Where will CEC be in 5 years from now...your thoughts!

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

Hi gang...

Thought this would make a timely topic....over the past month or so the hot topic here has been the status of CEC as a Entertainment Concept and the future that Concept has. So here's a thread to get your brains in high gear....a place to seriously contemplate where you think CEC will be in 5 years.

So what do you think? Let's hear some thought-provoking views and serious therories. Do you think it will be better? Do you think it will be a step down from where it is now as a whole? Do you think we will see something different come along that will shape the place differently to what it is now? Perhaps you see it instead losing ground and sinking into a hole?

This thread is for both positive and negative views...so let's hear em'!

Personally in my view i see CEC still being around....how can it not be? It's too huge to just dry up and dissapear. !0 years maybe, but not 5. I think CEC as a whole will still be around, but i don't see it being too much of a improvement over what it is today...or at least i don't if it continues to trend in the directions it seems to be going in.

I think we will see some changes of course, both good and bad....hopefully good for the entertainment and show elements. I would like to see some new experimentation in these areas. I see CEC continuing to target toddlers and soccer moms. I don't personally think they should focus on such a narrow audience, and strongly feel that doing so has led to the state of affairs we are in now.....but that's another story for another time. Eventually the pool is going to thin to a trickle and CEC will have to focus on other ways to attact Guests. Perhaps this WILL happen within 5 years and the fact it DOES happen will make them change there ways? Who knows...i guess we will have to see.

The Show..if there even is one 5 years from now ( one has to wonder at this rate...)...will probably be shorter in length then it is now. What i mean by that is the show segments will be shorter and Showtapes in general will repeat more often. Maybe not in 5 years, but i'm convinced that the Show will eventually be eliminated in favor of the cheaper tv monitor type entertainment. Smalltown CEC's have shown us the future.

It's not all doom and gloom....i think we will see some slight improvements too. We HAVE to...they really will need something to get folks back in thru the doors. I look forward to seeing what it is that they have in store for us. Hopefully it will be something that will get the fans excited. We have the 30th Anniversary of Chuck E. coming up in 2007. Let's hope for something!

So let's hear your views....where do you think CEC will be in 5 years from now?

[captslappy]

I see them getting away from all the characters but CEC. The 3 stage bot has 22 movements. Granted the cyber mech is only 8 but I wouldn't be surprised to see them cut corners and make these robots into single character shows. The other 4 haven't been used in advertising in years and given the latest decorating doesn't really use any of the characters in the latest remodeling, I can see them phasing out Munch, Pasqually, Jasper and Helen in the long run.

[CEC3066]

We have the 30th Anniversary of Chuck E. coming up in 2007. Let's hope for something!

oh I got it.... get this, BIRTHDAY LE CHUCK E! (runs b4 Jenn can find something to throw @ him)

[pizzacam]

Hopefully out of business, the damn place is on it's last leg entertainment-wise. I don't wanna imagine what else will be cut out in 5 years. >: In 5 years you'll be able to go to Peter Piper Pizza or Chuck E Cheese, there won't be much of a difference. :rolleyes

[YoungCaliHottie]

...bankrupt!

BUT... they WILL have curtains, because they will be used to cover up the holes in the walls where these things called "stages" once existed.

and then just like showbiz did when ptt was going under, my then popular chain will buy them out :) and i will rule the world with classic rae's! lol

kidding aside, i don't think the shows will last long. they seem to just be considered an "expense" at this point. but then that will lead to decreased birthdays, which will make cec scramble for a new show idea. maybe just live shows every hour with no animatronics? (...shoot... what am i doing!? giving them ideas!!!!!1111 hope they dont read this! lol)

i seriously do hope to be a competitor of theirs by then. and i will use rae's while i can. cyberbots suck! :lol

[captslappy]

I didn't go to last year's stock holder's meeting but they have been making record profits every year unless that suddenly started changing. I think CEC is here to stay but sadly the animtronic end of things is going down hill. I stick with my one character prediction.

