Paintball is rapidly growing as a recreational activity for most nations in the world today. The popularity of the game has further attracted people with the enticing cash prizes and adrenalin-filled games that the sport offers to the participants as an entertainment option for the customers. The game of paintball has considerably evolved since its beginning in 1970’s when gas-operated guns were developed by Nelson Paint Company and were provided to several. Among the companies that were given the guns included Forest and Ranching, who were using the guns to mark the trees to remove and cows to be culled from distance. It was against this backdrop that Charles Gaines and Bill Gurnsey thought that they would need something that would allow people to test their individual skills through the use of a marking gun. In 1981, the first balling game was played using the pallets and painting guns from the Nelson Paint Company by Gurnsey and Gaines and their friends. This game was played in a field of 100 acres without any safety measures such as masks.

This business plan details the proposal for the development of Fantasy world paintball Centre which will be located in each continent across the globe. This business plan has put into consideration that there is increase in the interest in the game and some continents feel isolated. A quick summary of the situations of individual continents reveal considerable growth of the game. In Europe for example, over 200 countries are actively involved in the game and its championship.

The business proposal herein looks to develop a paintball Centre within each continent in four phases at a cost of $1.5 million over a period of 2years. The development of the paintball Centre network will begin early next year January 2014 and the mission of this Centre network is to provide playing locations and paintball services to people across the globe. The construction of the facilities will be conducted in phases since this will enable immediate benefits for expansion when funding is made available. The development phase of the project will be highly synergistic as the participants will have the opportunity to help in the design, to raise funds as well as to make certain that there will be an active use of the facilities. The facilities will be attainable on a private basis and all the participants will be required to take part in paintball as a leisurely sport charged on an hourly basis. Individuals who are currently involved in paintball games as well as those who would wish to participate in the sport will have an opportunity to get involved in various action-pursuit games during their leisure time. This new entrance by new players will be specifically targeting those countries especially in developing nations. A unit Centre will house both indoor and outdoor playing facilities that will be divided into three different pitches in a bid to increase the service capacity of the paintball Centre.

Fantasy world paintball Centre will be having a very elaborate plan geared towards providing sustainable education, providing recreation facilities enhancing shooting, promotion of sports safety as well as enhancing public discernment in relation to the use of firearms. The target market for Fantasy world paintball Centre will be young middle class and upper class athletic males and females between the ages of 14 and 30 years. The Center will also seek to incorporate a fascinating group of college students who are increasingly getting involved with the paintballing. This will be arranged in terms of tournaments which would be annually or within certain periods of the year depending on the programmes of individual countries. The plan is designed in a manner that sporting activities will take part in two teams of five.

The management team will consist of four highly vibrant and creative individuals namely; Purity Mills, Catherine Gates, Marvin Blake and Travis Baker. These four managers will be responsible for the creation, building and design of the facilities. The company is seeking to bring on board experienced individuals in the game such as Thomas Matuszewski, a polish, who was a former player in the Rangers Team. Ranger’s team is undoubtedly one of the world’s renowned paintballing teams. They have placed Poland in position 19 among the 200 European teams. Matuszewski, who is the creator of paintball sites and pblivescores.com, will be pivotal in designing creative means of promotion of the paintballing across the globe. In addition to the four; the company will employ a team of twenty staff members to assist the customers in the field as well as the indoor games. The founders of the company have identified the following as the fundamentals to success of the project:

· The location; the company intends to set up each Centre in the capital the most developed countries in each continent in order to guarantee profit maximization. This is grounded on the assumption that paintballing has been embraced mostly by the most developed nations across the globe.

· Wide range of game options; Fantasy world paintball Centre will be aimed at providing a wider range of paintball games as compared to its competitors and will also offer prizes as an incentive to its customers. This will be ensured by introduction of incentives, rewards as well as loyalty tokens. The fact that Fantasy world paintball Center also intend to diversify the target population by making a paintballing as competitive game in schools will also ensure that, apart from the diversification of products, there is also diversification of the customer base.

The specific objectives of the company are to design a paintball Centre that will contain various paintball pitch structures that the client can enjoy. These designs will be country specific to ensure that the center appreciate the dynamics within the host countries as well as the cultural differences. The company also aims to develop packages that will be suitable for all and in future, to develop programs that can be used for regular practice of the sport. Some of the projected programs will be considering emerging trends and issues within specific countries. Issues like gender concerns, age differences as well as positioning of the locations will be put into consideration. The company also aims to augment its customer share as well as enhance its sales within a period of five years. This will be checked through initiating IPO’s depending on the performance of the business and on reflection of the yields. The calculated sales projections in the first three years are projected to increase by 30%. After the fifth year of operation, the company owners will then have the capacity to accumulate dividends and profits from their initial investments. This will give options for the owners to expose their shares to the public or better still plough back the profit for the purposes of the expansion of the business.

