Chuck E. Cheese wants to stop by as often as they pick up groceries, and sells subscription plans to sweeten the pitch.
The 47-year-old pizzeria and arcade chain were born out of bankruptcy with a renovated location, numerous digital upgrades, and a membership program that hopes to prove both affordable and customary. The goal is not to be somewhere to take your kids once or twice a year for a birthday party. Turning Chuck E. Cheese into a daily recreational option that can compete just like Netflix and the nearby playground.
“We need to promote multi-visitors in order to win this game,” David McKillips, president and CEO of Chuck E. Cheese’s parent company, told NBC News in January.
The chain launched its membership program in August 2024 and said on Tuesday that it has since sold 200,000 12-month subscriptions, with the third tier selling between $7.99 and $29.99 a month. Annual “Fan Pass” holders earn unlimited visits, discounts on meals and attractions and other perks to promote what McKillip calls “active play.”
Even at the top prices, he said, “It makes a lot of sense for parents and families to come out and have affordable pizza and gameplay every day.”
For membership to work, you need to carve the Chuck E. Cheese where it is in the consumer’s wallet. About everything when other subscriptions (from streaming services to wholesale clubs) are trying to cut their spending.
The upgrade is designed to help visitors find something new each time they walk down the door, McKillips said.
It makes very reasonable for parents and families to come out and have affordable pizza and gameplay every day.
David McKillips, CEO of CEC Entertainment
Most of the chain’s iconic animatronics have disappeared, but after fan protests they agreed to stick to more places in certain places. McKillips has confirmed it is “Five Nights at Freddie,” and “Five Nights at Freddie’s,” a 2023 horror flick based on the video game series. In this series, the Robo Mascot, a disability pizza chain, thinks that the dead child spirit “had some kind of influence on the whole brand.”
But he said, “People were talking about Chuck E. Cheese, which is good for us.”
There are far fewer life-size rodent musicians now, and other displays for Jumbotrons, digital dance floors and other digital media can be continuously refreshed.
“We’ve switched from holiday content,” McKillips said earlier this year. “Then it becomes evergreen, and then we have spring and summer fun and Halloween.”
Chuck E. Cheese has revamped its play space to include trampolines and obstacle courses.
The brand has recently invested $350 million to remodel over 460 US locations, launch new games and fine-tune food offers. The change was part of the turnaround effort after the company filed for bankruptcy in 2020, causing Covid-19 to be criticized by all sorts of brick and mortar businesses. The company avoided mass store closures using idol Chuck E. Cheese Kitchen to prepare food for delivery under the name Pizza & Wings by Pasqually. McKillips said the solution employs general managers for all chains.
The company is also refreshing its food menu with more “adult” options, including items that cater to “a little spicy palate.” And while Chuck E. Cheese has many options to entertain children aged 4 and 5, “they’re coming in, the older brothers – we have a game for them too,” McKillips said.
Efforts to appeal to the taste of the family are key to “parents and children playing together,” he said. “It was our biggest driver for our guests and how we built the whole new Chuck E. cheese.”