[YoungCaliHottie]

with the random movements, the studio c's will be worn out by then. and they wont be repaired. like todays 3 stages (more on that below). i really do think they might end up just having live shows only. with maybe an accompanying dvd tape. maybe there will be a small stage in the front or coner of the showroom where he'll hop onto for the shows. now that i think about that more, the kids might actually really like that.


for more on my 3 stage example, i went to fullerton the other day, and heres how it went...

-curtains stayed open, but no random movements at all. characters just froze. cec's tv didnt even stay on. no lights either.

-cec's mouth didnt work well at all. hardly opened. arms didnt work. just twitched.

-helen's left eye didnt blink. :rollin actually quite hillarious to look at

-helen's head furr looks funny up close. like it was patched up with... yes... it looks like patches of mitzi's furr. especially in the back.

-munch's head is stuck down and tilted. he does turn his head left and right though.

-jaspers eyes are stuck in beach bear's cross-eyed position

-pasquallys arms hardly move. his head is stuck looking to his right.

-none of their feet move. is this still programmed?

-the wink only comes down half way

-the props are in poor condition. as are the characters costumes and furr

now to my point, if this is the lack of care that they are putting into the show now, why should we think that it will get any better? seems like its downhill from here. as they come up with more and more ways to cut corners on the show and the eventually phase it out and replace it with occasional live shows.

[dheineCECfan]

I guess for CEC in 5 years...
a) The animatronic robots will be replaced by all video monitors (showing Chuck E. and his friends in different monitors as puppets and walkarounds and sometimes cartoon characters)
b) CEC would be acquired by some company like McDonald's or Dave and Busters.

[pizzacam]

Well maybe McDonalds but I doubt Dave & Busters would go all @#%$ with kids games etc... :lol

[dheineCECfan]

Speaking of McDonald's buying CEC a few years from now if possible: Do you remember back on April Fool's Day 2005 when VegaNova's ShowBizPizza.com became for that day the McDonald's leaning Hamburglar.com?

[Pizzatimefun222]

Here's where I see Chuck in like 12 years, DOWN TO THE GROUND, Sorry but I think that CEC will get unpopular for the fans then the people, then, BAM, Chapter XI here we come!

[PuroMax]

5 years... Video games/simulators will begin to outweigh games of skill, and there will be a lot more price tagged character merchandise, making the merch counter more like a storefront souvenir stand. The show will eliminate all moving parts so that techs can be scheduled to come in later. Birthday parties will require gratuity so that the host(ess)es can work for a cheaper wage. Portion control will be slimmed down (already doing that in Canada) and every game will cost 2 tokens (because the games are now DOUBLE the fun!!):cec_thumbs:

That'll keep the shareholders happy and the numbers on the uprise.

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

Tell it like it is, dude!

:smokin:

[macrossmaster]

Almost two years have passed since the initial question...so I think earlier predictions (doubling prices, etc) could be on the mark. I can foresee everything getting more expensive, becoming more Disney-like with merch and high cost being the norm, but little character support or shows (whens the last time Mickey did ANYTHING but be on a shirt?). Now, if another restaurant takes them on, we might see improvement.

I loved both PTT and SBPP back in the day (since my town had both :) ) but they were great BECAUSE of each other. Sadly, there's no wish to improve if there's no competition.

[CEC3066]

man it's times like THIS when I scratch my head & say "why'd i invest my $$$$ in CEC stock" b4 I know it everything I like about CEC will be GONE and will turn into "just another pizza parlor" maybe I should sell my stock while I have the chance?

[captslappy]

From a stock investor I hope they do whatever it takes to make money. As for the future, I think they will either just go to a CEC bot or go all Studio C in the next few years or so and eventually just have monitors. Some day, CEC will not have an animatronic show at all. That's the only real change.

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

I think we can all agree that CEC will continue to make loads of money...thus keeping their all-important stock quote up there. But i have to ask...at what cost?

What i mean is...what it is "costing" us in terms of loss of the wonderful concept itself?

