time and make memories with their children outside of the home. Chuck E Cheese venues feature an open and bright setting, which creates an inviting atmosphere for kids and a good line of sight for parents.
Each venue includes approximately 50 to 75 games, rides and attractions for kids of all ages, including classic skill games, such as arcade basketball, skee-ball and Whack-a-Mole, along with the ticket blaster machine where birthday guests can grab as many tickets as possible in 30 seconds. The menu features fresh, hand-made pizza, boneless and bone-in chicken wings, desserts and beverages. Chuck E Cheese, the iconic, energetic mouse mascot, performs music and dance shows and interacts with our guests, driving strong brand recognition.
Chuck E. Cheese is an opportunity to expand an entertainment investment portfolio or diversify an existing portfolio of varying investments.
The quick-service restaurant brand is unique in the market place offering a successful mixture of world-recognized entertainment, innovative games, premium quality food, and memorable parties.
With world-class support from the ground up from professionals with years of marketing and operational knowledge, turnkey branding, and an attractive ROI, Chuck E. Cheese is a strong investment choice in any market.
Latin America Market #1
- Average sales – $1,252,569 – profit 26.2 per cent
- Capex: $1.6m
Latin America Market #2
- Average Sales – $1,583,273 – profit 29.5 per cent
- Capex – $1.8m
Middle East Region
- Average Sales – $2,887,000 – profit 42.75 per cent
- Capex – $2.6m
DISCLAIMER: The foregoing information are averages only and are not guarantees of performance. Your experience may be different. Costs of construction, operation (such as: labor, goods, inventory and equipment) may differ and depend upon various conditions, such as local and current economics, demographics, etc. You should consult your own economic experts and legal advisors for more information.
Is Chuck E. Cheese targetting any areas for expansion?
Chuck E. Cheese’s franchise opportunities are available in several Europe, Middle East and LATAM markets, with its existing franchise partners. The brand is also targeting China, the Philippines, Russia, Turkey & Brazil. For additional markets please see click on the link below.