Ep 1 - JJP Owner Brett Abess

Jersey Jack Pinball Podcast·podcast_episode·19m 48s·analyzed·Jun 12, 2020

Analysis

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TL;DR

JJP owner Brett Abbas on company growth, Chicago relocation, and phase 3 innovation plans

Summary

Brett Abbas, owner of Jersey Jack Pinball, discusses the company's origin story, evolution from Phase 1 (Wizard of Oz/Hobbit) through Phase 2 (Dialed In) into Phase 3, relocation of manufacturing to Chicago, and the company's path to profitability with 25% YoY growth. He emphasizes JJP's commitment to innovation, quality, and converting Stern customers while positioning the company as the 'new guard' in pinball manufacturing.

Key Claims

Jersey Jack Pinball has achieved 25% year-over-year growth and has been breaking even for well over a year with a clear path to profitability
high confidence · Brett Abbas directly states JJP financial performance: 'We've seen 25% year over year growth the past few years. And we've been breaking even for well over a year now, and we're on a clear path to profitability.'
The factory relocation from New Jersey to Chicago/Elk Grove Village is now complete with design and production under one roof
high confidence · Brett Abbas: 'I'm excited to announce that the factory is complete. It's really impressive. It's an amazing environment.' Ken Cromwell confirms office move occurred 'just yesterday' during the podcast recording.
JJP identifies three distinct phases: Phase 1 (Wizard of Oz/Hobbit), Phase 2 (Dialed In onward with Pat Lawler designs), Phase 3 (future titles with new factory/innovation)
high confidence · Brett Abbas explicitly outlines: 'The Wizard of Oz and The Hobbit were phase one for us. Dialed In was the start of phase two... We now had Pat Lawler, a complete cabinet redesign, major electronics upgrades... we're jumping into phase three.'
JJP has multiple unannounced titles in development pipeline, with 'the next game' coming 'right around the corner'
medium confidence · Brett Abbas: 'for those of you that are wondering, that next release is right around the corner.' Also: 'We have some great titles in the pipeline.'
Brett Abbas owns over 50 pinball machines from all manufacturers and is an investor in Epic Games (Fortnite creator)
high confidence · Brett Abbas personal disclosure: 'I have over 50 machines at home from all manufacturers. I'm an investor in Epic Games, the creator of Fortnite.'

Notable Quotes

“Stern was a monopoly, hadn't innovated in years. Jack saw an opportunity and he took it. He did the Wizard of Oz, basically crowdfunded the company with customer and distributor deposits.”
Brett Abbas @ ~4:30 — Describes Jack Danger's original vision and crowdfunding strategy that launched modern pinball renaissance; frames JJP's origin as industry disruption
“I often transport myself back into that moment when I first laid my fingers on The Wizard of Oz. Whenever we're working on a new game, I want to transport myself to that initial feeling of, wow, I'm just being blown away.”
Brett Abbas @ ~6:30 — Reveals design philosophy: chasing the 'magic new in box feeling' as motivation for product innovation
“We've seen 25% year over year growth the past few years. And we've been breaking even for well over a year now, and we're on a clear path to profitability.”
Brett Abbas @ ~12:00 — Directly debunks speculation that JJP has never been profitable; provides concrete business health metrics
“I like to compare us to Tesla. Most people don't realize that Tesla was founded in 2003... They had three phases. Phase one, the original Roadster. Phase two, the Model S, the X, Model 3. Now, they're entering phase three.”
Brett Abbas @ ~14:30 — Strategic framing of JJP growth trajectory against established tech disruptor; demonstrates ambitious long-term vision
“making the hobby was a lot harder than I thought. when we came in and, you know, there were millions of dollars in parts in the factory, but we couldn't build a single game.”
Brett Abbas @ ~22:00 — Candid admission of manufacturing complexity and early operational challenges during early JJP ownership period
“My dad always told me that it's not about being the biggest. It's about being the best at what you do. And we're here to deliver the best games that money can buy.”
Brett Abbas @ ~27:30 — Articulates JJP's core competitive positioning: quality-over-scale strategy distinct from Stern's market dominance approach

Entities

Brett Abbasperson Ken Cromwellperson Jack DangerpersonPat LawlerpersonEric MenierpersonJersey Jack PinballcompanyStern Pinballcompany

