Escape room centre with two or three rooms

Friend groups, families, birthday parties, school holiday groups, tourists and workplaces booking team-building sessions.

A price per player for each session, plus private group and corporate bookings. Weekday corporate sessions help fill quieter times.

• Puzzle and story design
• Customer service and hosting
• Organising bookings and staff rosters
• Basic DIY or willingness to hire builders

• Check with your local council whether the premises can be used for this purpose and whether approval or a change of use is needed
• Fire safety and exit rules: rooms should never be truly locked, so check building and fire requirements with your council and fire authority
• Public liability insurance, and workers compensation once you hire staff (state schemes)
• Using well-known films or games as themes may breach copyright, so check before you build
• Fit-out and lease costs are significant, so check your numbers before signing

Startup costs are estimates, typically around $50,000 to $250,000, depending on your premises, lease, how many rooms you build and how elaborate the fit-out is. Check your numbers before signing a lease.

Monthly revenue is typically around $8,000 to $40,000, depending on the number of rooms, your pricing, location and how often rooms are booked. Estimates assume about 30 hours a week.

Check with your council whether the premises can be used this way and whether change of use approval is needed. Check building and fire exit requirements, since rooms should never be truly locked, plus insurance and copyright on themes.