News

Soul Will Theme People-Centric 2018 F2FEC Confab Feb 20-22

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO -- The fourth presentation of the acclaimed Face to Face Entertainment Conference (F2FEC) for thought leaders of all segments of the entertainment center business will be held from Feb. 20 to 22 at the Broadmoor Hotel here. The 2018 conference is themed "soul." F2FEC is organized by three entertainment industry veterans, who call themselves the Three Amigos. They are Rick Iceberg of C.J. Barrymores (Clinton Township, MI); Ben Jones of Live Oak Bank (Wilmington, NC); and George Smith,...

November 28, 2017

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO -- The fourth presentation of the acclaimed Face to Face Entertainment Conference (F2FEC) for thought leaders of all segments of the entertainment center business will be held from Feb. 20 to 22 at the Broadmoor Hotel here. The 2018 conference is themed "soul."

F2FEC is organized by three entertainment industry veterans, who call themselves the Three Amigos. They are Rick Iceberg of C.J. Barrymores (Clinton Township, MI); Ben Jones of Live Oak Bank (Wilmington, NC); and George Smith, Family Entertainment Group (Itasca, IL). Their objective in producing the event is to provide a forum for entertainment industry manufacturers, suppliers, distributors, media and facility owners of family entertainment centers, bowling centers, cinemas, trampoline parks, laser, specialty and hybrid entertainment concepts.

The soul theme picks up where this year's "differentiate" discussion left off. Held in February, that conference addressed market convergence to heighten center operators' awareness of the need to identify ways of standing out, standing above and remaining relevant. 

Rick Iceberg explained that "each individual employee at a center is a caretaker of every customer's experience, and that customer interaction directly affects its reputation and profitability." George Smith noted that "maintaining a high-performance organization starts with people and involves creating an atmosphere of trust and empowerment, and must include supporting the whole individual." Ben Jones added that "how we care for our people and provide for their future and wellbeing speaks to the core of our moral compass."

The 2018 confab will invite "the best of the best" to engage in thought-provoking conversations, with the goal of assisting every participant to develop relationships and exchange ideas about "what's now and what's next." The focus is on helping everyone contrast, compare and make more money. The producers emphasize that F2FEC is not an educational or teaching forum, but rather a level playing field that requires everyone to invest and participate. The event is independent, not associated with any organization.

Formal planning for the February "soul experience" will begin, as it has in previous years, with the input of a small group of industry thought-leaders at a one-day "epic charrette" in October. (A "charrette" is an intensive planning session; the term originated in the architectural school at Paris's École des Beaux-Arts, where students worked energetically to put the finishing touches on their drawings before the arrival of the "little cart" -- charrette -- that would collect them for judging.)

Information on the conference, continually updated as the plans take form, may be found at f2conference.com.