Swingers was founded in 2014 as a pop-up venue in Shoreditch.
(Picture: Swingers)Crazy golf business Swingers is taking its novelty putting experience to the Big Apple with a new 23,000 square foot, 1920s-themed venue.
The £9.5 million investment will see the creation of three 9-hole courses set amongst a suite of cocktail bars and street food counters, situated in the basement of the soon-to-open Virgin Hotel.
Founded in 2014 as a pop-up venue in Shoreditch, Swingers now has two permanent London bases in Oxford Circus and the City of London, filled with custom-built courses packed with moving obstacles and loop-the-loops. Tickets are £13.50 for a round on a 9-hole course.
Founders Matt Grech-Smith and Jeremy Simmonds met at university where they founded youth event and marketing agency Rough Hill, which was bought by Chime in 2012 in a £900,000 deal.
Matt Grech-Smith said: “We’ve taken English country golf club to New York.
“We play on the Britishness in an understated way — there are nods and hints but no union jacks anywhere.”
The opening will mark the company’s second US venue following the launch of its Washington DC site in June 2021. A third US venue is planned for 2023, backed by private investment firm Cain International.
“The New York customer is going to be very demanding and very sure of what they want and probably won’t be afraid to tell us — but we’re ready for that,” Grech Smith said.
The announcement follows a £2.5 million investment in the company’s original West End venue, which will see the creation of a new third course and the opening of an all-weather roof terrace.
The company has plans for rapid expansion, opening a further 3 locations in 2023 and 5 more in 2024 and 2025. It is forecasting revenues of £35 million this year.
Like most businesses, Grech Smith said the company has been hit by rising costs in food, drink and labour. He was undaunted about how the rising cost-of-living crisis could impact his business.
“We can appreciate how everyone’s seeing it in their lives,” he said.
“People will go out a bit less but when they do go out, it will matter more. We’re a whole night out and I think that’s going to help us as guests become more discerning.”