Signals

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business_signal: Factory relocation from New Jersey to Chicago/Elk Grove Village complete; integrated design-production facility now operational
high · Brett Abbas: 'I'm excited to announce that the factory is complete' and Ken Cromwell reports office move occurred 'just yesterday' with all design staff relocated
?
business_signal: JJP reports 25% YoY growth and break-even status with profitability trajectory
high · Brett Abbas direct claim: 'We've seen 25% year over year growth the past few years. And we've been breaking even for well over a year now, and we're on a clear path to profitability.'
?
community_signal: Jersey Jack Pinball Podcast launched as bridge between manufacturer and enthusiast community; open feedback channels established
high · Ken Cromwell outlines podcast format: 'my intent is not to make this an interview podcast... opening up some communication and bridging the gap between the pinball enthusiast, the collector, and the manufacturer'
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competitive_signal: JJP frames itself as next-generation 'new guard' succeeding Stern's stewardship role; respectful but clear market positioning
high · Brett Abbas: 'I got a ton of respect for Stern Pinball. They kept Pinball alive. but I also think that times change and it time for the new guard to step in'
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design_philosophy: JJP's core design motivation is recreating the 'magic new in box feeling' of Wizard of Oz experience; chasing innovation over incremental design
high · Brett Abbas: 'I often transport myself back into that moment when I first laid my fingers on The Wizard of Oz... Whenever we're working on a new game, I want to transport myself to that initial feeling'

Transcript

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0:00

flying through the airwaves and into your podcatcher it's the jersey jack pinball podcast hey what's going on pinball land welcome to the jersey jack pinball podcast my name is ken cromwell i'm your host today joining us on our segment behind the back glasses jersey jack Pinball owner, Brett Abbas. Brett, welcome to the show, sir. Hey, Ken. Thanks for having me on the first episode of the JJP Podcast. Yeah, no, Brett, we're really happy to have you here. I thought it was going to be fun to kind of give the pinball base an opportunity to kind of get to know the person behind the name, and that's what you're here for today. So if you get a chance here, we'll just go through a couple different questions and see where the conversation leads us. I was hoping that you could tell the listeners, how did you become involved with Jersey Jack Pinball? How does this even come about? Yeah, sure. So, you know, as far as I can remember, we had pinball machines. First, it was Playboy, and we had Big House, Evel Knievel, and it never really worked right, but I was still enamored by them from a young age. I think it was 1998 we purchased the X-Files, and it's a funny story, actually. We got it from the Neiman Marcus catalog, and it said that there were only 10 units available. So we contacted them to see if we can get one of these special edition Neiman Marcus games. And of course, we met Jack. And Jack assured us that there was only one left and it was ours. It had this cheesy, shiny cardboard Neiman Marcus topper on it. And we thought it was so awesome. And so that's how we met Jack. And I played the X-Files every single day with my dad, and we were hooked. We ended up buying more games after that. Every Father's Day or another birthday, you know, we would buy another game. So we ended up having a little collection. So we had Doctor Who, Scorpion, Lord of the Rings, one of our favorites, The Simpsons. We bought more and more Stern games over the years, and eventually we kind of just stopped buying. They kind of just got old. And we stopped playing as much as we used to. And a few years went by. And we used to always talk about designing a game like a lot of our customers do today, sending us their ideas and their drawings. And we really thought that Rush Hour would make an amazing game. And it just so turns out that one of our friends was involved in the making of the trilogy. So we used to talk to him and encourage him to make the Rush Hour game. We had all of our ideas on how it would play. And of course, that game never got made. But even before getting involved with Jersey Jack, we always used to have fun talking about pinball and talking about what we would do if we had our own pinball company. Then a few years went by and Jack and Jen called us up and told us about The Wizard of Oz. and for anyone who doesn't already know the story, I'll sum it up by saying Jack did something really incredible. He started the first new pinball company in over a decade. Stern was a monopoly, hadn't innovated in years. Jack saw an opportunity and he took it. He did the Wizard of Oz, basically crowdfunded the company with customer and distributor deposits. Even vendors were in on the action. Jack built a huge following and this company had stakeholders across the industry who believed in him and his vision. It took him a few years to deliver Wizard of Oz, and suddenly the industry was reborn. And when I first laid my fingers on the machine, I couldn't believe it. It was honestly the coolest thing I had ever seen. I was enamored by the LED light show, the screen, the wide body, two upper play fields, the art package, higher quality everything, shiny armor. It was really everything we had always wanted in a machine. And the reason we stopped buying was the lack of innovation. And here it was sitting in front of me in my basement. And I often transport myself back into that moment when I first laid my fingers on The Wizard of Oz. Whenever we're working on a new game, I want to transport myself to that initial feeling of, wow, I'm just being blown away. It's that magic new in box feeling that you've just unboxed this amazing work of art and given it life. And today, you know, Jack is one of my biggest mentors. I'm super proud to be his partner. I love working with him, his guidance and decades of experience. Just what he did to build this company is amazing story on its own of the pinball community coming together to support an amazing man in his dreams and I feel really lucky to be his partner and to have him by my side Yeah it an incredible story And to think how hard pinball is you keep hearing this over and over. Pinball is hard. Pinball is hard. I mean, I would imagine that there are several companies that you may have decided to kind of get involved with. But one of these companies were pinball. Can you explain to me and the listeners, I mean, what was your motivation to actually get involved and become an owner of a pinball company? Sure. Well, for one, we love a challenge. We have a history of jumping into different businesses, different industries and being really successful at it. Here we had a startup company that created one of the most incredible games in the world and in an industry with only one competitor at the time and also a really high barrier to entry. So there were a lot of things about this company that were really attractive. And, you know, this is more than just an investment. You know, people like to say this company is just a hobby for us. And I'll say that while it sure is a lot of fun, it's also a lot of hard work. You know, making pinball machines is extremely complex. It is not easy, but it's also very rewarding. People love to speculate that this company has never made any money. And I'll debunk that right now. We've seen 25% year over year growth the past few years. And we've been breaking even for well over a year now, and we're on a clear path to profitability. So, you know, a lot of hard work over the years, and it's finally paying off. Brett, it's refreshing to hear that you're talking about the growth of the company. Tell us a little bit about what direction you are wanting to take this company at this point.

