It's a thought I've often had, actually, that there's a niche in the market for a social gathering place for gamers - some sort of "new arcade." But I do wonder if it's even possible now, with socialising over the internet, and various other methods.

I tried to do it six years ago, and in trying to do it, I learned why there are so few gathering places. The reason I never did start that gaming centre was simply that I could not get a lease anywhere in the entire Bay Area of California. You'd think that might be because of some stigma surrounding games but really, it was unusual to even get to the point where that stigma even mattered. It seems that people who rent commercial property care about these things:

1) Have you run a retail business before? No matter what in the world you're trying to do, this matters a lot.
2) Are you Starbucks or Jamba Juice? If so, you are in. Not a joke.
3) Are you a cell phone store? Also, instant approval.

But the kiss of death is something called "assembly space." That is the type of space where people are expected to go to your business and, gasp, stay there for a while. That means taking up extra parking spaces, getting a permit with the city so the police know to devote extra resources there... No-one wants to deal with assembly space. In fact, outdoor malls that have a grocery store are almost always in the situation where the grocery store pays the most rent and can demand things. Specifically, they demand that no businesses in the same mall are allowed assembly space (as it would take up their parking lot.) The bottom line is that American land owners basically don't want people to socialize because it's bad for business. Why can't you open a nice cell phone store? Speaking of Starbucks, though, I followed their company history for awhile, and the founding of the Starbucks you know today is actually very relevant to our discussion.


Do tell...

That company originally sold coffee in bags, not brewed coffee in cups. This guy named Howard Schultz sold supplies to various retailers and he noticed a company in Seattle bought more of this certain coffee equipment than anyone else, so he went to investigate and found out they bought so much coffee equipment because they were damn good at making coffee and everyone around knew it. He ended up leaving his job to work there. Fast-forward a bit and Mr. Schultz went to Europe and he experienced first-hand how people drink coffee there - in a social setting. Baristas know your name, they give you free drinks if you're new and help you find what you like. Coffee houses are a culture, rather than something with a stigma, and Howard called this "the third place." People need a "third place" away from home and work, so they can relax. It took Howard a lot of effort to prove this idea could work here. It's a tangled story where he finally had to leave Starbucks to do it, then start another company called Il Giorno, then buy the name Starbucks from his previous employer! Anyway, he became CEO of what you know as Starbucks and he certainly proved his point beyond any doubt. Coffee drinkers have a third place. For the most part, gamers do not. The third place was the core concept of my gaming center, the one that never happened because apparently retail space owners want anything but a third place. (Laughs)


So was there any particular way you were planning on incorporating the third place in?

It's just the recognition that that is the purpose of the business, and I think a lot of decisions flow from that. I mean, it's not about equipment. Sure, you need good equipment, but it's about making it a relaxing place to hang out, so every detail from what kind of furniture, to the logistics of how people pay has to take into account "this is a place to hang out."

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