by Steve » Wed Jun 01, 2011 10:26 pm
I'd probably suggest starting with a business plan. There is a group called SCORE that helps prospective small businesses. It's generally run by older retired businessmen. They won't give you money, but they can help you nail down a business plan to take to a bank.
The next thing to do is some basic research. If you figure out how far most of your players will drive, and figure out roughly where they are, you can draw a couple of circles on a map that show you where to look for property. Well, circles aren't the exact right shape, since the distance / time equation changes based on the speed of the roadways travelled. But you get the picture.
Then, it is time to figure out what you are looking for in the property. Generally, I'd start by laying out a list of everything you want to be able to do. Then, I'd highlight the things from the list that are a must, which might be buildings, camping areas, access to electrical / sewer hookups, etc. Once you figure out the minimums, it's time to start looking at land costs to see how much the average piece of property that meets your needs costs.
If you can make the numbers work to have your projected revenue cover your projected operating costs, plus recover your initial capital investment in a timely manner, then it is all about writing your business plan and taking it in to the bank to get financing.
Once you have the money, and the land, then it is a matter of surveying your space, figuring out what you want to put where, and putting together whatever improvements you need to do to make it all work. You may end up having to build in phases. But do all of your planning in advance, so you build a coherent field. Engineer tape and wooden stakes work great for actually laying things out on the ground to get a better picture of how the end result will look. If you don't know what you are doing, contract the layout out to someone who does. But make sure it is a cohesive plan. Otherwise, you'll just end up tearing things down and moving them repeatedly. This takes time, leads to destroyed materials, and is just generally a pain in the butt.
Best of luck to you. I've run the numbers a good number of times now, and just cannot see a way to make an airsoft field pay for itself. Maybe if you have a pro shop on site, require field ammo, and can generate enough traffic to cover costs. But it's pretty iffy.
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