According to the United Nations, more than 60% of the world’s population will live in cities by the year 2050. More people than ever before are migrating from rural areas to urban communities looking for the accessibility that comes with city living.
Why? For younger generations, urban settings provide increased job opportunities, cultural resources, and various other benefits. Older generations, meanwhile, flock to cities for the convenience brought on by additional healthcare options and other resources.
These urbanization trends indicate that what people will gain in resources, they’ll lose in terms of more spacious living quarters; thus, they’ll look for roomier public recreation and socialization spaces. These new urbanization-triggered demands give franchise owners the opportunity to present new forms of entertainment as more people leave rural and suburban areas.
Franchising Opportunities Created by Urban Growth
People desire spaces that allow them to socialize with others. Cities don’t typically have 1,000 square feet of space just lying around, which makes those interactive opportunities hard to come by. When those forums are available, however, this creates urbanization opportunities for interested franchise owners.
Movie theater and arcade experiences are easy to replicate at home. But what can’t be reimagined at home — and what does make a viable addition to a city neighborhood — is a location-based virtual reality center.
Here are three reasons location-based VR franchises and new urbanization opportunities go hand in hand:
- They’ll survive long-term trends. The first thing to do when you research a franchise is to determine a business’s staying power. Luckily, location-based VR won’t become a passing fad because it’s one of the few mediums that people can’t get at home.
With truelocation-based VR, you need enough space for individuals to walk around, and one thing city dwellers don’t have a lot of is space. Franchise owners who take a chance on free-roaming entertainment options like location-based VR will find fewer market competitors and less drastic down periods. - They can take up prime real estate. According to Cushman & Wakefield, mall visit declined by 50% in just three years, and one-third of malls are at risk of closing permanently. That’s a lot of real estate that could be taken up by more experience-based companies.
Location-based VR franchisees can seek out mall landlords who understand such a shift. This kind of co-tenancy is becoming more common, with McKinsey recommending future malls create integrated communities where people can work, shop, live, and — in the case of location-based VR — play. - They attract multiple demographics. Location-based VR centers can attract various demographics, from general consumers to corporations in search of non-traditional team-building exercises. The industry itself is likely to attract plenty of people as most consumers haven’t been able to access VR at home.
While analysts initially predicted an uptick in home-based VR systems, that growth has not materialized due, in part, to pricing. That inability to engage home VR users provides location-based VR systems a chance to attract more demographics who’ve always been intrigued by VR technology.
Urbanization trends are going to continue progressing over the next 30 years. People are moving to cities more and more, and, as a result, they’re going to need more spaces where they can go and have fun. Location-based VR can become that go-to entertainment option for city residents.
Click here to learn more about becoming a Sandbox VR franchise owner so you can help create such spaces today.