Introduction

Paintball has grown from being a recreational form of leisure, which was only recognized by a handful of people, to a highly sophisticated and existing sports industry. This has witnessed many people participate in the paintball competition every month across the world and many people are increasingly becoming interested in playing the game. Paintball has been noted to be one of the most interesting and addictive game. Those who play the game would testify that once one gets involved, they keep on wanting to play more and more. It is a well organized sport which offers opportunity for education and development to those who play or are just funs of the game. This game usually takes place in forest or urban places. But there is variety of the game like speedball paintball which is spectacular and fast in action. It involves a lot of changing of action within a small space. It is quite demanding sport where a player is required to be active physically, psychologically, and must also be in a position to make logical decisions in a hurried manner. To ensure victory, one must be tactical throughout the game. Such culmination of the factors is the surest way of ensuring victory.

For quite sometimes, paintball has witnessed a lot of changes and improvements. This is because of the variation of the forms of the game. Some of the most popular form of the game includes “capture the flag”. The increase in the development of the game has resulted into commercialization of the industry. The first commercial paintball field which was done outdoor opened in 1982 while the first indoor field was in 1984. The result of these developments witnessed a lot of people getting involved in the process and gathering in one place just to play. To keep the players entertained, the developers of the game were compelled to introduce more exiting dimensions of the game. These dynamics propelled paintballing into popularity. Many television networks are currently airing the game and there have also been increased publications about the game.

Current studies show that more and more young people are turning their lives away from normal, less physical leisure activities and are in search of more physically exigent activities.. Majority of young people have in the past engaged in video games as a source of entertainment and this is slowly changing especially since they now demand more physically engaging activities. Most of these people also find indoor activities that require very little social interaction boring and have begun seeking outdoor activities to engage their lives for leisure purposes. The Fantasy World paintball Centre in this case will provide a Centre for these individuals to consume physically engaging outdoor activities..

Company Description

Fantasy World paintball Centre is committed to providing a wide range of action-pursuit paintball games for the young people across the globe. The company will specialize in outdoor and indoor shooting games for the clients. Each paintball Centre will consist of make-up towns, as well as war fields on a 10-acre piece of land. Other opportunities for revenue generation include setting up a snack shop at the site as a source of steady and significant revenue. Coupled with proper management, this will lead to a sizeable profit margin for the company. The company is seeking to explore the new approach of involving colleges in the process. This will call for a lot of consultation with the administrations of the colleges. Also, inclusion of the opinions of the sports management within the respective countries will be paramount to ensure that the process does not face any challenge with the in charge authorities.

Ownership

The management team will consist of four energetic and creative individuals; Purity Mills, Catherine Gates, Marvin Blake and Travis Baker, who all have an interest in the sport. The company will also have a number of investors who will be shareholders to the company and will have significant stake in the governance of the business. The company envisages that in a period of five years, it would be possible for the company to allow for the public participation in the IPO.

Startup Summary

This section of the plan will elaborate the implementation process of the plan. During the first two phases of the project, including the introductory phase of the business, the primal focus of the business will be the acquisition of land, securing paintball equipment for the company as well as paying the employees. The startup capital will add up to approximately $ 1,450,000 with the better percentage of this money being used to lease the facility sites and equipment. The company will also be required to obtain operating permits for the business especially owing to the nature of the business in addition to intensifying marketing campaigns for the business. The company envisages the possibility of the host countries evoking the legislatives bottlenecks regarding the FDI during the entry process. The bigger part of the money segregated for the permit will go into securing legal documentations as well as meeting the legal cost. Products used for the Centre will be of industrial standard, allowing for the endorsement of revenue for product placement and an incentive for paintball equipment companies to sponsor contests and events which will help draw players from throughout each region. All products will be viewed from a cost-benefit perspective, and will take into account factors such as safety, reliability, and price. The market targeted for development will be primarily young adults 14-30 years of age, and the secondary market will be older adults 31-46 years of age.

Startup Funding

Funding for the business will be highly dependent on the contributions of business investors of the company as they will all be required to raise an $800,000 investment for the business. The founders will also be required to obtain a loan of $150,000 to cover for any extra requirements of the business.

