THE COUPLE AT THE AUSTRALIAN SMALL BUSINESS CHAMPIONSHIP AWARDS
and the engagement and reach, all without the legion of followers they have now, blew them away. The transformation of the entire complex has been a mammoth job, which includes a complete upgrade of the bowling lanes, the introduction of TV screens, a recently completed karaoke room and introducing family friendly live music. The redevelopment has been a $1 million dollar project, but one that has been more than worthwhile. Late last year Devonport Tenpin Bowl was awarded the Telstra Best of Business Award for Outstanding Growth in Tasmania, just after the centre celebrated its 40th anniversary. Then in April this year Mark and Kerryn clinched a prestigious Australian Small Business Championship Award for Sport and Recreation, as well as being named a finalist in the Business Growth Category. “We realised how lucky we are because when we bought the business, it wasn’t doing so well and the books weren’t looking overly great. They were doable, but that was about it. We doubled our projected revenue in the first 12 months and then showed more growth again this year,” Kerryn says.
“We went from a business that was turning over about $400k a year and in our first year we turned over $1.2 million. That’s incredible growth and it’s what led us to enter some of these awards. With Mark’s background in marketing… he knew you can leverage those to get publicity and the more people who are talking about your business, the more likely they are to come through the door.” Given the amount of time and effort that has already been poured into their business, you could forgive Kerryn and Mark for taking a breather once the escape rooms are up and running. However they refuse to rest of their laurels, continuing to explore ways to enhance the customer experience. “Our intention is in the front of the building there’s a space that we’re going to convert into a cafe so people can just go there to eat and drink. We want to create a reasonable cafe style menu,” Mark says. “We’re licensed, which helps and has brought in new demographic, but introducing good coffee, good food, that way people can either just pick up and take it away or while the kids are bowling, the parents have a quieter spot to sit. That’s the goal. Food and Beverage is our weakness, that’s why we’re starting to lean on others
39 Tasmanian Hospitality Review June/July Edition
Made with FlippingBook interactive PDF creator