# Stern Pinball’s Sales Have Grown 15-20% Annually Since 2008 **Source:** Knapp Arcade **Type:** article **Published:** 2023-05-16 **Beat:** Pinball **URL:** https://www.knapparcade.org/stern-pinball-s-sales-have-grown-15-20-annually-since-2008 --- ## Analysis The Economist published an article on pinball's resurgence, featuring claims from Stern Pinball leadership about sustained 15-20% annual sales growth since 2008 and expansion plans including a new factory twice the current size in Chicago's northwest suburbs. IFPA President Josh Sharpe noted tournament sanctioning has quadrupled from 2014 to 2022, reaching 8,300 events annually. ### Key Claims - [HIGH] Stern Pinball sales of new machines have risen 15-20% annually since 2008 — _Direct quote from Zach Sharpe, Stern Pinball executive, in The Economist article_ - [HIGH] Stern is moving to a new factory twice the size of its current one in northwest suburbs of Chicago next year — _Direct quote from Zach Sharpe in The Economist article_ - [HIGH] IFPA-sanctioned pinball tournaments have quadrupled since 2014 to 8,300 in 2022 — _Direct quote from Josh Sharpe, IFPA President, in The Economist article_ - [HIGH] Stern is the last remaining major pinball maker after WMS closed — _Direct quote from Zach Sharpe in The Economist article_ ### Notable Quotes > "Sales of new machines have risen by 15-20% every year since 2008... We have not looked back." > — **Zach Sharpe, Stern Pinball**, The Economist article, May 2023 > _Major statement of sustained business growth and market confidence from Stern leadership_ > "Next year the firm is moving to a new factory, twice the size of its current one, in the north-west suburbs of Chicago." > — **Zach Sharpe, Stern Pinball**, The Economist article, May 2023 > _Capital expansion signal indicating confidence in continued growth trajectory_ ### Entities | Name | Type | Context | |------|------|---------| | Stern Pinball | company | Major pinball manufacturer, claims last remaining major maker after WMS closure; reporting sustained growth | | Zach Sharpe | person | Stern Pinball executive providing growth statistics and expansion announcements to The Economist | | Josh Sharpe | person | IFPA President, brother of Zach Sharpe; provided tournament growth statistics | | IFPA | organization | International Federation of Pinball Administrators; sanctioning body tracking tournament growth | | The Economist | company | Business publication that published article on pinball industry resurgence | | WMS | company | Williams Manufacturing/WMS, historical major pinball manufacturer that has closed | ### Topics - **Primary:** Business growth and market expansion, Stern Pinball capacity and manufacturing, Tournament infrastructure and competitive pinball growth - **Secondary:** Industry consolidation and market leadership ### Sentiment **Positive** (0.85) — Tone is optimistic about pinball industry resurgence; Stern leadership presenting confident growth narrative; article framed as industry comeback story ### Signals - **[business_signal]** Stern positioning itself as last remaining major manufacturer after competitor consolidation (WMS closure) (confidence: high) — Direct quote from Zach Sharpe identifying Stern as 'last remaining major maker' after WMS closure - **[business_signal]** Stern Pinball sustained 15-20% annual sales growth for 15+ years (2008-2023) and planning major capacity expansion with new factory (confidence: high) — Direct statement from Zach Sharpe to The Economist regarding annual growth rate and new factory in Chicago northwest suburbs - **[competitive_signal]** Stern's factory expansion indicates confidence in sustained demand and market dominance in manufacturing segment (confidence: medium) — Decision to build factory twice current size suggests expectation of continued growth beyond current production capacity - **[market_signal]** IFPA tournament infrastructure quadrupled since 2014, indicating strong competitive ecosystem growth supporting retail sales (confidence: high) — Josh Sharpe statement that IFPA-sanctioned tournaments grew from baseline in 2014 to 8,300 events in 2022 --- ## Transcript The business publication The Economist published an article about pinball earlier this week that I've been curious about for days. Alas, the article was for registered users only. Fortunately for us, I just remembered that I actually used to subscribe to The Economist (don't knock it until you try it. It's interesting for business stuff) so I logged in to see what they had to say about our beloved hobby. The most interesting part to me was the following statement from Stern Pinball's Zach Sharpe: Sales of new machines have risen by 15-20% every year since 2008, says Zach Sharpe, of Stern Pinball, which after WMS closed became the last remaining major maker. "We have not looked back," he says. Next year the firm is moving to a new factory, twice the size of its current one, in the north-west suburbs of Chicago. That's some pretty serious growth. Zach's brother, IFPA President Josh Sharpe, went on to add that the number of IFPA-sanctioned pinball tournaments has quadrupled since 2014 to 8,300 in 2022. Beyond that, the article is pretty short and doesn't contain many other statistics, but those two sure are interesting. Below is a link to the article for anyone who's interested: Pinball is booming in America, thanks to nostalgia and canny marketing A generations-old game makes a comeback https://www.economist.com/united-states/2023/05/14/pinball-is-booming-in-america-thanks-to-nostalgia-and-canny-marketing _(Acquisition: raw_text, Enrichment: v1)_ --- *Exported from Journalist Tool on 2026-04-13 | Item ID: 40c7c950-b68f-4609-a809-1b4f9a2ed219*