Topline
Chuck E. Cheese’s, the kid-themed restaurant-arcade chain that was escorted into bankruptcy court by the coronavirus pandemic, got a judge’s permission this week to pay vendors $2.3 million to destroy 7 billion paper Prize Tickets no longer needed because, thanks to concerns about the virus lingering on surfaces, the place where a kid can be a kid is going contactless.
Key Facts
The Texas-based chain, which filed for bankruptcy protection in June, asked for the judge’s permission to have the tickets destroyed because, if they ended up on the open market, they could be redeemed for about $9 million in prize merchandise, the company said in a court filing.
The more than 7 billion Prize Tickets held by vendors — tickets that ordinarily would be redeemed for prizes such as toys, plush dolls, and branded merchandise — is enough tickets to fill about 65 forty-foot cargo shipping containers, the company said in the filing.
An earlier decision to move to electronic tickets and discontinue use of the paper tickets at all company-owned locations was accelerated “in large part by the Covid-19 pandemic and the industry’s rapid move toward contactless service,” which also eliminates the future costs associated with the use of tickets and maintenance of the machines used to collect and count the tickets, the company said.
Orders for the tickets originally were placed based on pre-Covid use levels, according to Cleveland.com, which earlier reported on the tickets.
Key Background
Chuck E. Cheese’s is one of many restaurant brands retooling operations as the pandemic has consumers changing their behavior and relying much more on cooking at home and grabbing take-out than eating in restaurant dining rooms. That presents a challenge for brands like Chuck E. Cheese’s and Texas-based Dave & Buster’s — sometimes called Chuck E. Cheese’s for grownups — which rely heavily on consumers playing games and interacting with amenities inside the restaurant. Chuck E. Cheese’s still has nearly 490 locations in the United States, according to the brand’s website. Some have reopened following lockdowns earlier in the pandemic. At the open locations, families will have their temperatures checked and guests with a temperature of 100 degrees or higher or other symptoms of Covid-19 will not be permitted to enter. Hands will be sanitized at entry and a “Kid Check Selfie” will take the place of the traditional hand stamp. Some seating and booths will be closed to provide for social distancing and multi-player games may be limited to one player. Pre-packaged house salads will be available for purchase in place of the salad bar and the brand’s familiar mouse-cot, Chuck E., will not regularly stroll around taking pictures with kids, according to Restaurant Business.
Further Reading
Will Chuck E. Cheese’s IPO Lure More Restaurants Back To The Market? (Forbes)
