How Much Money Does My Soft Play Centre Make?
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ก.พ. 2025
- Have you ever wondered how much profit soft plays centres make? I own a chain of these, so in this video I thought it could be interesting to share a full breakdown of the revenues these businesses can make and how I have tweaked the model for success.
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Who am I?
My name is James Sinclair and I'm the founder and CEO of The Partyman Group of Companies. I started building my business when I was just 16 as a family entertainer after that I built up an entertainment agency, then moved into building a leisure and day nursery businesses. Today we operate a £30 million business which includes leisure, childcare, outdoor attractions, commercial property, arts and crafts manufacturing as well as one of the UK’s oldest Ice cream companies; The Rossi Ice Cream Company.
I don't know how I got here. I opened youtube to find some music to play in the background while I work, now I'm 15 minutes into evaluating whether a soft play empire is for me or not.
Lol “Welcome To TH-cam.”
Yeah, my fate too, very engaging presenter and entrepreneur, from humble acorns grow mighty trees. I'm gonna go find some assets to sweat.
Same. Never watched any content like this but wow it was good content
This particular pooh-trap has also captured me. Walking down a country lane, then BAM, hanging upside down from my leg from a TH-cam tree, building my soft-play empire.
Same here
No course being sold. No pie in the sky rubbish. Just valuable business insight. What a great channel.
Exactly, it is a true business mind.
He does sell a course but he doesn't push it on his channel.
I think I learned more about running in a business in 15 minutes watching your video than I did in 20 years working for a multinational corporation. Thank you for being so open, honest and frank about your business and what you've learned. I wish you every success.
I came to this video thinking it was an ad, wondering where the sell was. I left this video with knowledge and as a subscriber. Your delivery is exceptional, congratulations on your well deserved success
He has a
BUYING BUSINESS MASTERCLASS but yeah, not really selling it that hard, and that's great
He's a beanhead.
Of course its an advert
Just been looking at companies house, and checking out his portfolio of companies. He’s legit for sure and worth a few quid. He has 12 active directorships so this man knows what he is talking about. Hats off to the knowledge and sharing of info. Nice one.
27 active companies actually but companies house has me existing at 4 different people. Who knows why ! Thanks for your kind words.
@ where do you find the time? Even if all these were managed by a trusted and faithful manager, and with your YT channel you have to be doing 12-16hrs a day? Similar to Daniel Louisey from Asheville, another of my YT subs. Where is your work/life balance set James? Recreation, partner, relaxation etc? Serious question!!!
@@Grumpygrandad68 I do work every day, but I don’t manage any of it. It’s just not my skill set; never has been.
I’ve always employed people to do the managing. I am growing the companies they’re operating them.
I think “who can do this better than me not how can I do this”
@ do you find it difficult seeking the right trusted manager? What is retention like James? You must have such trust and treat them well, it’s the only way. Carrot or stick?
@@Grumpygrandad68you should listen to his podcast. Breaks down loads of info like this ‘Business Podcast with James Sinclair’
This is the best business video I've seen on YT by far. Nothing beats experience explained with no other interest than help and share knowledge. Coming from a startup founder, I've just realized how much great business can be made besides tech. Awesome James!!
This video makes me realise how much small businesses are being taxed to destruction.
VAT
National Insurance
Corporation Tax
And now the new budget...
Not sure why this video popped up on my feed, thought I’d give it a watch for a couple mins regardless. Ended up watching the entire video and subscribing. Your delivery and knowledge/information is valuable within any business, keep up the great work!
The value in these videos is insane, Thank you so much for telling us how it really is in business and giving us advice on how to improve the business model!!! This is why I watch every video you post on here. 🔥🔥🔥
Genius. Build an ecosystem of businesses where you own the entire value chain!
Mate, I just want to say thanks you for such NO BS content.
This is a really interesting topic. I never thought about how much a soft play center could make. It's great to see behind the scenes.
Absolutely. It’s surprising what goes on behind the curtain. There’s a lot of potential out there.
For sure. I’ve been thinking about ways to boost income. It seems like having a good plan is key.
Definitely. I heard about Larysa Caba. She seems to help people find ways to enhance their earnings with smart strategies.
That's a great point. I’ve heard good things about Larysa too. She seems to have a thing for guiding people in the right direction.
I know Larysa Caba. she trades for everyone I have come across. I met her twice at a meeting in Germany and after her lectures from Ella I had to personally ask her to be my financial advisor. she is definitely good.
