Cover
Story (December 2006)Cover
Story (December 2006)You've
seen the name, played the games, talked to the staff at trade shows, and as Paul
Harvey would say, now you're going to hear the rest of the story.
The
foundation for PrimeTime Amusements was laid when David Goldfarb was in college
in Orlando, Fla. Most college students take jobs to supplement their income and
David was no exception. He was just 19 and a sophomore at the university when he
became an operator, placing three pool tables, a jukebox, and a video game in a
sub shop.
He
slowly added more games and placed them in other locations and by the time he
graduated he had about 60 machines on location and was the only employee. In
1995 he convinced his dad, who was retired from the garment business in New
York, to come to work. His father got involved in the financial end and the
business aspect.
A
major milestone was getting a contract from Universal Studios to place 40 games
in its NASCAR Cafe. That was followed by another Universal property: the
Portofino Bay in the Loews Hotel.
In
1997, the name of the company became PrimeTime Amusements, an apt name. If you
look up the word prime you'll find synonyms like leading, major, superior,
first-rate, zenith, peak, and pinnacle to name a few. You talk about prime
property and prime interest rate and now PrimeTime can be added to your
vocabulary of company names to watch.
David
didn't get the Universal contracts with pure luck. He explained, "We heard
that they were going up. We wrote a proposal that we hoped they couldn't refuse.
You can't sit back and hope something lucrative comes your way; it takes effort.
I'm proud to say that we now have the exclusive contract for Universal and we've
placed about 400 machines."
Xtreme
Indoor Karting
PrimeTime
opened new offices in Miami 10 years ago, put about 300 machines on location,
and worked as a successful street operator. But the best was yet to come. David
met Bill Mulder, who had an extensive background in go-karting, was a
professional driver, and had set up numerous tracks across the United States.
With Mulder and PrimeTime as partners in a new project, they set up the Xtreme
Indoor Karting facility.
In
reality it's much, much more. It's a game room and a distribution center in
100,000-square-feet of space. It holds seven conference rooms, a full-service
bar, pool tables, food concessions, and the longest and one of the fastest
go-kart tracks in the United States. There are also two arcades for adults and
kids. It was a $5 million investment in the industry.
David
added, "We are doing four things under one operation. We started as a
street operator and have slowly moved into opening family entertainment centers
(FECs). We sell equipment and we rent to corporations. We have the exclusive
contract agreement from a company in Europe to sell PrimeTime Knock-Out! Boxer,
Crazy Squash, PrimeTime Kicker, and a new interactive baseball game."
The
Xtreme Indoor Karting facility is located in a prime (there's that word again!)
location on I-95 and Commercial Blvd. where 300,000 cars pass every day. David
explained that there have been numerous requests for team building activities.
David said they are leasing and renting for a myriad of occasions such as Bar
Mitzvahs, corporate groups, weddings, and more. There is also a strong need from
large companies that use machines to generate excitement at corporate events.
"We've rented many machines to Fortune 500 companies," said David.
The
games
We
asked David how he discovered these remarkable games. David said, "I spent
quite a bit of time in Europe and was impressed with the product I saw. I
contacted the company and went from there. I went back to Europe and negotiated
a contract. I thought the equipment was unique enough to do well over here. It's
interactive, fun, and you won't find it at home."
He
continued, "This is a tough business. You can see the companies that have
dropped out. There are fewer people involved. Everything manufacturers introduce
winds up being available for the home. What has kept our business strong are the
four things we do from our facility and distribution center. We sell lots of
used equipment overseas. When we are looking to replenish the equipment in our
facilities and locations, we have quite a bit of used equipment to sell. We must
have an outlet for it and it's usually overseas. I just got back from Brazil
last week."
PrimeTime
Knock-Out! is the ultimate test of your boxing speed and strength. Insert
quarters or tokens (a bill acceptor is optional) and give it your best punch.
Competition is encouraged as gamers vie for the highest score.
PrimeTime
Kicker offers realistic World Cup soccer. You can test your skills and compete
amongst friends, rivals, or countries by kicking a soccer ball that measures
speed and power.
Classic
air hockey has always been a crowd favorite and PrimeTime Crazy Squash is just
waiting to continue the tradition. Two players compete side-by-side in the
unique U-shaped table to score a goal. It was designed to fit in even smaller
spaces.
Also
available is PrimeTime Goalie, a conventional air hockey that will forever be a
crowd pleaser. With a stainless-steel top that ensures a superb level of play
and available in six and eight foot lengths there's one for all types of
locations and players.
Industry's
future
How
does David view the future of the coin-op entertainment industry? "The
industry as a whole is not good and it's going to get worse. I think you'll find
distributors that are going to become large operators and operators will become
distributors. The other option is to mimic what we are doing. We have our
facility and distribution center under one roof. We have absolutely every single
brand-new piece of equipment in our game rooms and everything is for sale."
What's
David's take on the new equipment being introduced? "I'm not impressed.
However, I am impressed with games coming from Europe and that's precisely why I
signed an agreement to sell it in the United States. The main difference is that
Europe is making interactive games while over here we see games being repeated
over and over. You get a glorified title and use it up. I don't see anything
that exciting. Even companies like Incredible Technologies haven't stepped up to
the plate."
He
continued, "If these U.S. manufacturers don't come up with something
unique, something interactive, something you can't find at home, they'll be
closing up shop."
People
Is
there a company that David looks up to to model his after? "The one I've
been mimicking is Len Keywood's Starburst in Canada. He's the largest
distributor in Canada and has a huge operation, probably 8,000 games. He came
from humble beginnings and is by far one of the leaders in the industry.
"And,
of course, I admire my partner Bill Mulder. He's an icon in the industry of
indoor karting; his background in karting runs the gamut from A to Z. With our
expertise in games and his in karting, we formed a partnership for the Xtreme
Indoor Karting name."
David
said, "Another person I respect is Rick Dee, who now runs all of our
operations in Orlando and he's involved in the distribution end with PrimeTime
Amusements. He was with Cleveland Coin for many years and when that
distributorship was sold to Shaffer, Dee was planning to retire. I've known him
for many years and knew he was originally from Orlando. I contacted him and
asked if he'd like to get involved. He said yes and explained that he was
planning to move to Florida anyway. He has experience in distribution and I'm
very happy he's with us."
A
person in the company that David brags about is Lainie Solomon and she had an
interesting story. She told us that she was a school teacher but needed some
time away from the stress. While on hiatus she worked as a bartender using her
dynamic people skills.
In
the meantime, while David was flying to Spain he realized he needed someone to
answer the phone while he was gone. He picks up the story: "I contacted a
friend, who was a bar owner and his bar was one of our locations. I told him
what I was looking for and he recommended Lainie. He told me about her hiatus,
her bartending skills, and what a reliable person she was. The rest, so they
say, is history.
"I'm
very impressed with Lainie's people skills. She runs our internal operations and
literally has her hands in everything. I actually try to find new projects for
her because she makes everything look so easy!" David said.
There
are 25 employees at PrimeTime Amusements and an additional 40 at Xtreme Indoor
Karting. The people, the partner, the games, the ideas, the experience, and more
come together nicely at PrimeTime Amusements and Xtreme Indoor Karting.