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On August 13 2013 19:28 YetiFiasco wrote:
I signed up just to reply to this thread.
My and my brother recently went to Meltdown in london to watch the TI3 finals and both agreed the place was a dive. We got there early, around 4-5ish and the place was filthy, the floor was covered in dust, the tables and bar where sticky and there was paint peeling off the walls, the place was just generally in a shabby state. The range of drinks available was pretty mediocre too, and the cocktails offered could basically be summed up as Vodka + energy drink + x.
Now don't get me wrong, I really like the idea of a gamer bar for esports, its a cool idea, but it wasn't a very enjoyable place to go drink, even with an esports distraction. Most of these problems could be solved by cleaning properly and applying a lick of paint and some decoration, not piling your trash right in the entrancement and cleaning out the back room so empty cardboard boxes didn't spill over into the bar are would also help.
Props to the guys who organized it though, the quiz was very fun, seeing everyone hunched over trying to work out who the shadows where was great.
WHAT?! TI3 at Meltdown was insane! I've never had such a great time! The bar was packed, atmosphere was amazing. The special cocktails they had for the night all had energy drink in them as a play on that they were staying open till 6am! They also have a bunch that flicked on the screen to the left of the bar, (Had far to many blue flame hellions!)
Paint wasnt peeling off the walls and the backroom wasnt spilling out, it was the boxes of the TI3 patches, lanywards and tshirts they were giving out!
Also big shoutout to the barstaff, guys were really friendly and up for a laugh always!
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It was amazing! to bad it's so far away from sweden, but i will return if i go to london again.
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On August 14 2013 01:24 Philinex wrote:
WHAT?! TI3 at Meltdown was insane! I've never had such a great time! The bar was packed, atmosphere was amazing. The special cocktails they had for the night all had energy drink in them as a play on that they were staying open till 6am! They also have a bunch that flicked on the screen to the left of the bar, (Had far to many blue flame hellions!)
Paint wasnt peeling off the walls and the backroom wasnt spilling out, it was the boxes of the TI3 patches, lanywards and tshirts they were giving out!
Also big shoutout to the barstaff, guys were really friendly and up for a laugh always!
I'm pretty sure I said the event was awesome and fun, I'm just saying I think the place could do with some real polish, it didn't exactly stand out as "a nice place to drink" based on looks, which is what you should kind of go for since first impressions are everything.
I didn't mean it to sound like the paint was falling off the walls, but corners where flaking and the bottom of the pillars and skirting boards where pretty dinged to hell, it was just a load of small things which made me go "huh....."
I'm sure the staff are the nicest people in the world, they always had a smile at the bar and the service was quick despite the crush
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Me desperately wanting to be an entrepreneur in e-sports be it playing professionally, creating content, or running a bar/shop/cafe dedicated to esports, something to consider, I'll keep my eyes on this despite being quiet the youngster.
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The Meltdown empire is taking over the world of esports :D
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Great stuff, i hope i'll see a Meltdown bar in Switzerland and in Canada
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On August 10 2013 01:30 Plansix wrote:
Damn it, WHY CANT WE HAVE THIS IN THE US. EU gets everything. Healthcare, free education, Esports bars. All I get is freedom.....
I think this post actually means you're hopefully gonna get the Meltdown in the US too:
We have already received applications from all over the world from people who would like to launch a MELTDOWN bar: the US, Sweden, Spain, Poland, China… the community is everywhere.
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I admit I'm more than a bit curious about what the requirements for this franchise would be, and the degree of assistance possible franchisees would receive. How open / closed are the individual Meltdown owner's options?
I think that one in NYC, near Memphis, TN, and somewhere in Florida would all be good places to attempt a Meltdown opening. Unfortunately I think those are the ONLY places that have both the gamer population and the population density to merit the idea of opening a Meltdown a little higher than "absolutely stupid".
If the owners are given latitude they should try to incorporate a Buffalo Wild Wings style, that seems to be successful and is far more popular. Oh... and the obligatory "eSports is being saved!" comment  This is good news after the unfortunate circumstances of MLG Columbus.
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why would anyone pay to be named meltdown <city> instead of just thinking of a name for themselfes and keep all their earnings? its not like they have a massive marketshare and do loads of advertising from which you would profit.
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28100 Posts
lol this seem really cool.
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On August 18 2013 17:07 Sanobot wrote:
why would anyone pay to be named meltdown <city> instead of just thinking of a name for themselfes and keep all their earnings? its not like they have a massive marketshare and do loads of advertising from which you would profit.
Ask Meltdown Berlin owners.
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I really hope meltdown becomes a thing like hardrock-cafe :D
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On August 14 2013 19:12 ItanoCircus wrote:I admit I'm more than a bit curious about what the requirements for this franchise would be, and the degree of assistance possible franchisees would receive. How open / closed are the individual Meltdown owner's options? I think that one in NYC, near Memphis, TN, and somewhere in Florida would all be good places to attempt a Meltdown opening. Unfortunately I think those are the ONLY places that have both the gamer population and the population density to merit the idea of opening a Meltdown a little higher than "absolutely stupid". If the owners are given latitude they should try to incorporate a Buffalo Wild Wings style, that seems to be successful and is far more popular. Oh... and the obligatory "eSports is being saved!" comment This is good news after the unfortunate circumstances of MLG Columbus.