I’m a business owner. I know and practice a lot of this stuff, but still found your video really interesting, especially as you’re in very different sectors. You should definitely go and talk at colleges or universities if you can find the time. I’d have loved to have someone like you come and talk to me when I was an 18-year-old business studies student.
I was totally sceptical about this fella when he popped up in my stream but having watched a bunch of videos now, all he does is give solid advice it’d take a decade+ to learn on your own. I can’t help but root for the guy, hope he continues to do well.
This is better than school and uni 😅 so much info, inspires new entrepreneurs, and shows numbers and what it takes to get into and run a business!!!
Can’t begrudge people like this a single bit of their success. 100% deserved and imagine what you’d learn if you could spend a week with them.
Haha. This is a question our parent friends ask ourselves. “How much do they make?” Can’t believe this was the first video recommended to me this morning. Wow, great communication, now subscribed. Thanks for the amazing content!
Channel and videos finally getting the recognition they deserve. Well done!
Started the video thinking this place looks familiar, only for you to confirm my suspicion😂Been to that exact same location when I was a kid roughly 15 years ago. Grown up now and finding out who the owner is a full circle moment😂Great video, appreciate the knowledge and also for giving me a good memory to look back to
I'm imagining how much your mind was blown by the owner being the guy who used to jump around and entertain the kids!
Clever man, well done on your success mate the UK needs more entrepreneurs
The comments of genuine praise (honestly) for this video is amazing. I learned soooooooo much
Thank you so much for sharing, we need more people like you in the UK!!!
I did the numbers on a soft play centre near me and realised it wasn't making much money at all and couldn't understand why they wouldn't add more functionality and services into the huge space. You sir have confirmed my worries and my ideas!
I normally run a mile from people on the internet giving business advice, but this was pretty cool.
Sounds like the day nursery combined with the play area is a recipe for success that you’ve found you essentially have a captive audience of kids who know full well that behind the wall of their day nursery is a huge play area and they all want to visit and they want to come and play
Yeah, go on, I'm now another Subscriber - your videos are incredibly watchable, clear advise, knowledge and informative. 👍👍👍 Very enjoyable and interesting indeed.
Most books repeat the same old advice, but Uncommon Paths to Wealth by Borlest is different. It’s filled with strategies that changed the way I think about success
As a parent I really appreciate soft plays. They are a god send thank you. 🙏
i love seeing successful entrepreneurship stories like this. people who dedicate their life and time to master a niche and know so much about it are geniuses in my eyes
So weird that this vid randomly popped up, me and the wife have talked about starting a similar business in our local area also doubling as a nursery, this vid was a great insight and might give us a bit more motivation to look into it more! Great Vid 👍👍
Literally had this chat last night too. Where do you live? I want to compete with you
I love this, real practical business advice explained in a straightforward way, no fluff, easy to grasp high level concepts. Thanks a lot!
My area used to have 4 of these playcentres now it's only got two, and one of them is opening and closing seems shakey. The one that's doing well is open late doing bowling, lazer tag, astropitch soccer etc. and is part of a national chain. The thing I saw cited as crushing them was insurance costs. Lots of news articles about 90k quotes. The particular clientele you get in these spots can be unusually litigious. I think taxes on these type of businesses in Ireland is quite favorable which is why so many farmers are incorporating petting zoo's or other tourism and leisure elements. Maybe insurance is more competitive in the UK we have a lot monopolies over here with insurers and banking.
This guy... This video is pure gold.
When you were talking it felt like it was me talking. I love that my thinking is becoming so alike to yours! Learnt alot from you! Looking forward to our podcast in Jan! The business has scaled a fair bit since I applied 👀
Here’s another idea for you. After the soft play closes, make part of the space available for dance or fitness groups, or stuff that requires a lot of space and ceiling height like areal yoga. So you can extend the hours per day it makes money with minimal overhead
Wow I didn't expect to watch a video as good as this today. First thing that sprung to my mind is my wife is qualified to own a day nursery!
What a great video, amazing insight into how this model works. Thank you for sharing
This is very informative. James speaks well and I’ve never been so interested in setting up a soft play business! 🙌🏻😂
I have no background in business and I found that absolutely fascinating! A great insight into how businesses work.
Your a great man to put such an effort in to share your experience with us!
New viewer, genuinely amazed by your content. I've just hit the subscribe button which is quite rare for me. Keep up the great work 👏👏👏
Welcome aboard!
One of my favourite channels ❤ thanks for another fantastic videos 😊
Some absolute business gems here, thank you
Youre brilliant mate. Really impressive delivery and invaluable knowledge
Fantastic video and what a guy! Really open and honest appraisal of the leisure and hospitality industry - well presented and nicely animated. Best of luck with the business and thank you for sharing your story.