Startup Cost

The approximate startup cost will be mainly divided as follows:

Capital for equipment purchase = US $ 500,000

Cite Structures = US $ 800, 000

Initial staff salary = US $ 150,000

TOTAL START UP CAPITAL = US $ 1,450,000

The above figure will include securing the required working permits, leasing the facility site, ordering paintball equipment and facility equipment and furniture as long-term assets, starting building center/leasehold improvements, hiring key personnel, training the staff, intensifying market campaigns as well as finalizing operating procedures.

Nature of the business

Fantasy World, paintball Centre is a leisure and recreation Centre that offers the best paintball games. Customers will have an opportunity to take part in a variety of paintball games which will consist of made-up towns and pitches that the participants will use as playing fields for their entertainment. The customers will be required to make a booking a day or two prior to the service and upon visiting the facility for participation, the customers will have a uniform and armory provided to them. Different individuals will have different sections in which they can take part in the games. Fantasy world paintball center will also have a snack shop that will cater for the food requirements of customers. This will be designed in such a way that it accommodates large numbers of people. The customers will be charge on an hourly basis for four different packages of their choice and will be required to take part in the activities in groups of five

Vision statement

Fantasy World paintball Centre looks to serve the sole purpose of providing the best paintball facility to the customers internationally. The company will aim at providing the best quality service which will cater for large groups of families and friends and will go ahead to establish a competitive and safe environment that will promote fair play for the participants.

Management team and Company Structure

The four companies who are also the founders of Fantasy World paintball Centre will be responsible for the development, construction and design of the facility. These managers have the background experience of in the paintball industry and all of have a minimum of three years’ experience in this industry. The management teams as well as other members of staff also have a history and passion for paintball; most of them are either actual participants or great fanatics of the game. The management team specifically demonstrates general and specific knowledge of the market and exudes competence as far as current performance of the business in the market is concerned. The management is keen to draw knowledge on stakeholders within in the sport and the individuals who need the service or are interested in joining the sport. This will create a steady and ready market for the businesses through fans and potential users who will sustain the businesses with constant cash flow. The management will be responsible for hiring the employees in the company. The initial number of employees will be twenty. This number will be inclusive of paintball pitch instructors, café staff, cleaning staff and reception staff. Each employee will be answerable for their positions of work and the whole team will be made up of devoted and well trained professionals with a deep understanding of paintball rationale as well as a passion for their jobs and an extensive know how of the industry and the market.

Industry Analysis

Paintball is a rapidly growing business and for those who understand the business, Paintball is both a sport and a game. The business has immense potential for international growth and the industry generates revenue in millions of dollars as the market for the business continues to grow. The sport has been ranked the third most popular extreme sport in the United States, with all of the paintball facilities in the state grossing over $80 million in sales in 2010. The sport began in the early 1980s, and experienced major growth later in the 1990s and all through to the 2000s. The National Sporting Goods Association (NSGA) reported that paintball games were the number one sport that experienced up to 34% growth in 2009, with close to 8 million individuals having played the game more than once. According to recent studies carried out regarding the potential market growth for the business, researchers have shown that there are approximately 1,400 Paintball fields in the U.S. Worldwide. The number of people estimated to have in one way or another taken part in a paintball games is more than 16,000,000 with the number of competing teams in the U.S. reaching 7,600 since the first competitive game was played (Snapp 2011).The number of countries that have taken on paintball as a sport is estimated to be 140. This highlights the extensive opportunity for worldwide expansion and the potential benefits bound to arise from investing in a conglomerate of paintball facilities across the globe, and consequently expanding in each region (Ford Bornstein & Pruitt 2007).

The business has been compared to other types of sports like bowling in terms of an organizational structure that allows the customers to rent out spaces for their leisure activities as well as the provision of equipment for the game in a structured environment. While the participants engage in the sport, the scores are kept to keep track of the individual in the team that has accrued the highest score to be declared the winner. The games are mainly created to stimulate a player’s physical activity and the pitches are designed in such a way that the customers have enough space to maneuver while they participate in the game.

In less than fifteen years, Paintball has become recognized as one of the world's most exciting outdoor participation sports. Hundreds of men and women of all ages and lifestyles have shown interest in playing Paintball internationally (Braun et al 2007). Participants have taken up Paintball as an entertaining hobby as well as a professional International sport, whereas large corporations and church youth groups use paintball as a team-building tool. The most significant aspect bound to facilitate the growth of the business will be the increase in the demographic growth of the globe’s 14-30 year-old age segment which is estimated to have increased considerably over the past decade. This age group represents the prime segment of the population that pays interest in paintball leagues, which in turn means that the company profit will increase parallel to the population growth in this segment.

