Our communities lose ~฿113k/mo. Not because events are weak — they're excellent (97% fill on Sabai) — but because 80% of every baht goes back to the clubs for courts, and the ฿300/court-hour that remains can't carry our overhead. The fix is not more events (that would take ~126/mo — 4 per day). The fix is three high-margin moves on top of what we already run: ฿100/seat premium · 3 sponsor slots · monthly tournaments — which drop break-even to ~28 events, below today's 42. Membership comes later, once partnerships give us real perks to sell. Section 5 shows where the numbers land; sections 6–8 are the plan.
An average event books 2.3 courts → ~฿1,360 margin per event on court markup alone. A ฿100/seat premium adds ~฿450–500 per court (~100% margin) — nearly doubling the take without touching the court price.
A host can run 2 events/day × 26 days = 52 events/mo. Fully utilized, one host generates 52 × ฿1,800 = ~฿94k of court margin — several times what a host costs. Hosts are a profit engine, not a cost line. The catch: on court markup alone it takes ~126 events/mo (3 fully-loaded hosts) just to cover the fixed operating base. The portfolio today (42 events) fits inside one host.
| ฿ / month | Today | Phase 3 · Nov–Dec '26 | Q1 '27 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Social events / month | 42 | 50–55 | 75–85 (host #2) |
| Tournaments / month | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Sponsor slots sold | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| Court margin + ฿100 premium | +65k | ~+145k | ~+225k |
| Sponsors + tournaments | 0 | ~+95k | ~+110k |
| Operating costs (all-in) | −178k | −178k | ~−205k |
| Net | −113k | +40–70k | +120–150k |
How to read this: the events business barely changes size — what changes is what each filled hour earns. Court cost model: player ticket = court rental + 25% markup (margin fixed at 20% of gross); premium and sponsorship revenue carry ~100% margin; tournaments at our ฿25k profit target each.
| Revenue model | Margin / event | Events / mo | Court-hours / mo | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Court markup only | ฿1,800 | ~126 (needs 3 hosts) | ~755h | ✗ 3× today — 4 events every day, zero slack |
| + ฿100/seat premium (13.5 seats) | ฿3,150 | ~65 (2 hosts) | ~390h | ✗ Hard — 1.5× volume first |
| + 3 sponsor slots (฿45k) | ฿3,150 | ~44 (1 host) | ~264h | ◐ Just above today's 42 |
| + 2 tournaments/mo (~฿25k margin each) | ฿3,150 | ~28 (1 host) | ~168h | ✓ Well below today — profitable at current volume |
| Later: + 100 members × ฿500 | ฿3,150 | ~12 | ~72h | Parked until partnerships deliver real perks |
Today we run 42 events ≈ 190 court-hours. The answer to "how many events?": on court markup alone, ~126/mo — 4 every single day with 3 hosts and no room for a bad week. With the full revenue layer, break-even drops to ~28 events — below what we already run. The break-even line must be pulled DOWN with high-margin revenue, not chased with volume.
Tournaments — our commitment: 2 per month, ฿25k profit target each. One weekend tournament fills 40–80 court-hours with a single host (≈35 social events' worth of hours). The ฿25k target works out at e.g. 32 players × ฿1,500 entry + ฿15k title sponsor over ~40 court-hours — margin ~฿600+/court-hour, double the social rate. Deuce has proven demand (tickets to ฿5,850). That's +฿50k/mo — doing the job membership would have done, available now.
| Phase | Moves | Events/mo | Net/mo |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 · Aug–Sep '26 | ฿100 premium on Sabai tickets (97% fill absorbs it) · sponsor kit to LUMI / F'D UP / Batiste · first monthly tournament on the calendar | 42 + 1 tournament | −฿50k |
| 2 · Oct '26 | 2 sponsors signed (฿30k) · tournament cadence locked (1/mo with title sponsor) · Deuce to 10 events · premium on all brands | ~48 + 1 | −฿10k |
| 3 · Nov–Dec '26 | 3rd sponsor (฿45k total) · 2 tournaments/mo · HerCourt relaunch (host-led beginner ladder) | 50–55 + 2 | +฿40–70k ← crosses zero |
| 4 · Q1 '27 | Host #2 · Pattaya revival or 2nd Bangkok chapter · academy & brand partnerships → unlock membership with real perks | 75–85 + 2 | +฿120–150k |
Rule of the plan: no new fixed cost until the previous revenue lever is confirmed — the premium funds the sponsor push, sponsors fund the tournaments and relaunch, and together they fund host #2.
