Australia’s FEC Funlab Expands into North American Market

Australia’s Funlab began its journey when founder Michael Schreiber opened the first Strike Bowling venue in Melbourne in 2001. After conquering the Australian and New Zealand markets, Funlab is set to bring its competitive socializing experiences to the United States.

“Michael wanted to marry the traditional fun of tenpin bowling with a contemporary hospitality experience that delivered fantastic food and cocktails and a late-night atmosphere that cranked up the fun and turned down the lights,” says Blaise Witnish, acting CEO USA and chief growth officer at Funlab. “We’ve expanded beyond the original Strike Bowling concept to a family of eight competitive socializing brands, over 50 venues, and three countries,” says Witnish.

Funlab’s brands include Holey Moley, Hijinx Hotel, Strike, La Di Darts, Archie Brothers Cirque Electriq, B. Lucky & Sons, Jukes Karaoke, and Red Herring Escape Rooms. These facilities target families and adult audiences.

“Entering the U.S. is a huge milestone in our company’s growth,” Witnish says. After acquiring Urban Putt, Funlab transformed its Denver location into a 27-hole Holey Moley minigolf and bar experience. It aims to revitalize Urban Putt’s San Francisco site in 2024.

“We’re looking to open our first brand-new Holey Moley experience in Austin, Texas, in April 2024 before expanding across the southwest of the U.S.,” Witnish says.

Global private equity firm TPG Capital recently acquired Funlab, which will help fuel further growth. Funlab builds its business on three pillars: People, spaces, and innovation. First and foremost, Funlab invests in its staff.

“If you recruit and treat people well, they treat guests well. So we always have an equal focus on our people and guests,” Witnish explains. “Funlab has nearly 3,000 employees, called ‘Motherfunners.’ Many Motherfunners have been with us for five, 10, and 20 years.”

Funlab continually invests in its culture, programs, and environment to improve their work lives and spaces. Listening to the team helps Funlab innovate and evolve. The idea for Hijinx Hotel, for example, came from a Motherfunner.

“We invested in their idea to create what is now a well-loved brand in Australia,” Witnish says.

Everything Funlab does is about human connection—between teammates, couples, friends, and families. What also sets Funlab’s brands apart are their backstories and attention to detail.

At every stage of the guest journey, “we want all of our venues to wow and delight, creating immersive worlds of fun,” Witnish says. Funlab believes in creating “destination precincts” where people can enjoy multiple brands under one roof. Funlab’s “digital transformation program has been a truly revolutionary moment,” she adds.

“Working with our partners Merkle Australia (part of the Dentsu Group) and Salesforce, we’ve integrated and leveraged data and digital technologies to help define the ultimate digital guest experience,” Witnish says.

To accomplish the transformation, Funlab launched new websites with a redesigned online booking platform. Event planners can now customize a booking for up to 50 guests.

Back of house, a suite of Salesforce clouds enable Funlab’s sales and concierge teams to service guests with personalization and AI-driven insights.

“The solutions are fully scalable, and we’ll be able to deploy the same smarts as we grow our footprint in the U.S.,” Witnish concludes.