Synthesis of the Key Information Presented in the case of Fantasy World paintball Centre

The case presented is basically divided into ten sections; each of these sections discusses issues ascribed to the Fantasy paintball Centre: the proposed paintball centre to be undertaken across the globe. Some of these sections provide information regarding the advantages the corporation envisages having while other sections provide information regarding the strategies that will be put in place for successful implementation of the plan. The introductory section of the plan highlights the dynamics that a paintball sport has witnessed from the inception of the game to date. It also provides the description of the game and different forms that the sport has assumed. The section has also revealed the statistics involved in the game. The second section provides company description. This examines the structure of the organization and describes the general plan on how the plan is to be executed. In the third section, the plan discusses the ownership structure of the corporation and further provides future criteria on how the public can be involved in the process. The fourth section elaborates on the ownership and the acumen of the owner, which allow them to be best fitted for the business. The fifth section of the plan forms the framework of the plan by providing summary of the start up. It further explains the Start-up findings by elaborating in details, how the company intends to allocate the available finances into the program. There is a table of figures that illustrates the allocation process. There are other significant sections of the plan which include nature of business as well as the mission statement of the business. The last section which is elaborate is the industrial analysis. This section has given overview of the business across the globe and also indicated its growth overtime. Based on the analysis of the sections, to this end, the plan will examine the SWOT analysis of the plan.

Analysis of the Situation by use of Marketing Theoretical Frameworks

In the projections presented, there are several strategies that will be applied by World paintball Centre to facilitate its success despite the existence of high levels of competition from other players in the industry. The anticipated success and possible failures of the Fantasy World paintball can be analyzed by use of various marketing theoretical frameworks; in regard to the case presented, a SWOT analysis and marketing mix theoretical frameworks will be used to analyze various operational aspects of the Fantasy World paintball Centre. The SWOT analysis will explore the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities as well as the treats related to the success of the Corporation.

Strengths of the of Fantasy World paintball Centre as projected by the plan

The plan presents various strengths that would facilitated the success of the of Fantasy World paintball Centre, hence increasing its competitive advantage in the paintball market. One of the strengths of the Company is the fact that, the company will initially be developed by a partnership from various stakeholders. This is indicated as the plan cites that owners will raise the money to start the business. This will be one of the Company’s strength in that; companies developed on a partnership basis usually create an opportunity for contribution of various important ideas from the stakeholders. It is also important t o note that the company will not start on debt position, such as loan from the bank.

The other strength emanates from the fact that the plan has been able to identify windows of opportunity. The case in point is that the plan has been able to identify the gaps that have not been exploited by the competitors, such engaging colleges in tournaments as well as diversifying the games. Moreover, external and internal markets have been analyzed by the plan. Consequently, the plan has highlighted that the success of the company will rely on the expertise that will be presented by highly skilled team.

Weaknesses of the Fantasy World paintball Centre as projected by the plan

The major weaknesses that the Company is foreseeing are the possibility of getting space within the targeted country. Paintball game requires enough space and also a busy place. This might pose challenge considering that it would not be easy for spaces to be found in urban areas. The company also wants to incorporate near ideas, whose patent is not assured and would also be undertaken by others.

Opportunities of success to the Fantasy World paintball Centre as projected by the plan

The plan has indicated various opportunities for success that would be utilized by the Fantasy World paintball Centre to promote its success. To begin with, this new idea is going to exploit the opportunity in two main fronts. First, the company needs to target the existing players by offering new adjustments in the market. Secondly, the company will look for new market to the places where the game is not so much played. This will bring new thing to these markets

Projected threats by the plan to the Fantasy World paintball Centre

The plan highlights various scenarios that would threatens the prosperity of the of the Company; the first threat indicated in the plan emerges from the fact that it focuses on provision of low cost service provision which could also be used by competitors hence exposing it to a higher risk of competition. Additionally, the plan has not been able to indicate the efforts of the company will direct toward investing on advanced technologies in their service provision issues, this is a threat to the success of the Company owing to the fact that it could lower its competitive advantage in case competitors decide to offer their services by use of improved technology.

Challenges and Mitigation Strategies

Every venture has its own share of risks as safety is not always a surety. In the paintball business, safety is a major concern individuals may incur accidents during fun activities ascribed to the fun packages to which they subscribe. The company looks to mitigate this challenge by designing each paintball center considering the safety of customers. There will also be a first aid unit in the Centre with qualified first aid attendants to cater for any injurious incidences should they occur.

Another challenge is finding space for the new paintball center. The business requires sufficient space to carry out. Locating the business rural areas where land is cheap may be limiting in the sense that the business will not be in a position to generate sufficient traffic. The business has to be located in an urban area that has high business traffic, and this comes at a cost of high land prices. The key, therefore, is to locate space that has the right balance between customer demand and affordability.

Competition is yet another challenge ascribed to any business venture. Venturing into the paintball business, it would be a pitfall to overlook competitors. Prior to setting up a Center in each location, it will be a priority of the management to determine the best way to fit into the competitive landscape (Abrams & Kleiner 2003).The business will accrue lessons from other enterprises already operating in this space. An out and out feasibility study and competitor analysis will be carried out to ensure that the business will not be located in a region whose market is already occupied by an established enterprise. This way, the business will be able to learn the weaknesses of its competitors and come up with modus operandi that outdoes competitors in the business (Schwetje & Vaseghi 2007).

Financial Projections

The initial costs of the business were calculated in terms of US dollars this was because of the internationalization of the business. It was envisaged that the US dollar would be popularly used across the continents. The financial projections will stick to the dollar as the currency to use in calculation of the costs. The following are the figures in relation to the cost.

Cost Estimates:

A. Capital costs

1. Fixed Capital Costs

Leasehold $270,000

Equipment and Furniture $385,000

Cite improvements $32,000

Contingency $21,000

Total fixed Cost $ 708,000

2. Prestart Expenses

Licenses and Permits $1,500

Other Administrative Expenses $78,000

Marketing and Press Relations $6,500

Miscellaneous Expenses $21,000

Total Prestart Expenses $107,000

Total Capital Costs $815,000

B. Operating Cost

1. Manpower

Subordinate staff $532,000

Managers $450,000

Total $982,000

Other wages $400,000

Total Manpower Cost $1,382,000

2. Utilities $7200

3. Other Costs $1500

Total Operating Costs $1,390,700

Working Capital = 45% of Operational Costs

= 45% * $1,390,700

= $625,815

Total Investment Costs

Total Investment Cost = Capital Cost + Working Capital

= $815,000+ $625,815

= $1, 440,815

The founders of the company as well as other investors will need a total investment of $1,440,815 to set up the business. This amount will account for the required capital to start the business and run it smoothly for an estimated period of 10 to 12 months from the inception of the business. The investors will be required to provide this amount before the conception of the designs are even begun so as to ensure that the company does not take on any unnecessary loss of their invested money. If the investors do not do this prior to the development of Fantasy world paintball business, they may end up having to carry out this project with limited founds hence coming up with a company that offers low quality services for their customers.

Conclusion

As indicated in the business plan, the Fantasy world paintball business is going to give a high yield of investment especially in the global market. The time within which the investors are expected to receive a return on their investment is estimated to be around five years and for an investment of this kind, getting dividends by the end of the fifth year is more than a good indicator of the years to come. For this reasons, the management team as well as the company’s general staff are well prepared to run this business with a fully-fledged mind especially in the provision of its services to guarantee continuous reception and patronage. Having established that there will be few competitors to the business, it is clear to see that introducing this business in the international market will be a good idea since the Volume growth of sales will be supported by the growing population of the target market whereas the Value growth will be motivated by a boost in customer preferences shifting towards action-packed outdoor activities.

The Fantasy World Paintball Centre will encourage more sports-related activities while supporting education, recreation, shooting, sports safety and the improvement of public perception regarding the use of firearms. Developing such a type of a business in the international; market will encourage other innovations that support group recreation, and leisure business will become a new trend in the future international ambience.

References

Abrams Rhonda & Kleiner Eugène (2003). The successful business plan: secrets & strategies;

Edition4, revised. United Kingdom, The Planning Shop

Braun Jerry et al (2007). The Complete Guide to Paintball; Edition4. New York, Hatherleigh

Press

Ford Brian R, Bornstein Jay & Pruitt Patrick T (2007). Ernst and Young business plan guide.

New York. John Wiley and Sons.

Sapp Richard W (2011). Paintball Digest: The Complete Guides to Games, Gear & Tactics. Lola,

Wisconsin, Krause Publications.

Schwetje Gerald & Vaseghi Sam (2007). The Business Plan: How to Win Your Investors'

Confidence. New York, Springer Publications.