Russian businessman Denis Rogov built an empire based on an idea he developed in the city of Blagoveshchensk in 2018: he opened a store equipped with virtual reality technology where young people could go to play alone or as a team.
He named his venture Portal VR. And the proposal was an immediate success. So much so that in just six months he found himself opening a second location in the capital of his native country, Moscow. Within the framework of this vertiginous growth, the international chain of virtual reality parks reached the current 108 branches that it has distributed in 16 countriesunder the impulse of a system of franchises.
Now, Rogov, who turned 32 in 2024, moved to Argentina with his entire family. And that decision was accompanied by the inauguration of its first location in Latin America. Here in Buenos Aires the branch is called VR Arena and is located in front of the Abasto shopping centeron Corrientes Avenue. It is a three-level premises whose installation demanded an investment of US$250,000.
“VR Arena is the first immersive virtual reality experience in Argentina with these dimensions. While some VR options have emerged in gaming spaces or small venues in recent years, none has the capacity, diversity and such a complete proposal like the one we offer,” he explained to Scope Nina Gilmizyanova, co-founder of VR Arena Argentina and one of those responsible for the brand’s arrival in the country.
Nina, who is also Russian, has been living in Buenos Aires for almost 8 years. He speaks perfect Spanish and met Rogov in this city. And thus was born the company that financed the opening and management of the chain’s first location in the entire region. He is in charge of managing the branch, in addition to carrying out marketing tasks.
He also revealed that one of the biggest challenges was finding the right location for his plans. It took them 8 months to achieve it.. They needed many square meters in an area with high traffic of people. After investigating neighborhoods like Palermo and the Obelisco area, they decided on Abasto.
In that three-story building, the VR Arena has three entertainment areas equipped with the most advanced technologies in the field of virtual reality: Oculus Quest 3 headsets, PS5 and Xbox One consoles.
“Our plans come first expand this space. We have three floors. And last month we enabled only the first one. The second will open at the end of February or March 2025. And then we will open the third one. These plans include opening more stores next year in different points of the province of Buenos Aires and in Córdoba“Nina detailed.
The intention is to develop more stores under the franchise tool, based in Buenos Aires from where the master franchise will be managed, both for national and international openings. “The next country we are looking at with interest is Chile,” revealed the businesswoman.
Journalist: Have you already done any previous polls with candidates to take over the franchise?
Nina Gilmizyanova: We have already had contact with about 30 interested parties. But most were waiting for the opening of this location in Abasto to see how it works and then make a decision. What we offer is access to different formats. They don’t have to be like this big place. You can open something smaller with less investment. We already have all the financial models calculated according to the size and investment available for each franchisee.
Q: What does the franchise include?
NG: We help with the technical project. We do not only work with virtual reality but we have our own team that develops games for the arena where you can play with free movement. For each location, the maps are adapted according to the characteristics of the place, so that people can play without the risk of colliding with walls or columns. We currently have five of our own games.
Source: Ambito
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