6:30

You know, I'm excited to announce that the factory is complete. It's really impressive. It's an amazing environment. We're staffing up. We're hiring people every day. it's extremely exciting times here at JJP and anyone who's listening who's passionate about pinball and interested in becoming a part of this amazing team we welcome you please reach out to me or Ken we're hiring local talent Chicago is the heart and soul of pinball and we're excited to put our roots down here and as far as what direction we're taking the company we're going to continue to push boundaries we want to grow our customer base you know there's a lot of pinheads and stern fanboys that have yet to own a JJP machine and really experience it in a home environment. And we want to convert those people. You know, once you've had time to fully explore a JJP game, you're hooked. You've gained a new level of appreciation for what can be done in pinball. And we believe these new first-time buyers will become lifetime customers. You know, I like to compare us to Tesla. Most people don't realize that Tesla was founded in 2003. I've been following them for many years. I've been to the factory. I drive one. I'm a proud shareholder. Actually, today, this morning, the stock hit a milestone, $1,000 per share. I think they'll eventually overtake Toyota as the biggest car company in the world. Tesla had three phases. Phase one, the original Roadster. Phase two, the Model S, the X, Model 3. Now, they're entering phase three with their SUV, semi-truck, gigafactories coming online all over the world. The Wizard of Oz and The Hobbit were phase one for us. Dialed In was the start of phase two. We now had Pat Lawler, a complete cabinet redesign, major electronics upgrades, and we're still in phase two, and we're jumping into phase three. You're going to see a lot of innovation happening. You'll notice major differences among all of our games. We're not afraid to try something that's never been done before, And that's one reason our customers love our games. Phase three for us is the future. We have some great titles in the pipeline. We're expanding. We're recruiting creative talent. Our new factory with design and production under one roof is something we've wanted for a long time. And I'm really excited for the future. Did you want to take a minute just to kind of walk us through the decision that was made in relocating the factory from New Jersey, the manufacturing side, into Chicago? Sure. I mean, it was pretty simple. our lease was coming up in Jersey and we had to make a decision. It was not easy, but I believe it's the right one. And, you know, we spent too much time sending people back and forth on planes and trying to work through issues that wouldn't have existed if we were all under one roof. We have so much incredible knowledge and experience, hundreds of years of pinball and gaming experience combined with our guys in Chicago. And I really wanted to give them a factory so that when their game hit the line, they could walk right outside their office and put their hands on it and teach people how it was meant to be built. It takes a lot of experience.

