I'm writing this blog from my laptop at Thunderbird Lanes in Troy, MI. It's 10:30 p.m. and 41 of the center's 46 lanes are currently in use. Not bad for a Saturday night, but unfortunately there haven't been too many nights like this lately for Thunderbird. The poor condition of the Michigan economy is certainly having an effect on area bowling centers.
Thunderbird General Manager Bruce Heichel says that so far this fall, the center has only generated $10,000 in nightly revenue once. That one time was partially due to a company that booked nearly all of the center's lanes for a special event. He said that the center used to eclipse $10,000 more often in the past, especially on Friday and Saturday nights when open bowling is most popular.
The silver lining in all of this is that league revenue is actually up from last year, according to Thunderbird's night manger, Bonnie Roe. Roe said that leagues were bringing in about the same amount of revenue as last year, until Oakland University's Chaldean American Student Association (CASA) started an 18 team league on Tuesday nights.
Open bowling revenue is still not what it was last year, but Thunderbird is trying to boost sales back up by offering several different special rates, including $1 games on Sundays and $1.99 shoe rental on Fridays. Thunderbird's sister center, Fairlanes Bowl in Madison Heights, offers an all you can bowl special from Tuesday through Thursday. Thunderbird is considering running a similar special in the future.
Judging by tonight, these specials seem to be having some effect. The staff here at Thunderbird anticipates that as the weather gets colder, business will pick up even more. Even in the bad economy, bowling remains an affordable source of entertainment.
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