AMF TO BE SOLD.....YOUR OPINION.. GOOD OR BAD?

[wchester]

By Associated Press
RICHMOND, Va. — AMF Bowling Worldwide Inc. said Thursday it will be sold to Code Hennessy & Simmons LLC, a Chicago-based buyout firm, for about $660 million in cash and assumed debt.

Richmond-based AMF, an owner of bowling centers, will receive $25 per outstanding share for an estimated 12.3 million outstanding shares for a total of $307.5 million, AMF spokesman Merrell Wreden said. Code Hennessy would also assume debt of $352.5 million.

The sale is subject to approval by AMF shareholders and is contingent on Code Hennessy's ability to obtain financing. The transaction is expected to close in early 2004.

"This marks the beginning of a new era for AMF," said George W. Vieth Jr., AMF's interim president and chief executive officer. "CHS has a proven track record of helping its portfolio companies grow and realize their business potential."

AMF emerged in 2002 from reorganization under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Wreden said the financial institutions that owned AMF "don't have the same long-term horizon as CHS."

"Hopefully, this will be a coming period of growth for the company," Wreden said.

 

[Damage]

Good :!: The new owners can't do a worse job than what the current ones have done.
The have shown a total lack of vision, common sense & worst of all - GREED.
Sure, they might put up big bikkies for Super 6 events, maintain thier big city operations etc, but have a look at some of the centres they have run into the ground in smaller cities and towns.
They expect them to turn over huge profits - with rediculous prices - and spend NOTHING on the centres!
The good 'ol league bowler who bowls once or twice a week EVERY week of the year, buys from the snack bar, orders things from the pro shop often wants to know where his/her money goes.
The money always ends up with the TOP BRASS and the shareholders - meanwhile Mr Joe 171 average league bowler has to move pairs of lanes in league six weeks in a row, or has a big string of strikes on one pair, only to have it break down for 20 mins on him, and his momentum is knackered.

Mr Joe 171 then gets rather grumpy that the prices have risen again the following year, yet that broken down ball return from last year is still broken down, or the lane that took a huge chunk out of his ball two years ago, just did it again - and then they wonder why everyone is chucking it in and taking up golf instead.

The pricing structure is STUPID :x COMMON SENSE would tell you that you don't link ALL Australian prices to Sydney Metro - which is one of the most expensive places in Australia to live.

Why then would you charge the same to bowl in Sydney and say....Hobart where Sydney's average weekly wage would be THREE times as much as a what a Hobartian would earn for the same work & hours :roll:
The logic defies all common sense - set the prices according to what the local economy is doing.
Remember the old ad on TV "For $6.50, you get two games, shoe hire, hot dog, fries and coke"
Its now $19.95 less the hotdog and one game I believe!!

Seems to me AMF would rather charge enormous prices, and see 4-5 out of a 24 Lane bowl running, rather than doing the sensible thing and dropping the fees to a reasonable rate and filling up the centres. I get the sneaking suspicion AMF would rather see bowling ONLY IN THE BIG CITIES.

I have taken opportunity of reading some of the posts throughout this forum - and seems there are some VERY unhappy bowlers out there playing in some of these centres.

Maybe the new owners might like to read some of them and learn a few valuable lessons - SOME HOW I DOUBT IT :roll:

 

[KLS84]

I would have to completely agree with you!!!

AMF..... Another Major F***-up

AMF have runied the great atmophere that the privately owed centres built up. Its not about the bowlers anymore, its about the money.

I recently did a post about this in the 'worst/best things about bowling' topic.

We need owners who are going to put the bowlers first, and whats best for the sport, not just their pockets!!!!!

Thats my say!!

 

[SNEEZY]

Yes there are quite a few disgruntled bowlers in the centre I bowl at.

I totally agree with you there 'Brain Damaged'. I too remember the adverts on TV and from what I remember it went from $6.50 to $7.50 then To $8.50 and then again to $9.50. I think after that it must have gotten too expensive for them to advertise as that was the end of the 2 games shoe hire hot dog fries and a coke.

I was at Norwood bowl today watching the Under 25's Masters and noticed on the front desk you can now get 2 games a berger and some beer. Try selling that to a 6 year old (not likely). :lol:

Unfortunately I feel as a bowler AMF are out pricing the game, all the leagues that I bowl in are $18 or $19 dollars a week. Come next year I dare say that will become $20 per league a week. I look back at when I started bowling league back in 1997 the cost was only $12 or $13 per league. I would hate to think how many bowlers will be left when the price gets to $30 or even $40 per league a week.

Another point I will raise is that AMF and other privately owned centres are all companies and as such are subjected to the effects of the economy (inflation, growth, taxes, etc) just like any other business. These are things that businesses don't have much choice in and if the government put up taxes or consumer spending increases putting up growth and inflation then prices are going to rise in general. The reason for this being that businesses are trying to make the same profit as the year before if not better. With prices going up every year how far is it going to go. Maybe in 50 to 100 years time we will be paying $150 per league a week.

Hopefully sometime soon prices will start to go down and make it cheaper for everyone. :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: (not likely)!!

 

[strop]

amf is certainly out pricing themselves eg. "THIS" year night league game price is Approx. $5.35 per game, and no doubt it will go up again for next year, compared to independant centres keeping there nightly game rates to $5.00 or less, and that's for next year as well.

tony

 

[Wosie]

i have to agree with the above comments. i dont normaly bowl at AMF but i still go and that alley is never full there is hardly ever anyone in there.
I would like to see wat the new owners do to it. I hope they take time out and ask the people who go in what they think.