11:24

We see that as an important area of growth for us. You know, Gary Stern once told me, we're not competitors. You sell to the home and we sell to the street. But we have a lot more market penetration to do when it comes to location pinball. And we'll be doing some things to help these locations get back on their feet and make it easier for them to buy a TraceJack pinball machine. As for the home market, I feel great about it. Pinball has been booming for a few years now. Jack really restarted the movement and a lot of people took notice. Stern has done their part keeping pinball alive and their efforts have only benefited us. I think the more pinball, the better. And that's what's going to keep this industry sustainable in the long term. I see a lot of young families getting into this hobby, and that's really encouraging. Boutique manufacturers are popping up everywhere, it seems. And that's really good for the industry. It's growing pinball. Brett, is there anything that kind of caught you off guard, something that you weren't expecting or something that kind of took you by surprise after you had kind of bought in and you have ownership in this company at this point? Well, making the hobby was a lot harder than I thought. when we came in and, you know, there were millions of dollars in parts in the factory, but we couldn't build a single game. Um, you know, we, we were new to this as well and we had to learn on the spot. So it took some time, but we finally did it and we delivered, you know, everyone who had pre-order their machine and, you know, it was a tough process, but we, we made it. And you got, you got a message for the community, Brett, anything that you'd like to say on your personal behalf or on behalf of the company? Yeah, sure. Look, in my wildest dreams that I think I'd own the coolest gaming company on earth. I mean, to be able to work with these guys, these legends, to create such an amazing product. I think what we do is so special. It's the lure of the silver ball. You know, I think our next game will be a great example of what happens when you have the people at the top, such as myself, who are pinball collectors. I'm an investor in Epic Games, the creator of Fortnite. And I play Fortnite, but my passion is pinball. I have over 50 machines at home from all manufacturers. We begin every new project by encouraging the team to push the limits. Everything is on the table. We have innovative ideas that we're working on for future titles. We're pushing the creative boundaries and paying an elevated attention to detail and quality and feel. It's really what we're all about. We intend to make the best games that money can buy. That's our mission. My dad always told me that it's not about being the biggest. It's about being the best at what you do. And we're here to deliver the best games that money can buy. It's outstanding. It's exciting times. And for those of you that are wondering, that next release is right around the corner. It's exciting times at Jersey Jack Pinball and for the pinball community. Brent, before we let you go, you got any final thoughts, anything you want to throw out there from a personal side of things? Let me ask you this. Have you ever had to call Pat Lawler Lord Lawler? Just checking that out.

16:30

Let's get some housekeeping and set some expectations here for the show. I want to let everybody know my intent is not to make this an interview podcast. whatsoever. I thought it was important that we reach out and we talk to Brett because for a lot of you, you'd not had an opportunity to kind of hear where he's coming from and get his perspective. And, you know, as an owner of a company, I think that's important. And this kind of falls in line with where I see the podcast. And that is kind of opening up some communication and, you know, bridging the gap a little bit between the pinball enthusiast, the collector, and the manufacturer. I know when I came over from the enthusiast side before I was hired on as the communication specialist for Jersey Jack Pinball, there were a lot of assumptions that I had as to what I thought went on behind the scenes in the pinball industry or in manufacturing or in, you know, engineering, et cetera, et cetera. You know, and some of those were true and those were speculations or maybe I heard firsthand, you know, kind of how things work. I will say that there are a lot of things that I thought that I knew and that I was confident about and I couldn't have been more wrong. So, you know, and that's okay too. So if we can kind of share some of the stories and some of behind the scenes, I think that would be appreciated. And I know I've got the backing of the Jersey Jack pinball team here. So I'm going to be, you know, excited to kind of share some of those stories. We're going to have some segments. You're going to get to know the team here, not in an interview type format, but just in a conversational format and in some dialogue. And that's what I'm most excited about. All right, pinball and before we wrap it up as communication specialists, Listen, I want to give you an open way in which you can communicate with me. And the email to the podcast here is podcast at jerseyjackpinball.com, podcast at jerseyjackpinball.com. If you have any questions, if you have any suggestions, if you have any constructive criticism or respectful disagreements, feel free to go ahead and light that email up. And I'm going to make sure that I get back to you. And if you've got questions for staff or whatnot, you know, send it over because I am going to have this behind the back glass segment, which not only is going to kind of answer some questions on the podcast, but we're asking for video submissions for people that want to go ahead and and maybe record a video question. Maybe you've got a question that you'd like to ask Eric Menier or Pat Lawler or Keith Johnson or Jersey Jack Winery himself. You can go ahead and send those videos to podcast at Jersey Jack pinball dot com. and we will have somebody from our staff, our team, reply with a video message, and we'll post it on social media. So it gives everybody an opportunity to kind of see questions and answers with the Jersey Jack team, and that's all part of a continuing segment called Behind the Backglass, only on the Jersey Jack Pinball Podcast. So again, guys, it's excellent to be back in podcast land. I miss doing it, and I miss getting an opportunity to jump in front of this microphone and just have some fun and talk about pinball. If you can't have fun in pinball, it's going to be tough for you to have fun anywhere else in my personal opinion. So for everybody that listened today, feel free to share the episode if you can. You can find us on all your podcatching apps and places in which you would find your favorite podcasts. For Jersey Jack Pinball, I am Ken Cromwell. Don't forget to take some time out of your day and play some pinball. So long, everybody.