Tucked in a building downtown on the corner of a busy intersection is Escape Zone, an escape-the-situation game form of entertainment for the Stettler community.
When the oil economy’s slowdown last summer dealt the Hadley family a bad hand, they decided to turn it into an opportunity – not only for themselves but for the community, giving Stettler its first escape room game.
“It was in part a result of circumstances, and in part seeing a great opportunity for our family and for the community,” said General Manager Layvon Hadley.
Layvon Hadley and son Stephen Chittick operate their concrete business, Hadley Contracting, during the summer months, but in the off season, Hadley has always worked in the oilfield site construction in Fort McMurray.
“With the downturn in the oil industry, we were only called out for two weeks last season,” Hadley said. “Our family struggled to make ends meet.”
For the past few years, the Hadleys had considered starting a second business to supplement their concrete business, but just hadn’t settled on an idea or felt the time was right.
“This year, we decided it was necessary to make a change and discussed several ideas,” said Stephanie Hadley, joint managing partner with son Chittick. “After hearing about escape games and looking into it further, we felt that our combined skills and our vacant space in our building would be an ideal fit for an escape game venture.”
The Hadleys said they also recognized that Stettler would be a wonderful location, as they were also trying to offer something fun and exciting to not only the community of Stettler, but also to people from other areas of east central Alberta where winters can be long and travel not always easy.
Chittick said that the three of them spent close to two months researching, planning and prepping the rooms in order to set up the concept.
“We had a large portion of the lower level that was not being utilized other than for storage, but needed to be painted and have some minor improvements done in order to be ready,” Chittick said. “Then, to tie the escape rooms and art studio in to an overall theme, we chose to do brightly coloured doors in a variety of colours.”
According to Chittick, the most challenging part, but also the most enjoyable, has been planning the games themselves.
“Which puzzles, clues, locks and stories to use in the rooms?” said Chittick. “It is the final part of setting up the game, and we all work together to create the sequence of events in each room.”
According to the Hadleys, the community has been very supportive and positive, with feedback coming from both from individuals and the business community.
“People have often heard of other escape room locations in cities, but are thrilled to know they can do games right here in Stettler,” said Hadley. “We have had numerous sports teams, staff parties, birthday groups, families and friends come in to give it a try. No matter what the dynamics are in the group, it is challenging and fun for everyone.”
It seems entrepreneurship runs in the family as they have owned and operated businesses earlier, both individually and jointly, learning from each of their successes and failures.
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OVERSET FOLLOWS:“We all think outside the box in some ways, and entrepreneurship really allows for creativity and risk taking, so that part is enjoyable,” Stephanie said.
Stephanie’s parents were business owners, and growing up in that environment encouraged her to never hesitate in starting new businesses or projects.
“Being an entrepreneur involves risk, but it also offers a type of freedom that you cannot find in a 9-5 type job,” said Stephanie, who also runs an art studio in town, all while holding down a full-time job and being on various boards, volunteering her time and resources freely. “During the 10 years that we lived in northern Alberta, Grande Prairie was booming and was the perfect hot bed of new ideas and entrepreneurs.”
Reflecting on those times, Stephanie said, “We watched it explode during that time, from a relatively small town feel to the young, exciting and booming city that it is today. That was both exciting and very inspiring.”
According to Stephanie, the other driving force behind their latest business was the desire to have a stable income and keep the family intact.
“After years of riding the oilfield roller coaster, and seeing our children growing up too quickly, we felt that this venture would support our family both financially and in terms of quality of life,” Stephanie said.
Speaking about their memories and experiences of their new venture, Hadley said, “We had one large group from Coronation area, they were a sports team and wanted to do a group activity as a wind-up for the club.”
Being from a rural area, they had students from several schools and communities who had all travelled to Stettler for the games.
“They had so much fun, competing with each other and doing a fun activity, that we agreed to keep our facility open outside of business hours to accommodate them,” Hadley said.
That made it possible for them to get together on a school night, do the escape games and then have dinner in Stettler, rather than having to travel to Red Deer or a larger city, according to Hadley.
“For almost all of the kids, it was the first time they had tried an escape room, and you could tell that they had a fabulous time here in town. It’s always great to see the excitement in people when they visit,” explained Hadley.
The Hadleys have had a blast, just as much their patrons and all those who have been a part of their new venture.
“We would like to thank everyone who has supported our new business already, in such a short time,” Stephanie said. “Several other businesses who have helped to spread the word and encourage their patrons to visit us.”
The Hadleys hope through this, they can bring in more people in the community.
“We hope that our new business will bring others to Stettler and encourage them to do some shopping, or dining or visiting right here in town,” said Stephanie. “We are excited about the future at Escape Zone Central.”