The UK’s largest independent entertainment and leisure operator, the Lane7 Group has confirmed over 120,000 sq ft of transactions completed in 2024, as it opened eight new sites this year across the UK and as part of its wider, planned European roll out.
This news comes as Lane7 pins high hopes on further expansion, expecting to open 10 new venues over the next two years, and adding a potential 180,000 sq ft to its portfolio by the end of 2025 alone. This reflects a 50% year-on-year growth for the UK’s Top Three bowling operator, which is already turning the competitive socialising and multi-player entertainment market on its head.
Lane7’s first European venue opened its doors in October, anchoring the leisure element of Brookfield’s The Playce, Potsdamer Platz in Berlin. Meanwhile, two Dublin venues – at Dundrum and Chatham Street – are due to open in January 2025. In the last few months alone, Lane7 has signed three new sites with six further sites in legals, following a major leasing push ahead of MAPIC. In the UK, the brand’s roll out will include two new venues in its ‘hometown’ of Newcastle, where the very first Lane7 opened its doors in 2013, as well as further sites for its sister brands Gutterball and LevelX, the Group’s family-friendly concepts.
Lane7 founder, Tim Wilks said: “This year, we’ve made a significant investment at MAPIC because we see it as a pivotal moment for our European expansion. It’s an opportunity to reconnect with partners and industry friends, as well as reach out to Europe’s leading investors, asset managers and landlords who are seeking a bold and ambitious operator to anchor retail and mixed-use destinations. We’re very proud to be fiercely independent and this allows us to act with pace and be decisive, creative and take on challenging sites that others might overlook. Whether it’s a former service yard or department store, garage or even a train station, we always bring our signature design and vision.
“Leisure plays a vital role in energising town centres and mixed-use schemes, and competitive socialising is especially powerful as a footfall driver that complements existing F&B brands, and as a compelling leisure option that offers a wide range of activities to suit a diverse audience, to create memorable experiences with or without alcohol. At St James’ Quarter, where we opened in 2021, Lane7 accounted for 2% of the entire scheme’s footfall with 400,000 visiting the venue in the first full year. With 85% of our guests pre-booking their visit, it’s clear that our sites can contribute meaningfully to the overall footfall performance, vibrancy and relevance of town centre and mixed-use destinations.”
Savills research (March 2024) highlights a 40% growth in the competitive socialising sector since 2018 when the market was still emerging; in 2018, Lane7 was five years old and with three sites in the UK, was already ‘re-defining boutique bowling’. Its approach blends bowling with alternative gaming, tech-enabled experiences, retro arcade games and a huge range of other activities from karaoke booths to beer pong, dart boards to mini golf, always anchored by high-quality hospitality – often in collaboration with local F&B brands. This blended multi-player entertainment niche, or so-called ‘combo attractions’ according to Savills research, grew some 455% in the UK over the past five years, tapping into the demand for immersive, memorable experiences that focus on socialising and making memories.
The fast-growing competitive socialising sector also points to a shift in the traditional retail environment, particularly in the wake of the decline of the department store, with landlords seeking to capture new ways of repurposing space to drive footfall, increase dwell time and create a ‘day out’ or ‘night out’ vibe.
In this year alone, Lane7 is on target to welcome 3.5million guests to ‘play and stay’ – a million more visits than in 2023 – as it continues to prove the competitive socialising model as a catalyst for re-energising town and city centre locations, helping to reset the balance between traditional retail, F&B and leisure offers.