Sometimes it seems the main focus is solely driven by that ( keeping the stock up for the investors) and the REAL focus ( innovation and immmersive Guest Magic) is being ignored and minimalized. If you accomplish a unique and great Guest Experience, the high stock rewards will follow regardless. It's a double edged sword really....and i think that is part of the issue with the concept today. Too much focus on the "bottom line" and not enough on the overall execution of the concept we know and love as a whole.

[CEC478Worker]

No offense to the corporate guys on this site but...

Get some promotions going and bring back the secret service stars! STOP GETTING CHEAPER!!! you guys can still make money without cutting the hospitality this company is known for!!!

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

I think the "lack of promotions" is due to the apparent lack of interest from Guests.

It was said that the "Super Chuck Summer" promotion was a flop.....and that the previous "themed" promotions were not as successful as the Company wanted.

I know myself and other fans loved them...personally i thought they were great...Winter1Derland and Summer Of Fun in particular. Fans loved all the special tie-ins and unique Merch but i'm sure that all cost the Company extra $$$.

They were probably dropped in part because of that, and the slump Super Chuck Summer seemed to leave in it's wake.

[CEC478Worker]

Well Corporate guys an answer please. Or at least design some new nametags.

[PuroMax]

The candle is burning at both ends. The company needs to keep being MORE successful than last year, and the cost of success is going up. Now they're putting more fire behind the "All games one token" campaign because that's what worked 4 years ago. Re-hashing the same crapola isn't going to cut it in the long run. More Fun/ More fun II brought in money, so the company took it to the next level with Summer of Fun. This was awesome for both the cast and the guests, it was a move in a little different direction. The normally stagnant summer grew some life and CEC was a fun place to be on a hot summer day.

That's when the greed kicked in. With all the success from promotion the company said "let's try and push sales harder during our busiest time of the year!" Winter 1derland was a re-vamped, re-themed version of the last promotion that was really just a step too far and became a detriment to the business. When the store would be at its busiest guests would ask "How do I get those 1000 tickets I saw on TV?" And stuff of that nature. So of course the company thought "we need to do the same thing, but MORE!" Now you've got the same premise you've been using for the last 2 years bulked up with all these bells and whistles, and the value of it all is just completely lost. So Super Chuck Summer fell flat because focus groups determined that Chuck E. is "more marketable" as a super hero. Yes, it's easier to market super heros than mice... anybody can tell you that. Chuck E. Cheese, however, is a mouse, not a super hero. You can't put steam behind a hero that A: Doesn't have any unique attributes and B: Doesn't have any bad guys to fight. And that's followed up on the operations side by "By the way, you guys can wear hawaiian shirts again like last year, cuz that was fun, right?" No reason for this really, other than "it worked before".

Then the company made the same mistake twice. Every Kid's a Winner was an attempt to drive traffic during the busiest time of the year. It was completely unnecessary and, again, a detriment to operations. Not to mention it opened a window for substantial theft issues and a nightmare for cleanliness. You might as well have given kids free confetti and silly string at the door the way those game pieces would be strewn about the floor and stuck on booths and tables.

Now they've gone back to square 1, "All games 1 token". This may drive traffic nicely to show the company's hard work in remodels and game enhancements. Still though, it's the same premise. I believe that Summer of Fun was the apex of the CEC marketing machine. It had all the tools in place, and was the only time a merchandise item was so hot that it needed an increase in price mid-promotion. The team needs to get up and think of a new angle, because for the last 5 years they've just been changing outfits.

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

Well said PuroMax....i totally agree with many of your points.

I think what would be helpful for the Company is to play up the "All games 1 token" speil with the additonal slant towards seeing the "new CEC". What i mean by this is that once the Phase 4 remodels are complete in a certain area, run the Sunday ad slicks with a catchy image and a headline along the lines of "Come see the ALL NEW Chuck E. Cheese's". Even though in reality it is not entirely "all new", Phase 4 compared to the stuck-in-the-90's mode remaining Stores will fool any regular Guest. The difference between Phase 3 and 4 is very obvious...maybe less so in the newer locations opened in the early 2000's, but still enough for Guests to notice i think. It's all about "Guest Perception" of course.....and i think if they play this angle up ( much like they did during "New 4 You" in 2002) i think it could impact the Companys' earnings in a positive way.

