Part A Research
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
CRYPTIC ADVENTURES ESCPAE ROOMS (CAER) WANT TO EXPAND THEIR BUSINESS
Overall objective: To expand the business
SMART objective 1:
20% increase in escape room bookings in the next 2 weeks, this will increase popularity of CAER
and bring in more revenue for the business. Leading to an increase in profitability which can be
reinvested for expansion, which is what the business owners want to do
30% increase in Instagram followers for CAER within the next month, this is advantageous for
the CAER because there will be increase brand awareness as more followers will repost and
comment to boost their algorithm so it reaches more potential customers, this will gain the
business a larger social media following and lead to more customers booking slots for the escape
room, resulting in increased sales revenue.
15% increase in high income consumers booking slots for escape rooms in the next 5 weeks,
high income consumers have more disposable income so they are more likely to buy additional
merchandise after the escape room, such as pictures and CAER hoodies and merchandise, this will
bring in more revenue for the business and result in higher profit margins being met. This is
beneficial for CAER because it will enable them to meet their overall objective, expanding the
business if they reinvest enough profit for expansion.
MARKET RESEARCH
Link EVERYTHING back to the bicycle shop at all times
Market data:
The market for escape rooms had grown rapidly over the past few years, the trends for escape
room came about in 2020-21 and the market for it is around £50-80m. According to statistics, 68%
of people have visited an escape room at least once in 2019. They are extremely common in the
United Kingdom, demonstrating the game's popularity. The market is fragmented, with only a few
store operators having more than 5–6 locations. The majority of operators only have one to three
rooms per branch. There were 1138 companies in August 2018, and there are 1592 in December
2019, indicating a 40 percent rise. There has also been a 23% rise in escape room companies
between 2018-19, and a 40% increase in estimated market value.
Moreover, seeing that the escape room marketing is constantly growing, this shows there is room
to enter the market successfully and potentially become one of the market leaders. There will be
competition for the CAER to expand the business as the 10 largest operators in the escape room
have approximately 25% of the market.
Target market:
A lot of families use escape rooms so this makes up a large portion of the target market, usually
they are not low income as they are reasonably pricey. According to Ken Ferguson, the main
demographic group is 25-35 and bookings are predominantly made for the evenings on weekdays
and spread throughout the day on weekends. Corporate groups usually bring larger groups and fill
up spare slots that are available, so they are welcome a lot of the time as they bring in extra
revenue for escape room businesses such as Clue HQ, if CAER can bring in corporate groups this
will increase their sales by a significant amount.
, Part A Research
Competitors:
As of December 2019, there are 521 escape venues and 355 businesses in the market. One of the
main UK competitors in the escape room market is Competitors Clue HQ, they have escape rooms
all over the country from Glasgow, Somerset and Birmingham which is why they are one of the
market leaders. Furthermore, some escape rooms do not offer many scenarios whereas Clue HQ
offers a variety ranging from Doctor Who to space themed ones. Clue HQ have had over 6000 5-
star reviews on TripAdvisor and are known for delivering excellent customer service. This
highlights the positive impact TripAdvisor has on Clue HQ and suggests that CAER should take into
account the benefits TripAdvisor could have on the business. Constant praise and reviewing allows
CAER to identify and analyse their strengths and weaknesses so they can know what to improve
on. High volume of 4–5-star reviews will stand out to potential consumers and will more likely
purchase a slot at CAER rather than competitors who do not have TripAdvisor or do not have very
good reviews, strengthening CAER’s brand image.
SWOT
Strengths:
A strength is that there are a variety of themes for an escape room that CAER can expand on, they
can do a a popular TV show theme such as Stranger Things or Money Heist, this will entice those
who watch these shows and bring in more customers, increasing sales revenue gradually. If CAER
do this successfully then their brand will become known for being the escape room company that
does TV themed escape rooms, strengthening their brand image. Therefore, helping them meet
their objective of a 15% increase in high income consumers booking slots in the next 5 weeks.
Another strength is that puzzles and clues constantly change, CAER will not just keep the same
puzzle and same theme for the whole time, they will change it around, so it is something fresh for
regular customers and even new customers. This will increase enjoyment of the escape room
users as they will not become bored, meaning that there will be an increase in positive reviews via
TripAdvisor which will increase brand awareness, gradually meeting their objective of a 30%
increase in Instagram followers within the next month.
Weaknesses:
Escape rooms are very difficult, even on easy difficulty and some ranging in difficulty in general,
which is why if a lot of consumers who book an escape room who do not have good critical
thinking or problem-solving skills may get frustrated and enjoyment levels may be very low for
them. This can influence the customers to write bad things about the business on TripAdvisor or
on their social media platforms, causing other potential customers to see these and be less
inclined to book a slot and instead go to a competitor such as Clue HQ instead, resulting in
revenue decreasing and low profit margins being met, so they cannot meet their overall objective
of expanding the business.
