"The Boss" of RPG Rebirth: Received 1,000 pre-orders after 30 days of reopening

After going bankrupt after Covid-19, Vuong Nhan deleted all data, determined to "never return" to the role-playing game model. But with no other passion, he returned to Genesis Escape with more careful tactics and higher profits.

Genesis Escape is located on the 4th-5th floor of a newly built building on Hoang Cau Street ( Hanoi ). When the elevator slowly reached the 5th floor, the door opened to a dimly lit, dark space with dense horror-inspired images on the walls. In contrast to the space, the surrounding atmosphere was extremely bustling, filled with the laughter of young people waiting to pay to enter the game room. Even though it was a weekday, the flow of customers continuously came and went, maintaining that hustle and bustle throughout the afternoon.

Mr. Vuong Nhan - the current "father" of Genesis Escape and the former We Escape, welcomed me into a small room of only about 15 square meters, with white walls, nothing much but a desk and a large screen computer, where the staff were preparing tools and dressing up for the game room. This is the temporary office of the CEO and the team, before they move to a larger room on the 7th floor of the building.

Returning to the business model that went bankrupt 2 years ago, Mr. Nhan excitedly talks about his "new yet old" brainchild as vibrantly as in the beginning.

• Received up to 30 billion VND in investment capital from Shark Thuy but eventually had to close all 8 facilities after the Covid-19 pandemic. How did you feel at that time?

I was burned out, too disappointed by Covid and had to struggle mentally whether to keep the company or not. We Escape was the reason I left my high-paying job in Singapore to come back, work and think about it 24/7. I myself am quite an extreme person, if I wanted to keep it, I had to keep all 8 locations, not just maintain 1-2 locations. If I wanted to keep it, I would keep it all, if I wanted to close it, I would close it all! That was the reason I was forced to close everything, because I didn't have enough strength to keep it all. When I decided to go bankrupt, I told myself I would never open it again.

After that, I opened a game studio and raised about 1.5 million USD. Of which, 600,000 USD came from the CEO of an investment fund, who is also a famous person in the technology and blockchain industry. However, after that, gamefi declined, and my company also closed. In November 2022, this same investor invited me to work as COO at the investment fund he founded. To be honest, working as a COO, I have a very good income. Starting out as a finance student, previously a math major, jobs related to numbers were not a challenge for me. However, these jobs only brought money, not giving me the same passion as when I built We Escape.

• Starting a new business model requires a lot of courage. Restarting a business model that you have failed in is probably even more difficult. What was the moment that made you decide that you had to come back?

In early 2023, every now and then, former employees would tag me in haunted house models that appeared on social media and say: "I wish We Escape would revive", "So sad, there's nothing to do in Hanoi!". Naturally, I felt responsible. I had been successful, had built a famous brand in this field in the market. Back then, young people didn't say "Go to a haunted house?" but "Go to We Escape?".

Looking back, I realize that from the day I first had the idea of ​​We Escape until the company went bankrupt and even now, young people still have too few places to play, still just hanging around watching movies, going to coffee shops. Now, when social networks like TikTok emerge, people still lack real connections and interactions. I think realistic role-playing game models still have room to develop, are a healthy form of entertainment, helping people work together, understand each other better, have fun together, and be scared together.

And importantly, when I went to work at other companies, I realized that I had no passion for anything other than role-playing games. That was my biggest and only passion. Even when I went to work at another company, my mind could not escape thinking about new ideas, new storylines or new techniques in the game rooms. In April 2023, I quit my job, decided to come back and determined not to fail again.

• Who is accompanying you on this comeback, with Genesis Escape?

I had no intention of reopening until a close friend suggested it. He is nicknamed Monday - a game designer, started out as a loyal customer of We Escape since 2014, then became my partner when We Escape expanded in Ho Chi Minh City. We share the same passion for the industry, and we work very well together. When I decided to close everything, I gave Monday a facility in Ho Chi Minh City (which has been rebranded). Honestly, I didn't believe that this facility could survive, but surprisingly, it is still doing very well.

Around the beginning of the year, Monday said: “ I want to cooperate with you on a new project because you have always been my teacher, my master. You don’t need to worry about capital, you don’t need to spend a lot of money, as long as you are in the product, we will definitely succeed” . I was very touched to see that my product was still cherished. He kept the old facility alive through Covid, but I didn’t, proving that he was even more passionate than me.

I think money is a necessary condition - because investment is very expensive, but Monday is a sufficient condition for me to confidently return. With Genesis Escape, I focus a lot on business, while Monday is very good at products. With him, I feel like I am always pushed forward, encouraged and supported.

In addition, I am lucky to have many former employees from We Escape who continue to come back to join me. Some of them started at We Escape as freshmen and now come back as seniors. They are all young and enthusiastic people who come to the company to support work even when they don't have shifts.

• Deciding in April and opening in early June must have been a lightning-fast process. How did Genesis Escape's opening day go?

I said I was coming back, but I had to build everything from scratch, because all of We Escape's previous assets were "gone". I didn't even have any old customer data, because I was so extreme that I had deleted everything myself two years ago. The 30 days to prepare for the comeback were 30 days of me working from 9am to 3am, looking for old stuff everywhere to equip the game room, building a new team, running ads, writing content,...

When we first opened, every morning I saw messages and emails from customers complaining. The problem was that we coded a platform for customers to book tickets in advance, but there was an error, one customer booked over another customer's slot. Then customers also compared Genesis Escape with We Escape. Fortunately, the error was gradually fixed.

• Aside from the name, how are Genesis Escape games different from We Escape?

During We Escape, we had a lot of games and developed very quickly, especially after Mr. Thuy (Shark Thuy) invested in them. Among them, there was a type of product that was purely puzzle-solving, without a plot. This product had the advantage of creating logical thinking for players, showing off technology and was quite popular and successful abroad. However, this type of product was not popular in the Vietnamese market. Firstly, because people were quite lazy to solve puzzles. Secondly, the rate of customers returning to this product was not high. A game without a plot, without characters, without anything lingering but purely puzzle-solving would be difficult for customers to play again.

With Genesis Escape, we focus on the type of product that has a plot, has supporting characters, has many developments and challenges, along with difficult questions. I built a set of thousands of these questions myself. For example, you will be able to role-play, immerse yourself in the plot, be "tricked" by ghosts, interact with supporting characters in the game room, and solve difficult problems together. In the same game room, participants may have to play over and over again to solve all the puzzles.

• Where are the rooms, storyline, and characters in Genesis Escape built from?

The plots and puzzles in Genesis Escape's playrooms are all created by me, based on my own stories and experiences: social evils, study pressure, domestic violence, bad habits in society,... I am also the one who teaches the staff how to act, how to act, and how to gesture. The staff must act in front of me before they can enter the playroom.

I used to be a student addicted to video games, forced to study to the point of opposing my parents. I studied at Chu Van An High School for Mathematics but failed the university entrance exam because I was too absorbed in playing video games. My parents decided to push me to Singapore alone, not sending me money to be independent and study by myself. At that time, I was very angry with my parents: Why did you push me away when I was only 18? Why did you force me to study while my friends could sit and watch movies? But later I understood that if my parents had not done that, I would probably still be immersed in video games.

My generation, your generation or the GenZ generation today, will more or less still have to face such stories. I hope to create a space where you can both play and learn, where you come here not only to solve puzzles but also to see your own story in it. When playing a role, each of your decisions will lead to a different outcome. At the end of each game, we show a small film, conveying positive messages, to contemplate and accompany young people. I want when you step out of the playroom, you will not only remember the experience of being "scared of ghosts" but also leave with you a message, a certain educational value.

• Besides products, how will your business strategy change?

