The chief executive of Hollywood Bowl has stated that the company has altered its recruitment strategy, prioritising experienced staff over young people seeking their first jobs, due to cost increases that have placed a “premium” on entry-level positions.
Shift in Hiring Strategy
Stephen Burns, who leads the 10-pin bowling alley operator, criticised tax rises and minimum wage increases, asserting that these factors have compelled the firm to change its hiring approach. He is the latest business leader to raise concerns about shrinking entry-level job opportunities, following the boss of Next who earlier this week highlighted a “crisis in youth unemployment”.
Mr Burns told the Press Association: “Hospitality is a gateway employer… people come to us for their first jobs. We’re now paying a significant premium for those people who are coming for their first jobs, so of course we’re therefore going to focus on experienced team members.”
He elaborated: “Whereas previously, you’d take an inexperienced team member and pay them less, train them up, then get them into the workplace, and then they’d earn more once they’d got to that level of experience.”
He added that employers are “not paying much more now for a really experienced 21-year-old who knows how to work the bar and knows how to deal with customers. So it’s a problem and it needs addressing.”
Impact of Minimum Wage and Tax Changes
The national minimum wage increased again in April to £12.71 per hour for those aged 21 and over, and £10.85 for those aged 18-20. The age threshold for the higher rate was lowered from April 2024, previously applying only to those aged 23 and over.
Mr Burns said the most “pain” for businesses is coming from “Government-led increases” including the minimum wage, national insurance contributions, business rates, and corporation tax uplifts. “They’re the things that have put the biggest pressure on profits,” he noted.
Despite these challenges, the leisure firm continues to hire students and people in entry-level roles, particularly during peak periods like the school summer holidays.
Pricing Strategy and Financial Performance
The boss emphasised that Hollywood Bowl has “only needed to modestly increase our prices” to keep pace with inflation, largely because bowling and amusements are relatively insulated from cost pressures. “Anyone can put prices up – it’s a super easy lever to pull which gives you an immediate short-term profit impact,” Mr Burns said. “But what we need to do is make sure that we’re accessible to the wide community.”
However, the company employs dynamic pricing, adjusting prices at peak or off-peak times to meet demand. This can see prices cut from a base of around £6.50 to as low as £3.50 per game during quieter periods, but increased by a maximum of 50p per game at peak times. The chief executive noted that a family of four can bowl for £26 in the UK.
Hollywood Bowl reported revenues of £141.5 million for the six months to the end of March, up 9.5% compared with the same period the previous year. Like-for-like sales in the UK, excluding new store openings, rose by 2.6%. The average spend per person at a bowling alley, including food, drink, and additional games, was £12.77 in the UK during the latest period, an increase of 7.6% on the prior year.