You've got a new subscriber!
I’m waiting for the results of a national subsidy program and when i get the 100k i ll start a business. Thank you for the AMAZING i sights and ideas. It will impact the way i design the building in a modular way so that i can invest in phase 2 in a nursery business
Amazing video and hats off to the guy who is so generous with his insights! Thank you. One question… if a nursery is making £200k profit per year does this not show how broken the system is in the UK. I get how he is saving a fortune on business rates, utilities etc which is a really smart move. Anyway thanks again… brilliant video and such a great communicator!
Came across this today!
You are a super guy 😅
Here’s to making money 🍺 😁👍
Really clever James, I remember seeing you at the Basildon party man world on stilts 😂
Used to work at one and the owner said if they had their time again they wouldn't do it, because the risk of getting sued for injuries is so high. A kid bumped their head and won £180k (company at fault), which was really tight on the business.
A woman claimed she fell down the stairs but cctv proved that as false. So i think he was stressed more about getting sued absorbing funds rather than turnover
No win, no fee legal vultures are the end of many companies...my dad folded his business partly because of predatory lawyers letters
Great video. Well presented. Highly informative. I love seeing people doing well. This man deserves all his success
I was at the soft play with my kids and I was wondering how the business works then I stumbled across this beauty of a video. Not are you a great businessman you are a great teacher. Please consider teaching kids in school as Philanthropy.
Brilliant video. Previously worked for a leisure chain (trampoline parks) but in head office. Wish I had watched this video beforehand.
Great video, good content and well made. I have always wondered how much money soft play centres make, as I do with every business I encounter. I enjoy learning about the business “hacks” that mean some businesses thrive and others die in the same market.
Thanks for sharing your wisdom
Love your transparency in the businesses you are involved in 👍❤️
I absolutely love videos like this! I hadn’t really considered the economies of scale aspect of it. As a service based business based upon me as the service provider I can retain a much higher amount of the profits but it’s not as scaleable if just my time for money.
I love your piano jazz hands, reminds me of the bloke on the house show.
This is a fantastic video James. Great honesty. You are a skilled businessman.
Interesting, soft play centre locally to me declined dramatically over a 5 year period. Started off great, was packed most of the time, had all the new mod cons and air guns etc. Then after a few years, things were breaking and ball pits were becoming sparse. This is the bit on your graph where the place needed fixing/replacing items/investment. Unfortunately, all that happened was the balls got topped up and then the customers dipped, the place got worse until almost everything was in need of repair.
They just shut up recently, took a load of money off people for birthday parties and ran off into the sunset. Was actually disgusting really, they called up people to get money upfront for the upcoming parties booked, knowing it would close shortly.
Great insight, glad you painted the picture so clearly, you certainly know your stuff. I feel well equipped to take something like this on now, but sadly lack the dedication to submit so much energy into a hospitality/leisure business, fair play to you.
Thank you for putting in the ground work and sharing your knowledge
Wow, if all your videos are this good, this is another revenue stream set up as well I guess! Really happy this popped up on my recommendations!
This is really interesting! Thanks for uploading!
maybe there's some way to incorporate ads to this business (you can also run your other business commercials here)? Do you consider a franchise model? Creation of merchandise? TH-cam content?
New TH-cam feature seems to be working for you and other, you go to check notifications and by magic, its swiped to a new video. Very random. However you've mentioned some really good ideas to keep my mind fresh.
Impressive stuff. Don't think I would have expected a play centre to be the basis of a business empire.
Pure Gold
This is great stuff. Went to a few kids parties when you were personally doing them and they were hilarious!
The day nursery on the playsite is a great play!
Thanks for this. We are a social enterprise/not for profit, potentially looking at opening a softplay as part of our development - so some great info.
Excellent video. I run a B2B Ltd co... but have always wondered about softplays. Fab content, definite subscriber.
Morning James.
I’ve been waiting for you to do a video on this subject as it’s something I’ve been interested in doing for years.Id like to have a soft play and themed mini golf next to each other possibly sharing the kitchen,we have nothing round our way like this.Unfortunately I’ve spent last ten years being busy earning a living in the plumbing industry so never got round to turn ing my dream into reality.I will be coming to you course next year so hopefully I can grow my plumbing business and step back from the tools allowing me to follow me dreams.
Quality video, my mum had a soft play business but didn't have the location or scale.
Skipping middle men: Buying direct from Manufacturers in China, India etc is great but they will still be using middle men, generally you're moving the problem around and the manufacture will charge you a fee to sort that problem on top of the middle mans margin, which is hid in the invoice. Might be worth re-looking at :)
What an excellent, insightful and well delivered video. New subscriber gained.
I'd love to see you make a video on how much you think building a business is down to luck, how much to strategy & what these things do to aid or hinder your risks/diversification.
Plenty on the channel around that. I think luck helps only if you don’t look for it.
@@JamesSinclairEntrepreneur Thank you
Outstanding video, i learn more from these than any business course or degree. Thanks for sharing
No ego. I like that sir.
Really insightful thanks. Do you have any videos on the specific systems and processes that you put in place for your businesses?
It seems like that is the most important aspect of scaling, so would be great to see a video on it
Thank you again for a valuable lesson learned!!
Interestingly, I was tempted to open one of these recently. I ended up buying a lodge instead to rent out.
Great explanation and really smart work 👍
This was fascinating! Thank you!
Would be great to see a video from you, James, regarding company structures, holding companies, LLP, etc etc. When would you need to do any of these, the benefits, etc.
@@WeixDraqz we discuss this stuff more on my podcast channel.
I work for company that make and supply fitters with netting, rope cargo nets, v bridges/step bridges spiders webs, buoy swings etc..
We are so busy at the moment.
Love my job.
Nice one James, love the level of detail 💪
This was actually a really interesting video, feel like I actually learned something. Thanks
One of your best videos. Simply superb! Ty
Enjoy your videos James. One thing about this particular example though is that the day nursery is a completely different business, different staff, different space, so there aren't really any shared costs in running the 2 businesses. A better example, if staying within food, might be using a restaurant to create pre-prepped meals or a product that could be sold wholesale, so using the same location and staff to run the additional revenue stream. Enjoyed the video though, it gives people a great way to think about using their existing overheads to increase revenue.
Heating costs and rent/mortgage costs are presumably 'free'. Sounds like a good fit. Now he just has to think about how it can make money in the early mornings and evenings - maybe show movies or a pub or fitness center for adults whilst kids are playing?
Rent is charged per sq ft. So dividing the space doesn’t make it free, it just means it’s shared, but the cost is paid by one of the businesses. Same for heating. Day nurseries require a lot of space, def not free. This particular example is not an additional revenue stream, it’s a separate business entirely.
Some staff would be different, but the kitchen, for example, would be the same and share its costs across the two businesses. The kitchen wouldn’t need to be any bigger because it would be used at different times.
during the regular school day from the nursery, then at weekends/holidays for the soft play.
Really enjoyed this. Brilliant video.
So starting with a play centre-> nursery > catering > party supplier>wholesale 😅guess I have my New Year’s resolution cut out
Party man world was such an iconic location as a kid. Crazy to come across the guy thst made it randomly
The art of good business is being a good middleman
Interesting video this, no idea why it came up on my feed but I enjoyed it!
This guy is the man!
Love his confidence in front of the camera. Go on son
What an amazing video: thanks for the transparency.
A friend of mine setup one of these about 10-12 years ago, rented the space and used half of it for soft play/cafe and half as a 3g football pitch for multiple revenue streams. They were doing really well including managing to buy the warehouse until Covid hit. They had huge issues with the banks and saw no way out but to sell it. As a business it had very little value, most of the value was the property which I think is now used to store BMWs. So what could have been a fantastic business and a great nest egg for later life basically withered and died into nothing in the blink of an eye.
If it was in Kent, I nearly bought that.
@JamesSinclairEntrepreneur It was Tiny Town near Maidstone. So possibly the one!
Nice profit on the nursery, so many are on the line
Not sure if it was the same in UK (I imagine it was) but here in Ireland, a few years back, insurance costs for soft play centers skyrocketed over night, just near killing the industry in Ireland.
Would love to hear thoughts on how V.I. could support solving a problem when it's entirely out of your control. 🤔
Love this Jamie, as a young inspiring entrepreneur, this is very interesting. I'm also from Basildon and would love to be apart of this business to help it grow. I always wondered about the costs and margins on this type of business.
Video idea - what did you organise and what did the business plan look like for you to get the bank to loan a 21 year old £300,000
That’s definitely been covered here on the channel. Watch my 0 to 1m video ( if I had to start again)
@ will check it out 👍🏻
Prior to the 08 financial crash, such finance was achievable. In today's world there is not a bank who would provide that finance to a 21 year old. Or anybody for that matter unless of course they already had cash or assets to act as collateral.
Walk into a bank asking for £300k and a business plan and you will be laughed back out of the door, sadly.
@@liamc5783 Thank you boomers! The young will never own a home and we will be happy.