Daily Hampshire Gazette – Spare Time Entertainment in Northampton thrives as customers continue to rediscover bowling

By RYAN AMES

Staff Writer

Let’s rewind the clocks back five years to the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. During the spring of 2020, streets were eerily empty and businesses, including local bowling alleys, were forced to temporarily close its doors as health restrictions limited all non-essential social interactions.

A few months later, restrictions eased and certain businesses, including Northampton’s lone bowling center, Spare Time Entertainment, were allowed to reopen to the public.

Given the severity and scope of the global pandemic, customers weren’t exactly flocking back to their normal routines. In fact, Spare Time’s general manager, Nancy Cote, revealed the center didn’t see much business until the calendar flipped to 2021.

That’s when everything changed.

“All of a sudden, business really picked up,” Cote said. “People were looking to get back out, and we actually, for the next couple of years, saw a big resurgence in business. In my opinion, I felt like a lot of people rediscovered bowling because it was one of the few things open and were reminded about how much they liked it or how much fun it could be for the whole family, because little kids can bowl right up through seniors.”

Cote added that the boom lasted for about two years as the center saw tons of bowlers take advantage of its affordable prices, plus its promotions that include ‘Kids Bowl Free’ during the summer months and ‘Eight for $8’, an eight-week commitment league for less than $10 per week.

“For a while it stayed the same, and then I think maybe a year ago we’ve had a bump up in pricing just a little bit, but we are still considerably less compared to our competitors,” Cote said.

Spare Time also runs regular specials, such as half-priced Tuesdays ($2.89 per game, all day) and all-you-can-bowl from 9-11 p.m. on Sunday through Wednesdays for $6.99 per person

“I think people appreciate the good value that we have,” Cote said.

Nowadays, the center has leveled off in terms of popularity compared to its post-Covid surge, partially because summertime is not its peak season. That would be the winter months when customers want to get out of the house, but still stay active despite the frigid temperatures.

“That’s when we’re busy,” Cote said. “They can come inside and still have a great time and unless you ski or snowmobile, a lot of people don’t participate in winter outdoor activities. So from January through April is really our peak season.”Cote mentioned the center is implementing several upgrades to continue to adapt with the times and attract more interested bowlers.

“We just installed all automatic bumper systems for every lane. We had it in about a third of the center for several years and it was just completed this [month],” Cote said. “Then what that allows is, let’s say you have two adults bowling with a couple kids. The kids can have these bumpers [and] they’ll automatically pop up when it’s their turn, blocks the ball from going in the gutter and then when it’s the adults turn, they go back down. So that was a big improvement here in our center that was just completed. We just got a brand new air conditioning unit this summer. We are in the process of installing all new LED black lights for over the lanes from when we have that galactic bowling on the weekends. So there’s quite a few updates happening here.”

Cote, who has served as Spare Time’s general manager for nearly seven years, disclosed her own personal affinity for the game as a committed league-bowler. Despite the initial negatives that came when the center was impacted by COVID-19, Cote is pleased with where the state of the game is a half a decade later.

“We’re definitely moving onward and upward, trying to provide the best guest experience we can with these improvements,” Cote said. “You know, bowling in general, [the] bowling heyday was in the 60s and 70s. I don’t think we’ll ever see it get back to that level, but I think COVID, in the long run, was a good thing for the bowling industry. Like I said, a lot of people rediscovered bowling and I think they they have stayed on.”