PINBALL PARTNERS
By Chris Wadsworth
In 2019, Ocelot Brewing had some unused space at its taproom off Old Ox Road near the airport. The owner got to chatting with his neighbor, Chris Chatman. He knew Chatman had a collection of pinball machines he’d bought over the years and wondered whether some of those games would be a fun addition to Ocelot.
That simple conversation between friends turned into a business – named Outatime Amusements – that is growing in leaps and bounds.
From a handful of pinball machines and one Loudoun location seven years ago, it has now grown to nearly 200 pinball machines, arcade games, claw machines, ATMs, jukeboxes and more at roughly 30 locations in Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia.
“I was a teenager in what was the heyday of arcades in the early to mid ’80s,” Chatman said. “One of my favorite memories is visiting the arcades on our annual summer trip to Ocean City. Seeing multiple copies of the latest and greatest arcade games lined up is a core memory.”
Chatman – who lives in Aldie and is mostly retired from a career in the software industry – partnered in the Outatime venture with his buddy, Matt Wycoff from Warrenton. The two had met a decade earlier in an online pinball forum and discovered their mutual love of old games. They bought, sold, traded and repaired old games for years before launching Outatime.
“Chris and I are both passionate pinball collectors and enthusiasts,” said Wycoff, who still works in cybersecurity when he’s not focused on arcade games. “We built a friendship around a shared passion.”
The business model is simple: They buy games and other entertainment devices in bulk from distributors, then place them in bars, restaurants and other venues. They share the revenue the machines generate with the establishment under an operating agreement.
And no, it’s not all running around collecting bags of quarters. While some of Outatime’s machines in smaller venues do still run on quarters, most have digital “cashless” payment systems.
Put it altogether and it’s a model that has produced rapid growth for the company. It seems many bars and restaurants and other venues are eager to have a selection of games onsite.
“Games help increase ‘dwell time,’” Wycoff said. “They keep patrons entertained and encourage them to stay longer and spend more time at the venue.” And presumably spend more money, too – a win for the establishment.
Chatman and Wycoff are now working with The Pelican Group, a national amusement operator that has helped them get their games into Regal Cinema locations and – soon – into a Sky Zone Trampoline Park location in Maryland. The hope is that will lead to additional Sky Zone locations.
Outatime has also recently partnered with a moving company that provides warehouse space for games and transports them to new clients.
“That partnership has helped us grow more efficiently while staying focused on customer experience and machine quality,” Wycoff said.
Ah yes – machine quality. That’s a big deal to the guys at Outatime. They make sure their games are in tip-top shape, repairing and refurbishing them regularly.
“One of our core principles from the beginning has been quality,” Wycoff said. “Nobody wants to put money into a machine that is broken, poorly maintained or impossible to win.”
And that philosophy is working. Today, that first game location near Ashburn – over at Ocelot Brewing – continues to be a tentpole for the company. The brewery now has 20 pinball machines plus a handful of classic arcade games to entertain its guests.
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
“The name Outatime Amusements comes from the iconic license plate on the DeLorean time machine in ‘Back to the Future,’” Matt Wycoff said. “Chris and I are both huge fans of the movie franchise – we’ve both attended events to meet cast members from the films – and it perfectly captures the nostalgia and sense of fun that drew us to arcades and pinball in the first place.”