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
CRYPTIC ADVENTURES ESCPAE ROOMS (CAER) WANT TO EXPAND THEIR BUSINESS
Overall objective: To expand the business
SMART objective 1:
20% increase in escape room bookings in the next 2 weeks, this will increase popularity of CAER
and bring in more revenue for the business. Leading to an increase in profitability which can be
reinvested for expansion, which is what the business owners want to do
30% increase in Instagram followers for CAER within the next month, this is advantageous for
the CAER because there will be increase brand awareness as more followers will repost and
comment to boost their algorithm so it reaches more potential customers, this will gain the
business a larger social media following and lead to more customers booking slots for the escape
room, resulting in increased sales revenue.
15% increase in high income consumers booking slots for escape rooms in the next 5 weeks,
high income consumers have more disposable income so they are more likely to buy additional
merchandise after the escape room, such as pictures and CAER hoodies and merchandise, this will
bring in more revenue for the business and result in higher profit margins being met. This is
beneficial for CAER because it will enable them to meet their overall objective, expanding the
business if they reinvest enough profit for expansion.
MARKET RESEARCH
Link EVERYTHING back to the bicycle shop at all times
Market data:
The market for escape rooms had grown rapidly over the past few years, the trends for escape
room came about in 2020-21 and the market for it is around £50-80m. According to statistics, 68%
of people have visited an escape room at least once in 2019. They are extremely common in the
United Kingdom, demonstrating the game's popularity. The market is fragmented, with only a few
store operators having more than 5–6 locations. The majority of operators only have one to three
rooms per branch. There were 1138 companies in August 2018, and there are 1592 in December
2019, indicating a 40 percent rise. There has also been a 23% rise in escape room companies
between 2018-19, and a 40% increase in estimated market value.
Moreover, seeing that the escape room marketing is constantly growing, this shows there is room
to enter the market successfully and potentially become one of the market leaders. There will be
competition for the CAER to expand the business as the 10 largest operators in the escape room
have approximately 25% of the market.
Target market:
A lot of families use escape rooms so this makes up a large portion of the target market, usually
they are not low income as they are reasonably pricey. According to Ken Ferguson, the main
demographic group is 25-35 and bookings are predominantly made for the evenings on weekdays
and spread throughout the day on weekends. Corporate groups usually bring larger groups and fill
up spare slots that are available, so they are welcome a lot of the time as they bring in extra
revenue for escape room businesses such as Clue HQ, if CAER can bring in corporate groups this
will increase their sales by a significant amount.
, Part A Research
Competitors:
As of December 2019, there are 521 escape venues and 355 businesses in the market. One of the
main UK competitors in the escape room market is Competitors Clue HQ, they have escape rooms
all over the country from Glasgow, Somerset and Birmingham which is why they are one of the
market leaders. Furthermore, some escape rooms do not offer many scenarios whereas Clue HQ
offers a variety ranging from Doctor Who to space themed ones. Clue HQ have had over 6000 5-
star reviews on TripAdvisor and are known for delivering excellent customer service. This
highlights the positive impact TripAdvisor has on Clue HQ and suggests that CAER should take into
account the benefits TripAdvisor could have on the business. Constant praise and reviewing allows
CAER to identify and analyse their strengths and weaknesses so they can know what to improve
on. High volume of 4–5-star reviews will stand out to potential consumers and will more likely
purchase a slot at CAER rather than competitors who do not have TripAdvisor or do not have very
good reviews, strengthening CAER’s brand image.
SWOT
Strengths:
A strength is that there are a variety of themes for an escape room that CAER can expand on, they
can do a a popular TV show theme such as Stranger Things or Money Heist, this will entice those
who watch these shows and bring in more customers, increasing sales revenue gradually. If CAER
do this successfully then their brand will become known for being the escape room company that
does TV themed escape rooms, strengthening their brand image. Therefore, helping them meet
their objective of a 15% increase in high income consumers booking slots in the next 5 weeks.
Another strength is that puzzles and clues constantly change, CAER will not just keep the same
puzzle and same theme for the whole time, they will change it around, so it is something fresh for
regular customers and even new customers. This will increase enjoyment of the escape room
users as they will not become bored, meaning that there will be an increase in positive reviews via
TripAdvisor which will increase brand awareness, gradually meeting their objective of a 30%
increase in Instagram followers within the next month.
Weaknesses:
Escape rooms are very difficult, even on easy difficulty and some ranging in difficulty in general,
which is why if a lot of consumers who book an escape room who do not have good critical
thinking or problem-solving skills may get frustrated and enjoyment levels may be very low for
them. This can influence the customers to write bad things about the business on TripAdvisor or
on their social media platforms, causing other potential customers to see these and be less
inclined to book a slot and instead go to a competitor such as Clue HQ instead, resulting in
revenue decreasing and low profit margins being met, so they cannot meet their overall objective
of expanding the business.
