On Nov. 1, the whopper national route operation NEN/Sugarloaf celebrated its 30th birthday. Founded in 1987 as American Coin Merchandising, the Sugarloaf brand has grown and evolved into a coast-to-coast entertainment game operator in the U.S. with over 15,000 locations in operation today across many leading retail, restaurant and supermarket chains.
Of the industry’s evolution over three decades, the company writes that 30 years ago, when operators were primarily small, independent, family-owned businesses, Sugarloaf began as a franchise organization.Founded as Colorado Coin and rebranded as American Coin Merchandising, the company focused primarily on cranes and bulk rack stands. It wasn’t long before Sugarloaf recognized the opportunity to become a national provider, and the company began to acquire local and regional operators. In 2009, three entrepreneurs bought the company and re-branded as National Entertainment Network, LLC.As a result, Sugarloaf expanded both its logistics platform and its product base to include a number of traditional games/rides, as well as launching a digital platform. As part of this natural progression, the company says the scope of its national distribution network has allowed it to expand the scope of its offerings beyond the traditional amusement vending industry.
Jim Sevalt, COO, who’s been with the firm since its inception, said, “It’s been a great experience helping build the only national service platform in the amusement vending industry. Starting out as a small franchise operation and seeing it grow to become a top amusement vending provider has been an extraordinary experience for me and the colleagues who have also been with the company over the long term.”
“We are obviously delighted to be celebrating 30 years in the amusement industry and are equally excited about the opportunities our growth as a national service provider have opened up for us,” said Ed Flaherty, CEO.
Learn more at www.nen-inc.com.