You listed a lot of nice cities but you forgot about LA somewhere in there. Plenty of large gaming events in the city and surrounding area e3, blizzcon, lol finals, wcs global final etc. LA is gamers galore year round. You couldn't go wrong opening a meltdown there unless you really screw up somehow. :D
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On August 18 2013 17:07 Sanobot wrote:
why would anyone pay to be named meltdown <city> instead of just thinking of a name for themselfes and keep all their earnings? its not like they have a massive marketshare and do loads of advertising from which you would profit.
It's a really good question, which is answered on the website. Of course our brand isn't 100 years old nor has ads on prime TV.
But:
- Our network is our strength. We have 3 bars in 3 strategic cities at the moment, more to come. Brands and publishers won't bother contacting local venues for advertising their products, they want deals on a global scale, which is what we offer. This insures great partners for all the franchises (sponsors, events...)
- We offer complete support prior to the opening and after the opening (help to find funds, do the paperwork, increase traffic...)
- We provide franchises with useful tools for every step of the way: global accounting system with statistics to help improve sales, tournament management system, etc.
- Another important point is: a lot of people are passionate about eSports and would love to have their own bar, but have absolutely no experience in the field. We provide classes on how to bartend, how to find the right suppliers, how to manage stocks, staff, etc.
Not to mention we do have somewhat of a reputation for being the first eSports bar, and do advertise on major events and streams, which cannot hurt
Hope this answered your question!
Foxy
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Meltdown about to pop all over the world, and in every large city in France? GL HF GG
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Haha, this is fucking amazing!
I've been dreaming of opening an esports bar since forever :D (just a pipe dream though)
This actually makes it that much easier it might even become reality one day!
Love what you guys are doing, eventhough it makes me sad to see in case i ever make it, i won't be unique anymore because you people are already doing such a wonderfull job!
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bars for video games are a cool idea, but i see almost zero incentive to become a franchisee. if you need to classes on how to run a bar, you should absolutely 100% not be doing this.
the other stuff is so abstract. what do bar owners in france know about the legal stuff behind bar ownership in other countries? about bar suppliers in a country they dont even live in? why would you need a partnership with razer to host tournaments or anything? getting a pos for your restaurant is a no brainer... that's pretty much a must for any franchise. if you're coughing u pa % of profits to someone else, you should be getting that at least. obviously the financial specifics aren't released, but i cant fathom many scenarios where it is beneficial to pay to become a francisee of a brand that's not even based in your country. you cant even enter a coop with other franchised bars to cut down on purchasing costs
basically, you do the same thing wihtout having to kick up money for little benefit. cool idea, but buying your own franchise just seems very weird
also, i can't say it enough, 40-80k euro (53k -106k USD) is no where near enough to open a bar. It will get you a year of operation. you want at least 500k usd behind that thing, whether through banks, partners or whatever, to allow you a few years to get profitable and weather any storms
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On August 20 2013 05:16 QuanticHawk wrote:
also, i can't say it enough, 40-80k euro (53k -106k USD) is no where near enough to open a bar. It will get you a year of operation. you want at least 500k usd behind that thing, whether through banks, partners or whatever, to allow you a few years to get profitable and weather any storms
I think you misread this. 40-80K euro is what you need to go to the bank/investors and get a proper loan. Your 500k estimate is far from reality though, you definitely don't need that kind of money to start your bar and face the first few years.
As for your questions about the franchise, for having opened 3 bars already in 3 different countries with different regulations, and having been running them for a while now, I can insure you we do have ways to support the opening of such a business in other countries.
Also, our partners are supporting us because we're a growing international network. If you think it's easy for a local business to get important sponsorship and events, you're deeply mistaken.
Thank you anyway for trying to help by sharing your own experience, though in this case it's quite misleading. An eSports bar cannot be thought of as a regular business, field experience taught us that! 
Foxy
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On August 22 2013 02:54 Foxy. wrote:Show nested quote +On August 20 2013 05:16 QuanticHawk wrote:
also, i can't say it enough, 40-80k euro (53k -106k USD) is no where near enough to open a bar. It will get you a year of operation. you want at least 500k usd behind that thing, whether through banks, partners or whatever, to allow you a few years to get profitable and weather any storms I think you misread this. 40-80K euro is what you need to go to the bank/investors and get a proper loan. Your 500k estimate is far from reality though, you definitely don't need that kind of money to start your bar and face the first few years.
I guess it depends on the city. In Shanghai or Hong Kong, you'd definitely need 500k.
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On August 18 2013 17:07 Sanobot wrote:
why would anyone pay to be named meltdown <city> instead of just thinking of a name for themselfes and keep all their earnings? its not like they have a massive marketshare and do loads of advertising from which you would profit.
It's not just the name, it's access to a network that can provide funding and guidance. The benefit of having a well known brand is worth the cost as well.
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EPT