Summer Of Fun was a big hit as it was the first time in AGES the Company did any sort of themed promotion. It harkend back to the days or yore, and honestly generated excitment in not only the Guests coming in the door, but more importantly the Staff and Managers! It was great! Too bad they have yet to have come up with another successful promo.

I agree that Winter1derLand was more complex...and the "1000 free tickets" promise was daunting in some circumstances. I think a lot of Guests were confused by that offer...most assumed it was like a lottery and some lucky kid would win ALL 1000 at once randomly through the course of the day. They had a hard time understanding that the idea was various Ticket Splashes instead ( totalling 1000 per day). Try explaining that to a dissallusioned parent.....it's easy to see why this part of the promotion was not repeated in future ones.

"Every Kid a Winner" was a fiasco for those of us working the Stores, but from a Guest persepective i think it was popular. The game card stickers were a nightmare....and the accessive litter the discarded cards created was a hassle...but the kids would get so excited about the prospect of "winning".

I would like to hope that we have not seen the end of the themed promotions. They liven things up at CEC's and keep things from getting too stale, which happened a few years back. As long as they keep trying out ideas, surely at some point we will see a future promo that is all aces.

[Rolfe19]

I think either it will just be games and food or it will be the top in animatronic entertainment for restraunts.

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

It would be NICE to see them be that ( the top animatronic entertainment in resturants..) but i highly doubt this is going to happen. It won't happen until the current "old guard" retires and some visionaries get in there to steer the Company on a different course.

Again, i don't see this happening anytime soon as let's face it, as much as we all feel it's bland filler compared to what came before the Company IS SUCCESSFUL. As long as they keep pulling in those huge profits and the stock keeps looking rosey to the holders, NOBODY in the upper officies at CECE is going to do a damn thing. They would'nt want to "mess" with what the numbers are telling them is fine. Of course, from a fan perspective....the numbers do not tell the entire story.

So yeah, in 5 years.....i would say i would LIKE to see those changes happen. I think if CEC did a little something cutting edge, and invested a little more in the entertainment elements ( not including the games for once..sigh) they would see their profits margin jump. You always get back what you put into something in the end .....

[Larry the Tech]

In 5 years, NO store will have curtains and they will all have Studio Cs

[raebigc]

5 years from now.... CEC will still be no. 1!

[menutia]

Where will CEC be in 5 years from now...your thoughts!

Hopefully still bolted to the floor.

[chuckrules]

well munch's aka's the old fatz foot tap should still be programmed . and if pasqually's foot pedal for the two cymbals to move. those are the two only working. that also is progammed to make it look like pasqually is opperating the cymbals that are together. Our Munch's foot tap was disabled from working cause his sneaker was falling apart. Dame plastic material.:(

And Jasper's leg kick movements should still be progammable too. That applies to all of those three stage FORMER RAE/MMBB characters. LOL ROBBIE THAT MUST LOOK FUNNY SEEING WHAT YOUR SAYING LOOKS LIKE MITZI'S FUR PATCHED UP ON HELEN HENNY FUR MASK! Meeeeeeeeeeee thinks the lovely Miss HELEN HENNY won a fight in a fighting round.:P

[menutia]

I'm not going to ask what the hell that comment even means!

[chuckrules]

Good Micheal LOL!;):)

[Shiney Happy Jenn]

Hopefully still bolted to the floor.

Either that, or ...he'll be in my garage!

Man i love the fine art of dumpster jumpin'...........



5 years from NOW ( 2008)....i would like to say that Mr Frank will be officially retired and the "Big M" will be too busy playing golf ....thus we can get some new blood in there and stir the pot of stale porridge. Someone needs to spike it with some Captain Morgan..or Kahlua....or even better: Some Captain Slappy!

[Mr Munch88]

Where will CEC be in 5 years.... um, er, cough, cough , .......in my office?:p

[ChuckEFranchize454]

Where will CEC be in 5 years.... um, er, cough, cough , .......in my office?:p

hehe I think for most of us thats already happnd! :laugh: