Imagine families visiting the mall. Parents hope to enjoy a day of shopping, but their kids quickly become bored. The trip becomes a race against the clock as parents try to keep their kids entertained. They cut their shopping trip short, kids get frustrated, and parents get stressed. It’s a lose-lose for the mall. This situation plays out in malls all over the world. Families have no place to take their kids while they shop.
What if there was a solution that allowed parents to enjoy the mall while their kids had a blast? Imagine a bright, safe indoor playground right in the middle of the mall. Kids could play while their parents shopped without worry. Families would no longer dread going to the mall. They’d look forward to it. Kids would be excited to go to the playground, and parents could finally relax knowing their kids were having fun and were safe.
Opening an indoor playground in a mall is a game changer. It makes the mall a family destination. It gives kids a place to play while their parents enjoy the mall. Malls already have a lot of foot traffic, and an indoor playground draws families to the mall. It’s a win-win. Kids have fun, parents have a great time shopping, and mall businesses benefit from more foot traffic and happier customers.
Why Open an Indoor Playground in a Shopping Mall?
Opening an indoor playground in a shopping mall is a smart business move for several reasons:
- High Foot Traffic: Shopping malls get a lot of people every day, especially on the weekends and holidays. This high foot traffic means you have a great opportunity to get a lot of customers without spending a lot of money on advertising. Families come to the mall to shop, eat, and do other fun things. When they see your indoor playground, they’ll come back again and again.
- Appeal to Family Demographics: Malls attract all kinds of people, but families with little kids are a big group of people who can really benefit from your indoor playground. Moms and dads are always looking for safe places to take their kids to play, especially in the city where options for outside play are limited. By putting your indoor playground in a mall, you’re catering to this group. It makes the mall a place where families can go and have fun together.
- Year-Round Entertainment: One of the coolest things about an indoor playground is that you can have fun all year long, no matter what the weather is like outside. Moms and dads don’t have to worry about rain, snow, or super-hot weather ruining their plans. Your indoor playground is a place families can go every day to have fun, especially in the winter when it’s too cold to play outside.
- Enhanced Shopping Experience: An indoor playground doesn’t just benefit the families who use it—it also adds value to the mall itself. By giving kids a place to play while their parents shop, you make the mall a better place to shop. Moms and dads can shop without worrying about their kids. They can take their time, spend more money, and have a better shopping experience. This helps your indoor playground and the stores around you.
While opening an indoor playground in a mall is a great idea, you need to be very smart about how you do it. From picking out the right equipment to making sure you have rules and guidelines in place, there are a lot of things you need to think about to create a safe, fun, and profitable place. If you keep your customers in mind and think about what could go wrong, you’ll be able to make sure your indoor playground is a place people love to go when they visit the mall. Let’s talk about some things you need to know and some things you should do.
What should you pay attention to when opening an indoor playground in a shopping mall?
- Noise Control: Malls are busy places. But if an indoor playground is too loud, it can disrupt stores nearby and make the mall experience less fun for other people. That’s where noise control comes in. You need to build walls that don’t let sound out. You need to use soft play equipment that doesn’t make a lot of noise when kids jump on it. You need to put the playground in a place in the mall where the sound doesn’t travel as far. You need to put the playground in a place where it’s not right next to a quiet store like a bookstore or a coffee shop, or they’re going to complain about the noise.
- Set Rules: You need to have rules for the playground that keep the place safe and fun for everybody. Your rules should cover everything from how people are supposed to act to how they’re supposed to be safe. For example, you might have rules about how old people have to be to play in certain areas, how somebody has to watch the kids, and how you can’t bring in food from the outside or toys that can hurt people. Put these rules up all over the place so everybody knows what they are. You also need to enforce these rules all the time to make sure the playground is safe and fun for everybody.
