Chuck E. Cheese Hopes to Destroy 7 Billion Prize Tickets

Management for Chuck E. Cheese is hoping to destroy 7 billion prize tickets that have accumulated in its supply chain during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The company went bankrupt this year. Business Insider explained in an August report that “due to its $1 billion debt load and the COVID-19 pandemic forcing closures of all its locations, the parent company, CEC Entertainment, declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy in June 2020.”

The New York Post reported that the stockpile could be traded in for around $9 million worth of prize merchandise — or $0.0013 per ticket — “if they were abandoned and snapped up by potential customers.”

“Since prize tickets are redeemable by guests at significantly higher value than the cost of prize tickets, the debtors instead need to arrange for the destruction of the remaining stock of prize tickets in the supply chain to mitigate any risk of these tickets being circulated to the general public,” said James A. Howell, CEC’s chief financial officer, in a Monday court filing.

While some Chuck E. Cheese locations have permanently closed, others have reopened for business. Fox Business reported that CEC hopes to replace the traditional coupons with electronic tickets and say goodbye to the “muncher” machines.

Business Insider reported that the company has recently launched “e-tickets” to switch to a more pandemic-friendly touchless customer experience.

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