Sega buoyed by Open Day order book
Astra Gaming strikes high profile pose
6 Coinslot June 14 - June 20 , 2013
Park Avenue 2013
Opportunities are there to be grasped
DISTRIBUTORS
AMG ’ s Ian Pawson and Terry Farr saw the Park Avenue Open Day as an ideal opportunity to showcase novelty piece Little Speedy , redemption machine Balloon Buster and The Great Escape hi-tech from Crystal .
T he amusement machines on show from AMG Leisure at the recent Park Avenue event pretty much chose themselves in sales director Ian Pawson ’ s view . “ Balloon Buster is quite simply the best prize merchandiser since Stacker . We ’ ve had repeat orders due to its carnival feel , its novelty factor and its cashbox earnings . It ’ s right up there on the player and operator priority list .”
Similarly , Little Speedy was just as obvious a choice .“ The Speed of Light did very well , so it was a no-brainer to bring in the smaller version , which is targeted at younger kids . It can be set for just fun or ticket
Sega buoyed by Open Day order book
REDEMPTION
Sega Amusements ’
Justin Burke was on hand at last week ’ s Park Avenue Open Day to show off some of the firm ’ s latest novelty and video redemption lines .
Burke told Coinslot : “ The Open Day was really strong this year I thought , and it was a great turn out from the industry . We showed Harpoon Lagoon and Double Spin and have had customers taken both lines , so it was a great outcome .”
Burke concluded with words of praise for one of the co-organisers . He stated : “ Hats off to John Stergides and his team for putting on the day .”
redemption . We see this one going into family pub venues as pubs are screaming out for different styles of product and this one fits the bill perfectly . There ’ s a definite opportunity in the pub market for us and a number of pubcos have already shown an interest and an appetite for a genre that ’ s new to them . As good as gaming is , they ’ re having to look for extra revenue streams .”
With AMG ’ s own two-day Ripon event just around the corner , AMG Director and well known industry authority Terry Farr revealed that he felt it was important for distributors
DISTRIBUTORS
LMS Sales were present at last week ’ s
RPark Avenue Open Day with Chris Widdowson , Tony Glanville and Phil Boulton supporting the distributorship of Skill Ball Zingy Mega .“ It was another fine Park Avenue event , thanks to the Electrocoin team ,” commented Boulton .“ We spoke to customers from all sectors , Arcade , Single Site and Holiday Parks . It also presented a chance to catch up with suppliers and other stakeholders . I would put the mood in the ‘ Coin-Op Camp ’ at about a seven out of 10 in terms of business prosperity , but with an air of optimism looking forward . The day was never about writing a load of business , albeit we did take a few orders , not just for Zingy Mega , but for new product coming on stream too . Yes , I thoroughly enjoyed the day .” Glanville added :“ It would take a few
RLMS serves all sectors at Park Avenue
to organise their own provincial shows and encourage as many industry stakeholders as possible to attend . “ The EAG ’ s the only big UK show left now . Preview ’ s gone , Norbreck Castle ’ s gone and the last London-based IAAPA show ( EAS ) was back in 2011 ,” he told Coinslot .
Farr continued : “ It ’ s really important for us to support the manufacturers - and of course it gives us a chance to showcase and sell products . Given their respective geographical locations , there ’ s no excuse not to attend either King ’ s Lynn or Ripon ! It ’ s equally important , however , for the industry to support shows like Park Avenue .”
Sales director Ian Pawson identified ‘ a genuine feel for which products will perform well ’ as one of the key elements underpinning his firm ’ s recent success - along with a willingness to attend trade shows around the world . “ IAAPA is very important for us now . LAI ’ s products have been great for us . We also picked up UNIS ’ Fruit Mania virtual pusher at IAAPA , which is nice and fast . There are still excellent products to be found domestically , however . To say Pirate ’ s Treasure Chest , the pusher from Mick McHale , is ‘ competitively priced ’ would be the understatement of the year !”
days , if not weeks , to get around and see all the people we met , had they not been at Park Avenue . Of course , it ’ s not so much a business meeting environment , more a social occasion . But we have several follow-up meetings as a result and again , it ’ s all thanks to Electrocoin who were excellent hosts .”
Finally , Widdowson didn ’ t go away empty handed either . He concluded : “ I wasn ’ t expecting much , sales wise , so being able to ring the office on the way back to the Midlands , to place orders on the system , was a great result . Skill Ball Zingy continues to be one of those perennial products which sells very much on its performance and reputation . The Zingy Megas are of a limited number and should be sold out before the summer season really gets going .”
Astra Gaming strikes high profile pose
MANUFACTURERS
The Astra Gaming Group was well represented at this year ’ s Park Avenue with a stellar line-up of product dominating a significant footprint in the showroom of Electrocoin Sales .
The latest titles from Astra
Games , Bell-Fruit Games and Empire Games were on display at London ’ s Park Avenue last week , notably the former ’ s re-born version of the iconic Party Time . There was support , too , from national operator Gamestec and distribution firm RLMS who both had representatives on hand last Wednesday to advise customers on the latest product developments .
Empire had two games on show - Sky ’ s the Limit and Clockwork Oranges Roll Up . The firm ’ s Steve Young commented : “ Open Day is always a good event to catch up with other manufactures and sales executives . It gives us all a chance to bounce ideas off each other with the aim of producing quality games for the market place . As always , the barbecue was a real winner , and to top it off it was a gloriously sunny day . Smiles all round for another enjoyable open day !”
Bell-Fruit , meanwhile , showed its two latest machines at the open day , the QPS Monster Money which has now received approvals from almost all major retailers , and the Deal or No Deal Double Chance which is flying high on test and already picking up its first approvals .
Sales and marketing director John McLoughlin remarked : “ There was a lot of talk about the longawaited triennial review which we hope to see in
November and there is a general feeling that £ 100 prize should give a lift to the industry , even though there is to be no increase in stake . The event was well attended by both operators and pub retailers and there were plenty of opportunities to discuss business in a relaxed and amiable atmosphere , whilst at the same time supporting the industry ’ s chosen charity , Rays of Sunshine .”
He added : “ The open day serves a very useful purpose and is always well patronised by the industry . Particular thanks should go to Kevin Weir and the rest of the team at Electrocoin for putting so much effort into making this one of the key dates in the business calendar .”
Alan Rogers , Astra ’ s director of sales , concurred , stating : “ It is a welcome date on the industry calendar that provides the opportunity to meet with customers and friends from all over the UK . At the Open Day was Party Time , our latest reel and video based game which emphasises Astra ’ s core strength in Category C . It ’ s fantastic visually , thanks to a modern take on the iconic arena presentation . Furthermore , the game has truly dynamic appeal which , of course , results in an entertaining experience for the player . It also invites players to enjoy familiar game play that is well proven and a consistently strong performer on site .”