Membership club simulator
See what your membership club would turn over, how many members you'd win and who you'd lose them to — quarter by quarter for four years — before you spend real money.
Members, renewals and what makes it worth belonging. This one opens as The Harbour Club: A members' club selling yearly memberships, events and a place to belong. Rename it, reprice it, or describe your own membership club and let Nova rewrite it to fit.
What a steady club ends up with
Played steadily for all four years — quality first, then growth, a fair share of the bank spent each year — a steady club here ends its last year on $444k of revenue and $83k of profit, with 963 members and 4.2% of the market (#5 of 6).
It starts from nothing: $46k in the bank and you, 40 hours a week, with no members yet.
People who play it well do better, and a bad plan runs out of money.
Revenue in the last year: $444k
Profit in the last year: $83k
Members at the end: 963
Share of the market: From nothing to 4.2%
Where it finishes: #5 of 6
Years and decisions: 4 years, quarterly
What you'll decide each quarter
Each quarter you decide what to ask for, what to spend on finding new members against keeping the ones you have, how many staff the work needs, and which cities you work in.
Each decision shows on a forecast before you file it, and every period resolves against the rivals and the economy.
Who your members are
Nobody has to give, join or come along — they choose to. The members who stay are the ones who can see what their money did.
23,000 members in all, across your town, the next town over, the villages around, the county town and out by the ring road.
Casual members: They give when asked well and forget by next month. About 12,700 of them, worth $220 a year each.
Active members: A standing order and a quiet expectation of being told what it did. About 6,900 of them, worth $616 a year each.
Patrons: Few, generous and demanding — reports, visits and a named project. About 690 of them, worth $6.6k a year each.
Families: They give time first and money later, if they feel part of it. About 2,760 of them, worth $352 a year each.
Who you're up against
Three rivals are already in it, and they play to win: they cut prices, spend on marketing and answer what you do. Most of the market is theirs on day one.
The established club: The biggest, and slow to change — it has stopped listening to its smaller customers. Holds about 30% of the market.
The cheaper alternative: Hasn't changed in years and is living off the customers it already has. Holds about 18% of the market.
Online communities: Clever and quick, but stretched thin and hard to get hold of. Holds about 8% of the market.
How it works
Free until you start: building and previewing cost nothing, and starting is $10, once.
Build it — free: Press build and you get your own copy of this market: four kinds of member, three rivals and five cities.
Make it yours: Change any number, describe your membership club in a sentence or two and let Nova fill it in, or upload a profit and loss or a month-by-month sales history to fit it to your real figures.
Preview — free: See what a steady club ends up with, and every warning worth reading, before you pay anything.
Start — $10: Pay once to start, your seat included. Then run it quarter by quarter for four years.
Also for
membership · society · association · community · members
How much does the membership club simulator cost?
Building and previewing are free: make your own copy of this membership club market, change anything in it and see what a steady club ends up with without paying. Starting the simulation is $10, once, and your own seat is included.
Can I make it match my own membership club?
Yes. Every number can be changed — the members and what they pay, the rivals, the cities, the costs and the starting cash. Or describe your membership club in a sentence or two and Nova, SparkTower's AI, fills every section in for one Nova action. If you already trade, upload a profit and loss or a month-by-month sales history and the simulation is fitted to your real numbers, starting from where your business stands today.
Are the numbers realistic for a membership club?
The template is checked against what real ones do: played steadily, a believable one finishes year four turning over between $80k and $600k, with between 250 and 2,000 members. This one's preview comes to about $444k and 963. Your own prices, costs and figures change that, which is the point of trying it here first.
Can I use it to test a membership club business plan?
That is what it is for. Put your plan's prices, costs and starting cash in, play it forward quarter by quarter, and see whether the money lasts, how many members you would need and what a rival's price cut does to you — before you put real money in.
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