Today we’d like to introduce you to Mark Revis.
Hi Mark, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
In 2016 my daughter was going to college in Cleveland. On a random Sunday, we booked our first escape room. Not really knowing what to do, we started to figure things out. With bad use of our helpful clues, we ran out of time. Despite our performance, we really enjoyed the experience. About a month later, we found a different one in different location and were ready to try again. This one was very high end with larger than life props. We did a little better, but came up short again. After doing just 2 of them, I really loved the concept. 60 minutes, 3 clues, and in my head unlimited theme possibilities. Later at dinner, I said to my family “I’m going to open my own escape room”. With some laughs and comments, my daughter’s boyfriend Nick was on board. About 6 months later, we found a space in downtown Warren Ohio. It was on the second floor above an art gallery. The space was huge, and needed a ton of work. The price was right, and we began to clear it out. We figured we had space to build 2 large rooms. With the help of friends and family, we had 2 empty rooms. Many themes were discussed for our first room, and we decided on something creepy. The Asylum it is. We pictured an old abandoned mental ward. That helped because we could use a lot of old items for props and decor. We got the room looking like we envisioned, and now for a game. We wrote patient files and diary entries for a fictional character, which later I connected to a real story. Not being experienced in marketing such a thing, we went to social media. With lots of likes and interest, business was hard to find. A few months passed, and we got our first paying group from The Italian Festival 2017 going on right outside. From there business started to trickle in. Time to start our second room. I went with a completely different theme. A Tiki Bar. I thought variety would generate more business. It did a little, but still struggling. By this time my daughter’s boyfriend Nick, also attending college in Cleveland, was to busy to stick with it. I respected his situation and was grateful for everything we’d done. Now winging it solo, I was determined to make it work. The first year was not good. I’d invested a lot of time and money. Paying my expenses out of pocket couldn’t last forever. I’d got a few large groups that kept me alive. Learning my way around the business, I realized someone left a review about how fun it was. Things started to pickup, and my account was growing. I still had more space, and decided to fix it and create a third experience. This took awhile essentially doing all the work myself on weekends. People were really enjoying the other rooms, and I thought reinvest. Save Hank was born. A 2 room 90 min hostage situation. Now I needed help. Nick’s brother Joe lived in the area and had already helped in the beginning. He caught on quick and we worked great together. During this time someone reached out to me on my website and asked if I was hiring. Sarah said she was moving to the area, and had managed an escape room in Illinois. I said get in touch when you get here. We met up and I showed her my business. She loved the rooms and was willing to help out. I got a large group from out of state, and needed all hands on deck. She did great and things were really good. The three of us would each handle a room, and we were filling up most Saturdays. Three years in and the business was thriving. 2020 brought the pandemic, and everything was in question. Joe and Sarah had to move on, and I thought maybe it was done. My landlord asked if I was going to stick it out, and cut me a break till things got back to normal. I did reopen and wearing masks and keeping groups completely private was important. A lot of small businesses didn’t survive, and I felt fortunate to be coming back. An old friend moved back to the area (Ross) and was interested in helping out. He worked with me for about a year and things were going good again. With a string of deaths in my family, I was not open very much, and was back to being solo. I knew I could’ve probably hired some teenagers and done more business, I just knew they wouldn’t have my passion. I hung on by a thread for a couple years, contemplating closing multiple times. I just couldn’t let go. Now 2024, another old friend moved back to the area, (Jim) and was interested in helping me. With many of the same interests, we got along well, and I shared a new room idea I’d had for awhile. METALHEAD a teen’s bedroom from the 80s, He loved the idea, and we’ve been working on it most of 2025. Almost complete, we’re about to do our first test group on Halloween. With my 4th room about to open, I’m excited to bounce back in 2026.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has not been smooth, but I’ve embraced the struggle and the chance to entertain people. I jumped into this with no experience, and am still learning.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’ve worked for UPS for 28 years. 10 were part time and 18 full time as a driver. I also have a love for music, and have played in bands most of my adult life. I’m currently in a band,( French Blue) and we’re about to celebrate our 20 year anniversary. I’m most proud of my kids. I’m most proud of my family. My wife Sonya, daughter Miranda, and my son Nate. Also my son-in-law Nick.
If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
Determination and creativity.
Pricing:
- $20-30 dollars per person
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Www.warrenperplexcity.com
- Instagram: @warrenperplexcity
- Facebook: Warren PerpleXcity
