8 minute read
Briefs
Behind these doors lies the Nemesis Club's immersive experience of technology and animatronics.
Escape: Immersive Entertainment Heeds COVID-19 Safety
Good entertainment can lift us above the struggles of life and transport us to a different place and time, while we laugh and make memories with family and friends. I’m not sure there’s ever been a time during my life when people needed that kind of escape and connectedness more than they do today!
We’ve launched with staggered openings. Soda Jerk Co., opened in October, is a retro-inspired soda fountain serving up killer craft milkshakes and floats. It acts as a front to the Nemesis Club (opening this month), a next-level escape game venue into which we’re building animatronics, scoring custom soundtracks and inventing new tech. We searched for a year for the perfect location for this concept, and we are thrilled to be building at High Street. It’s such a beautiful development — simultaneously hip and serene.
Now, every startup faces its share of hurdles. Those of us opening businesses in a COVID era may be getting a double or triple dose of challenges — from dealing with labor and material shortages to planning a “grand” opening when customers need to maintain social distancing guidelines.
But we believe that entertainment is a resilient industry. Phoenix is a resilient community. We’re also lucky that escape games are a low-risk form of entertainment for people looking to begin venturing out again. At the Nemesis Club, guests will reserve a game for themselves and their close friends only. They won’t need to be in contact with any of our other guests during their visit, and check-in is completely contactless. We’re reserving time between groups so we can disinfect each room thoroughly.
You might say entertainment is in my blood. Grandma ran away from home to join the circus, and she danced her way around the globe. Grandpa was a stage performer-turned-talent-agent who represented the likes of Abbott and Costello in New York City. So, it’s no wonder I was drawn to the entertainment industry while at UCLA, where I had the life-changing experience of studying themed entertainment design under legendary Disney Imagineers while obtaining my MBA.
For the last 20 years, my wife and I have helped conceptualize and operate incredibly fun experiences all over the country. This new business is the fulfillment of a lifelong dream to bring our flavor of knock-your-socks-off immersive entertainment to Phoenix. We have deep roots here, and we love the people who make this city great. —Dustin Smith, founder and president of The Nemesis Club (thenemesisclub.com) BYTES
Global Pandemic Impact on Food & Beverage Industry
What’s happening to our “bites”? With its rich agricultural history, and as home to some of the most skilled farmers in the country, Maricopa County is one of the nation’s top food producers. While Maricopa’s agriculture industry is valued at $1.95 billion per year according to the City of Phoenix, the coronavirus has caused rapid surges and declines in demand, impacting various sectors of the food and beverage industry.
Grocery stores have seen heightened demand, creating pressure to meet the growing needs of consumers confined to their homes. Food and beverage distributors have faced a different reality, with their customers — such as restaurants, hotels and cruise lines — sharply reducing their demands for goods. Each shift has created its own challenges and opportunities.
Grocery Stores In addition to addressing concerns for the health and safety of employees and customers, grocery stores have adapted to a growing demand for online order fulfillment as more consumers opt to stay home and have food delivered. This has created new challenges, as some grocers have tried partnering with thirdparty delivery services who have been enmeshed in labor disputes and sometimes unable to make timely deliveries. Some grocers have explored hiring their own shoppers and deliverers, but these services add costs to already slim margins and create new business processes to be managed.
Distributors Distributors have had a different experience during the pandemic, undergoing a sharp decline in demand for goods as hotels, restaurants and other large-scale venues closed. Some distributors have evolved their business models to supply retail grocers, but doing so necessitates establishing new processes and changing product packaging to be suitable to individual consumers. Also, like restaurant owners, distributors have had to ride the wave of restaurants closing, then opening partially, then opening fully, then closing partially — a pattern that may continue indefinitely.
Perhaps the most essential mindset for food and beverage businesses is to look to the future and aim for flexibility. —Katie Scardello, senior vice president of Global Commercial Banking for Bank of America (bankofamerica.com)
[See “Considerations for the Food & Beverage Industry amidst a Global Pandemic” at www.inbusinessphx.com for an expanded discussion.]