 

[The Real Deal]

AMF is being sold in America right??

Will this change of ownership affect us here in Australia drastically?

Im guessing it wont change much of what we see here at all......

 

[GBS]

Hang on to your hats

Hang on to your hats, announcements will be made shortly, if my late mail is correct, Hang on to your hats.

 

[Damage]

The incumbent owners of American Machine & Foundary (AMF) is Code, Hennessy & Simmons LLC.
CH&S LLC are a private equity investment firm Founded in 1988.
They have little or no involvement in sport operation until now.

A company such as this has made its way very nicely in the corporate world by investing wisely and selling off underperforming operations.

Back in the late 1980's AMF went on a spending spree, and bought up a whole load of Bowling Centres worldwide (including out here in Australia).
Several of these Centres were, what is terminally known in the industry, as "Brickyards".
There are still many of these centres still operating across the globe, which, in their current forms, will cost more to renovate to a satisfactory standard than what thier fiscal value is worth.

What this means is, to my way of thinking at least, is to expect CH&S LLC to start offloading Centres (in the United States first), with the ripple effect in years to come, reverberating throughout Australia.

There are, I believe 47 AMF Centres here in Australia - I would estimate that number could be cut to around 25-30 within ten years.
Several of these Centres are underperforming, and thier land values are worth more than the buildings upon which they stand.

CH&S LLC has inherited a Company that is now several hundred million dollars in debt, and you would expect, that they will be affecting changes to thier newly acquired organisation to bring the best possible financial figures to what is a basket case operation (as it currently stands).

GBS is correct in saying "hang on to your hats" as the face of bowling in this Country could be vastly altered forever.

My major concern is the fate of such things Representative bowling in this Country (should mass closures take place) one State in particular could completely disappear from the scene altogether.

Very concerning times :shock:

 

[GBS]

Hang on to your hats

Hang onto your hats

I have learnt two things about this industry in some near 40 years in the game.

1. Underperforming centres are caused by - underperforming ideas = not listening to the bowlers. Therefore when the idea of deminishing returns = less games at a higher price, to equal the same money in the till, then the inevitable result is obvious, when less bowlers actually bowl.

2. Poor service and cost cutting standards across the industry inevitably has one result = TODAY. (Congratulations to all those who DO NOT fall into this category.)

Which leads me to the next and obvious point. If the league and tournament bowler is not kept happy 99% of the time, then the ranks of lawn bowls will swell when they offer comps at $5 a day.

Leagues and tournaments are the back bone of the industry. To prove the point. People use "free" cash to bowl on a weekly basis.

A $240,00 home loan at 6% requires a momnthly repayment of $1439, at 7% interest - $1597 per month, and at 8% (the anticipated figure in 2004) will require a repayment of $1762 per month.

Now where is the free cash, now where are those league bowlers who have been looked after for so long?

For that matter where will the "walk - ins" be in 2004, paying the home loan repayment.

Some dreadful errors in judgement have occured in this country for too long.

BUT its never too late.

 

[SNEEZY]

Is this the post that someone is looking for?????????????

 

[Levithian]

you can see the people who werent around when AMF went virtually bankrupt all those years ago

 

[patrick]

Move to lismore i think league games are only $3.30 or something lol


I think that amf, in australia at least, appeared to be slowly but surely improving (well, compared with how they were in the dark times [then again i've only heard STORIES, so i do not know 100%]). And yes there are the contsant stories on this forum that there are a lot of bowling centres in a bad way - I can only speak for the centres i've bowled in!

Yes i think that game prices are totally dumb, I walked out of mayfield with my bags when they told me the prices of practice 2 years ago, i'd hate to see them now! And the way social bowlers were preferred over league bowlers is quite rude (advertising bowling as a "fun thing to do" not "highly competitive sport - and fun thing to do on weekends/nights").

But who knows, maybe in 10 years they might of come close to closing down AGAIN, and who knows, they might of just learnt their lesson by then?

Really, we'll never know, so all we can do is hope that this new company learns from AMF's mistakes. And ultimately the community has to give them a chance and not jump down their throat if/when they do make a mistake!


And thats just my two cents.

 

[Levithian]

It's more of a franchise senario in the states isnt it? out here it is more independant operators belonging to a chain? Since when has what happened to AMF in the states had any effect on AMF in australia? You would have to be naive to expect massive changes as a result. I think some people are being alittle unrealistic, depending on the area of course, social bowlers bring in more money than leagues do in a lot of houses. They spend more while being in the center than league bowlers, if you break it down, in some cases, it's a 2:3 or 2:4 ratio (price per game for social bowler compared to price per game for league bowler). If a social bowler comes into the center and pays $8 per game, plus shoe hire, the center is already ahead compared to a league bowler, they have just made double the money. It is evident by the centers out there who choose to operate with a focus on social bowlers that it is profitable. When was the last time you went bowling with friends? i might spend $15 for my games and a drink or two, i can assure you they spend double what i do.

 

[wchester]

Levithian said :
"It's more of a franchise senario in the states isnt it? out here it is more independant operators belonging to a chain? Since when has what happened to AMF in the states had any effect on AMF in australia? You would have to be naive to expect massive changes as a result."

Levithian, you're pretty much wrong on all counts.

 

[Levithian]

i wasnt saying, i was asking. Notice the "?"