Rick's Strike Zone will be a for-profit Texas corporation. We will lease an approximately 15,000 square/ft. facility where we will offer a central, indoor location for guests to learn and practice their baseball and softball skills. The facility will include batting cages, pitching areas, team skills areas, meeting area, equipment rental, & rest area. In addition to the facilities, Rick's Strike Zone will offer specialized group coaching clinics and one-on-one skills training, and will facilitate youth league board meetings.
Youth baseball and softball programs have exploded in popularity over the past 10 years. Informal surveys indicate that facilities offering similar amenities draw guests from up to 40 miles away, if the facilities can provide a safe, clean, state-of-the-art facility for honing baseball and softball skills. Within a 20 mile radius of the proposed facility, there are 4,000+ children in little league baseball, 2000+ in girls softball, 2500+ in adult softball, 300+ in High school Baseball/Softball, and 4 colleges. All of these are potentially regular customers for Rick's Strike Zone.
Parents are looking to give their children an advantage over other children in organized sports activities. Group coaching is simply not enough to give children the proper skills required to play at an above average level in baseball and softball. Private coaches and skill trainers are fully booked by eager parents looking for one-on-one training for their child. "Select" baseball and softball leagues are increasing in popularity and advanced skills training is an absolute requirement for participants in these activities. This indoor facility will cater to the increasing need of individualized skills training on a year-round basis.
Rick's Strike Zone currently has little to no competition within the service area. There is one outdoor batting cage facility located in Cedar Hill, approximately 10 miles away from the proposed location. This facility is closed during inclement weather and has limited utilization during the hot summer months. The next closest facility is in Euless, 20 miles from Duncanville and 40 miles from Waxahatchie. This business was opened in mid 2002 by two youth league coaches who saw a need for this type of facility. Through personal experience, we found that a 2 hour wait was common on winter weekends if you did not have reservations. Weeknights did not require reservations for the batting cages, but 1 hour waits were common. The team skills areas require reservations. The indoor competition is open for 53 hours a week while the outdoor facility has a potential of 50 plus hours a week, depending on weather.
Rick's Strike Zone will provide a quality indoor baseball training environment for serious athletes and amateur enthusiasts. We project a conservative facility usage of 20% for the first year and a 25% growth rate for the second year. Rick's Strike Zone is a business that will flourish in the growing sports environment of the Best Southwest area of Dallas county.
1.1 Mission
Rick's Strike Zone will provide a quality indoor baseball training environment for both the serious and the recreation-minded. The primary goal for the Rick's Strike Zone staff is to promote baseball fundamentals of offense and defense for all ages. By focusing on our primary goal, Rick's Strike Zone will provide a service to the local youth, that will in turn generate a positive revenue stream for continued growth.
1.2 Objectives
- Rick's Strike Zone will commence operation in the spring of 2004.
- In the first year of operation, we expect a conservative 20% usage.
- For the second year we project a growth rate of 25%.
- For the third year we expect to match the community growth rate of 15%.
1.3 Keys to Success
- Our great location.
- High quality customer service.
- Contracts with skilled local baseball instructors.
- So many options under one roof - customers never get bored!