LOOKING GOOD
Local Standouts Recognized for Achievements and Philanthropy
ACHIEVEMENTS
Fulton Homes’ Achievements in Indoor Air Quality Fulton Homes, Arizona’s largest family-owned and -operated homebuilder, was recently recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency as the recipient of three top homebuilder awards: the 2020 Indoor airPLUS Leader of the Year – Builder; the 2020 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year – Sustained Excellence Award; and the 2020 WaterSense Builder Partner of the Year — the first homebuilder nationwide to achieve this trifecta. fultonhomes.com
Pedal Haus Brewery Beer Takes Gold Pedal Haus Brewery received gold standing in the Dark Lager category at this year’s San Diego International Beer Festival for its German Dark Lager. The festival is one of the largest and most competitive brewing contests held in California each year, hosting nearly 200 breweries from around the world and averaging more than 1,500 entries. The popular brewery has won more than 33 medals and awards since opening its first location in downtown Tempe in 2015. pedalhausbrewery.com
PHILANTHROPY
Homie Donates $100,000 to COVID Relief Real estate tech company Homie recently made good on its commitment to donate $100,000 to the Valley of the Sun United Way COVID-19 Response Fund through the Homie Helps initiative it launched last April. For every home bought or sold by Arizonans through Homie, $500 was contributed to this relief fund. Homie contributions went to help Arizonans stay in their homes through rent and mortgage assistance, for those struggling to make ends meet. homie.com • vsuw.org
WaFd Bank Arizona Donates $20,000 to Food Bank Last month, WaFd Bank Arizona donated $20,000 to Extended Hands Food Bank through its WaFd Foundation granting arm. The WaFd Foundation’s purpose is to facilitate direct giving to communitybased nonprofits serving low- and moderate-income individuals’ needs. Over the past 12 months alone, the local team has been able to give more than $160,000 in local grants through the Foundation, and a total of more than $2 million across its eight-state footprint. wafdbank.com
A new technology adopted by Premier Title Agency provides an alternative to the commonly used Automated Clearing House for financial transactions. Emerging technology leader Bank Shot recently entered into a partnership with the title agency with its mobile app, for which it recently received a patent, that enables completing real estate transactions via smart phone, including earnest money deposits and more, all with a simple click of a button.
“Bank Shot is faster, more secure, more convenient and safer. Also much more costefficient for our customers versus all other options,” says Jerry Calley, president of Premier Title Agency, comparing it to the agency’s previous practice of having earnest money deposits delivered to its office or picked up by a delivery service.
Bank Shot is particularly good for multi-unit companies like Premier Title Agency. Explains Glenn Drake, Bank Shot CEO and founder, “Bank Shot was built and developed for title companies, larger banks and realtors due to its portal with Stop Light Technology to either deposit, hold or reject a check, and that check can also be deposited into multiple banking institutions — so it’s the flexibility that works well for larger multi-unit companies.” ACH, on the other hand, is automatically deposited and does not allow for check to be stopped or held in the event that funds need to be verified. Drake also notes that Bank Shot’s flexibility provides its users with additional market strength. “The ability to set up a company with their individual offices allowing the local office to process their own deposits or set up the company as one but have the ability on the back end to deposit the item into the appropriate account, is not available with any other product today. Bank Shot can adapt with a company as they change and grow. They are not locked into any set way for the app to work. They can change it or customize their set-up at any time as their needs and market changes.” —Mike Hunter
Bank Shot getbankshot.com
Full-Service Marketing Agencies Are Poised for Growth
Marketing is one of many industries sorely consumption is changing daily. Agencies, with a impacted by the pandemic. But the president direct line to consumer behavior studies, media and chief executive of the American Association buying options and digital consumption trends, of Advertising Agencies, Marlo Kaplowitz, told are in a position to help businesses adapt and The Drum in an interview this past summer, shift dollars quickly. “The in-housing trend that was so prevalent Writing for marketing blog “Business 2 pre-pandemic is slowly shifting the other way Community” this past September, Angela … It opened people’s eyes. They said, ‘Wow, we Housman, Ph.D., observed, “Firms think hiring really do need that external perspective.’ This employees saves money over an agency, which has been an excellent reminder of the value can certainly be the case for larger businesses. agencies bring.” For most SMEs (small and mid-sized enterprises),
Navigating consumer expectations amidst the cost of employees (with the right skills and the pandemic and increased racial tensions are experience), necessary software and other uncharted territories for many businesses. The essentials far exceeds the cost of hiring an severity of missteps has caused irreversible agency.” On top of this, businesses are now repercussions. In this environment, marketing having to factor in potential furloughs and agencies — being on the front line with layoff packages that come with hiring in-house multiple industries — can provide unparalleled employees during unpredictable times. insight and direction. With hiring in-house on hold for many
In fact, we at LaneTerralever feel so strongly businesses, outsourcing marketing support is about this opportunity that we recently enabling them to scale rapidly when an influx of expanded our team to include an EVP of work or specific project needs arise. Plus, it can Business Development, Brad Gould. be a money-saver. —Andy Parnell, president
Additionally, consumer behavior and media of LaneTerralever (laneterralever.com)
