Creating A Monster

“You’ll probably get, like, eight people.” That was the response from Christina Vitagliano’s landlord when the Monster Mini Golf founder first ran the idea of an indoor, black light, monster-themed mini golf course by him 10 years ago.  Today, the company boasts over 25 locations in more than a dozen states and Canada. “I had no idea where he got the number eight,” laughs Vitagliano now.  “He was so matter-of-fact about that prediction, but it didn’t make any sense at all to me.” Vitagliano had owned an antique auction house before opening the first Monster Mini Golf in Danielson, Conn.  She travelled across the world collecting antiques and picking items up through consignment to resell. “In more cases that not, I saw greed and the bad traits in people,” Vitagliano said.  “I loved what I did but I didn’t like dealing with the people.  I didn’t know what I was going to do next, but I knew I wanted to do the exact opposite of what I was doing then.” [caption id="attachment_10516" align="alignleft" width="261" caption="Patrick and Christina"][/caption] Inspiration hit her during a road trip to New York City with her husband, Patrick.  She’d been mulling over the fact that her friends were always complaining that going to the movies was too expensive.  She wanted to come up with an idea for something that was more affordable than the movies, fun and had little to no overhead.  When she told Patrick about her idea to bring mini golf indoors, he argued the idea was crazy. “I just thought it would be fun to run an indoor mini golf course with my friend,” Vitagliano said.  “I used to manage night clubs and restaurants, and didn’t want to get sucked into working that many hours again.  It just sounded like a fun and new idea.” By the time the pair got home from the three and half hour drive, Vitagliano had already worked up the idea to black light the place and create monsters for the course’s obstacles.  She set to work creating the indoor mini golf course in the textile mill she and Patrick leased.  At the time, there was no such thing as glow-in-the-dark putters or golf balls so she purchased pastel colored golf balls and spray painted all the putters so they would glow.  She also got a part-time job at a bar, spending anything she made in cash on the golf course. “My feeling was that if my idea sucks and everyone else was right, at least I’m using my own money,” laughed Vitagliano. She finally opened her doors on Memorial Day in 2004. Vitagliano made 400 bucks the first day she opened.  However by the end of the summer, people were coming in droves from nearby cities to check out the quirky indoor mini golf place in Danielson. The idea was a success. [caption id="attachment_10519" align="alignright" width="262" caption="Glow-in-the-dark monster"][/caption] After so many friends and customers told her what a goldmine she had on her hands, she decided to look into franchising.  After connecting with a franchise consultant in Chicago, Christina and Patrick made a huge sacrifice to make their dream a reality. “We sold everything we had and moved into the office in our golf course for nine months until we were legally able to start franchising,” Vitagliano said. With the sale of their first franchise, the couple was able to pay off their business loan completely.  Since then the company has taken off and the entrepreneurs have signed franchisees across the country, including a Las Vegas KISS-themed location. Vitagliano chuckles when she thinks back to the odd looks and confused responses she got from friends after first presenting the idea she cooked up during a car ride to New York City. “It’s kind of a weird little story I guess,” Vitagliano laughed.