I will not open massively like before. Looking back, a big mistake I made when I received investment from Shark Thuy was thinking that I had unlimited money so I opened continuously without a backup plan. At that time, there were establishments that suffered losses but still had to open to meet the coverage target. But with this comeback, the money is my money, I am not under pressure from any big investors, it is just me and Monday. So I just do it gradually, doing it within my capacity with my capital.

For example, with this first facility, my initial strategy was to open only 3 game rooms on the 4th floor of the building. I only contributed enough capital to build 2 rooms, 2 games that were already famous, with reasonable prices to quickly recover the capital. I set a clear goal, had to reach a certain monthly revenue level before opening a new room. Next, the 3 rooms had to reach the revenue target before continuing to open on the 5th floor. All decisions, when to build more game rooms, how much space,... had to be based on numbers.

Currently, Genesis Escape's products have a profit margin 4 times higher than We Escape. If the Sharks used to worry about high premises costs, now our premises costs only account for 10% of revenue. We have broken even after two months of opening. Genesis Escape has received 1,000 reservations (with deposits) in just 30 days, with an occupancy rate of 70%. Of these, 70% are new guests, 30% of teams have more than one slot.

• Not opening massively without profit like before, but surely Genesis Escape will not stop at this one facility?

In mid-August, I will open another floor, also at this facility. I want Genesis to take the “throne”, becoming the largest unit in Hanoi. Once I have prestige, a methodical operating process, and a stable profit rate, I will bring Genesis Escape to Ho Chi Minh City before Tet.

Then, the destination is other provinces and cities, following the franchise model. I think this is a potential market because in the provinces and cities, young people and students also lack healthy and educational places to play. Of course, I do not franchise in a way that abandons the child, just to get revenue. Genesis's team will have to control and package it into a set of operating standards, ensuring quality for the entire facility. I determined that my product is a difficult product, the franchisee must be controlled by the parent company, but in return, the profit rate is very high.

• No one wants to see another pandemic like Covid-19 happen again. But the world is always changing and unpredictable. If a “black swan” like Covid-19 happens again, do you think you will be able to stand firm this time?

Entertainment businesses like Genesis Escape or We Escape are always the first to close and the last to open. But this time will be different.

First, I will never let my stake fall below 50%. Back when I was doing We Escape, I only had 14% of the shares, no say. I wanted to keep it but the other shareholders told me to give it up, there was nothing I could do. Now I hold 70% of the shares, enough motivation and authority to develop the product and make decisions. There is no founder who just contributes money. That is the big lesson I learned.

Second, I always have to keep a financial reserve and a backup plan for the company so that if there is a change, the company can pay for the premises and other expenses for at least a year. Before, we opened 8 facilities, we had to pay 2 billion VND in rent every month, closing for 15 months is equivalent to losing 30 billion VND. Even if we had 30 billion at that time, we still don't know when we will be able to reopen. Covid-19 is the biggest lesson in my life. I am very proud of my business ability but it is also a shame that We Escape closed while many other units have overcome it. I studied finance but could not control the finances well enough in the company. And I do not want to fail, do not want to repeat that mistake again.

• How did your family react when you came back?

In the past, when I first started We Escape, my family was not very happy because I had a very good job in Singapore. However, later on, they saw that my work was healthy and respected by everyone, so they supported me. When We Escape closed, my family was afraid of being sad and doing stupid things, because they knew I was a very extreme person.

Now back, the family is happy. Although my family and I have never faced financial difficulties, I am now 35 years old, not adventurous anymore, pursuing my passion also requires earning money to support myself, my family, and my employees. Many of my friends have become big bosses, bought several pieces of land, while I am still "wandering" (laughs). But I am not ashamed because I know I have my own path, the money I earn is suitable for my ability.

Thank you! Wishing you and Genesis Escape to achieve your goals soon!

(According to CafeF - Market Life)

Vietnamnet.vn