- Pick the Right Indoor Playground Equipment: You’ve got to pick the right play equipment for your indoor playground. This is one of the most important things you’ll do. It’s got to be fun and exciting for kids to play on, but it also has to meet safety standards. Look for stuff that is tough, easy to clean, and made for the kids you’re trying to attract. If you’re in North America, you might look for indoor playground equipment made from eco-friendly and fire-resistant materials . This will make your business different from others because there are parents who want their kids to be safe, and they also want the world to be a better place.
- Ensure Adequate Supervision: You’ve got to have people who know how to watch kids and keep them safe. You need to put your play areas where the people who watch the kids can see everything. You might also want to have a way to make sure you give the right kid to the right adult when they leave. For example, you might give the kid and the adult the same number on the wristbands.
- Design a Safe Layout: The layout of your indoor playground plays an important role in ensuring the safety of the children. Space should be designed in a way that minimizes the risk of collisions and injuries. Create separate areas for different age groups to prevent older children from accidentally hurting younger ones. Make sure playground equipment is spaced sufficiently apart to allow for easy movement and reduce the risk of overcrowding. Clear visibility must also be considered when designing an indoor mall playground so that guardians can easily keep an eye on their children.
What Is the Ideal Indoor Playground Setup?
To make your indoor playground awesome, you need to think about how it works and how it makes people feel. Here are some things that can help you do that.
- Secure Entry and Exit: A good way to keep kids from walking out of your playground without you knowing is to have a gate. You can put a gate in the doorway that’s about as tall as your waist. The gate will have a button behind the counter. When somebody comes up to the counter and wants to leave, you press the button, and the gate unlocks. If something happens and you need to get out of your playground in a hurry, you can climb over the gate. But kids can’t get out by themselves. Their parents can relax and shop while the kids play.
- Comfortable Seating with a View: Parents want to be able to see their kids while they play. So, you need to have places where parents can sit and watch their kids. Comfortable seats, like lounge chairs or maybe even massage chairs, can make the experience better for the parents. They’ll stay longer and come back if you make it easy for them to relax. If you’ve got free Wi-Fi, coffee, and water, parents will like your indoor playground even more because they can take a break while their kids play
- Family-Friendly Amenities: Think about adding some thoughtful amenities that make your indoor playground even more convenient for families. For example, install a water bottle filling station. It helps keep kids hydrated, and it’s better for the environment than a bunch of single-use plastic bottles. Build a nursing room with a one-way windo. It gives moms a little privacy, but they can still look out and watch their kids in the play area. These things show parents that you’ve thought about them and make your playground more appealing.
- Safety and Security Measures: Create a system where you put matching numbered stickers or wristbands on parents and kids. This simple process will prevent mix-ups at pick-up time. Have your staff check the numbers before they let anyone leave. This extra step will give parents peace of mind and ensure the right kid goes home with the right adult.
- Controlled Capacity: One of the challenges of running an indoor playground is managing the number of kids who come through the doors. When you limit the number of kids allowed in at one time, you keep the place from getting too crowded. That not only makes it safer, but it also makes it more fun for little kids who could get overwhelmed in a packed environment. By controlling the number of kids, you help the playground stay a nice place for everyone who comes.
- Strict Hygiene and Behavior Policies: Parents will quit coming to your indoor playground if it feels dirty or unsafe. Establishing and enforcing strict hygiene policies, such as rules for sick kids and making sure everyone uses hand sanitizer when they come in, will help keep the environment healthy. Also, make sure you let everyone know the rules about being nice and not playing too rough. Keeping the playground clean and making sure kids follow the rules will determine whether families come back.
Conclusion
Opening an indoor playground in a shopping mall is more than a business opportunity. It’s a chance to create a beloved community hub where families can come together. By considering noise, safety, and overall experience, you can create a space that kids and parents will love. Setting up an indoor playground with secure entry and exit systems, comfortable seating for parents, thoughtful amenities, and strict safety protocols will separate your business from the competition. With the right planning and execution, your indoor playground can become a destination for families, making the mall experience more fun and keeping people coming back for more.
Are you thinking about starting your indoor mall playground business? Contact us now.
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- Email: info@leboplaycn.com