We already created the loyalty — we just never monetized it: 303 players have attended Sabai 5+ times, 640 have come back at least twice. Membership converts that proven loyalty into recurring revenue. At ฿500/mo it costs less than one event ticket — an easy yes for anyone playing weekly.
| What membership brings | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Recurring revenue at ~100% margin | 100 members = ฿50k/mo that arrives before a single court is booked — it covers a third of overhead and cuts break-even from ~44 to ~28 events |
| A revenue floor that doesn't depend on weather or fill | Court margin swings with attendance; membership is the stable base under it |
| Priority access — a perk that costs us nothing | Sabai runs at 97% fill; spots are genuinely scarce. Selling early access to scarcity we already have is pure margin |
| Higher frequency & retention | Members pre-commit → they play more, fill mid-week hours, and churn less. HerCourt's problem (275 tried, 12 stayed) is exactly what a membership ladder fixes |
| Makes the ฿100 premium feel fair | Non-members pay the premium; members skip it. Both segments feel they're winning |
| A sellable audience for sponsors | "300 named, active Bangkok padel players" is a real media kit — it's what lets us charge ฿15k/slot instead of giving branded nights away free |
| Layer | Perks | Cost to us |
|---|---|---|
| 1 · Sponsor-funded | Welcome pack (sponsor products) · monthly member giveaway · discounts at sponsor venues & brands · demo gear days · drinks on sponsored nights | ฿0 — baked into every sponsor slot deal: sponsors pay to reach exactly this audience |
| 2 · Operational | 48h priority booking · ฿100 premium waived · member badge in the app · monthly members-only night · bring-a-friend premium waiver | ~฿0 — we sell scarcity and status we already have |
| 3 · Price discount | Member price on every event ticket | Comes out of our per-seat margin — governed by the threshold below |
Our margin on a base ticket is ~฿125/seat. A member playing 4×/mo also pays ฿500 in fees. That gives three zones:
| Member discount | Effect at typical 4 events/mo | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| ฿50 off (ticket ฿570) | Every member event stays clearly profitable; fee covers the giveaway 2.5× | ✓ Safe zone — recommended |
| ฿100 off (ticket ฿520) | Events still profitable, but the fee only breaks even if the member doesn't play more than ~5×/mo — needs the frequency uplift to pay off | ◐ Ceiling — only if membership demonstrably lifts frequency |
| ฿125+ off | We now pay the club for the privilege of hosting our own member | ✗ Never — below court cost per seat |
Guard-rail: member discount applies to the first 6 events/mo (protects us from heavy players turning the perk into a loss), and the discount rides on top of the premium waiver — a member at 4 events/mo saves ฿600 vs a non-member, for a ฿500 fee. The value is obvious, and we still come out ahead.
Founding offer (first 100, price locked forever): ฿500/mo → all layer-1 sponsor perks · 48h priority booking · ฿100 premium waived · ฿50 member price on every ticket (first 6 events/mo) · monthly members-only night · member badge. Target: 50 founding members in month one (17% of the 303 regulars), 100 by month three, 150 by Q1 '27 = ฿75k/mo recurring.
North-star dashboard, reviewed monthly: fill % · events/mo · court-hours/mo · tournaments run & profit each · sponsor slots sold · net ฿/mo. Green = Phase 3 (Nov–Dec): 50–55 events + 2 tournaments, 3 sponsors, net above zero.