Why Gen Z’s Leisure Spend Is Sparking an Unexpected Boom That Could Redefine the Economy Overnight
Ever wonder why Gen Z seems to have ditched the trusty old pub for a night out that’s more ‘wow’ than ‘meh’? Well, it’s not just a phase or a fancy trend—the game has changed. These digital natives aren’t just staring at their tiny screens anymore; they’re craving big, bold, in-person experiences that spark real connections and social vibes. Think beyond the usual—where golf swings meet DJ beats, where darts light up like carnival rides, and cinemas serve up fish tacos alongside blockbusters. It’s this fusion of tech, ambiance, and social buzz that’s crafting a brand new experiential leisure economy, especially booming in Dublin. So, how do businesses capture this elusive Gen Z attention—and more importantly—their spending power? Spoiler alert: it’s all about blending the social with the sensational. Ready to dive into the big picture behind Gen Z’s new playground? LEARN MORE
Alanna Gallagher discovers the big picture on capturing the attention of Gen Z in the leisure economy. Hint: It’s social
How do you garner Gen Z’s attention and how are the kids choosing to spend their money? The answer lies in a move from small screens to big screens and ‘in real life’ entertainment.
“There’s a massive push with millennials and Gen Z in the UK and Ireland to do stuff that doesn’t involve going to the pub,” says Darragh Cronin, retail director at Savills. “With Gen Z, they want ‘in real life’ experiences outside of the pub.”
This has given rise to the experiential leisure economy. For people in Dublin, there’s quite a menu to choose from.
Dawson Street alone has two options. In a strategic partnership with Trackman, Pitch Golf opened its first Irish doors at number 60 in 2024. Offering golf, other games, cocktails and food, co-founder and CEO Elliot Godfrey told Golf Ireland that their sport “has the potential to be more diverse and inclusive”.
While the technologies in situ provide the most accurate, real-time data on club delivery, ball impact, launch, flight and landing, there’s also DJ decks and a Bunker Bar serving cocktails and beer.
The extensive €7m renovation of Flight Club Darts at numbers 35-36 last year includes illuminated dart boards and more carousel lights than an amusement arcade. The timing was a bit of a bullseye for its co-founders, Steve Moore and Paul Barham, who have already brought the social darts concept to the UK, Australia and the US with their franchise partners, State of Play Hospitality and NightOwl Entertainment.
The success of 19-year-old Luke Littler, who won the PDC World Championships in 2025 and 2026, has helped the sport and leisure activity shed its middle-aged man vibes. ‘The Nuke’ is beloved by Gen Z.
“For a long time, cinema had a bad rep. It was considered a stale concept, when everything else was new and shiny,” Cronin says.
That is until the Stella Cinema in Rathmines, Dublin 6, whose 2017 set-up Cronin was involved with, opened its doors after a swanky refurbishment. A feature has been made of its art deco architecture and cinephiles have fallen in love with its next-level luxury loungers, table service and sense of occasion.
Yes, the ticket price is more expensive than at your more typical multi-screen cinema. The offer is to sell more, Cronin explains.
“Ticket prices are falling but they’re pushing the experiential food offering, fish tacos and a margarita that you can have in the cinema whereas before the offer was a big bag of pick ’n’ mix. Now it involves dinner at the venue, either before or after the show.”
The Stella is a one-screen cinema. It’s a hard concept to replicate, says its head of cinema Karl Geraghty, whose background is live music. He understands the theatrical aspect of a night out evidenced in the success of the Workman’s Club on Dublin’s Wellington Quay, which he set up.
“It’s about a level of service, the food and beverage offer and corralling them by design.”
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, one might interpret Omniplex Cinema Group’s latest auditorium, the five-screen cinema in Nutgrove Shopping Centre, in Rathfarnham, Dublin 14, as being Stella-like.
Fully Irish-owned and operated by the Anderson family, it invested more than €3m into the cinema development that has five 50-seater auditoriums offering the latest blockbuster movies. The group works at scale. It has 22 cinemas in the Republic, a further 14 in the North and eight in the UK.
In part it is catering to kids “who want to move from short-form content to something more long-form. They want to get off the couch and their streaming services, out of home and interact,” says Gary Hughes, interim marketing manager at Omniplex ROI.
Last year over 80 per cent of certificates issued by the Irish Film Classification Office (IFCO) were PG, 12A or 15A, with one third of the audience aged between 15 and 34.
Total box office revenue in 2025 amounted to €95.24m, which was down €7.2m from 2024, representing a 7 per cent decrease. This is a slower rate of decline than in 2024 when sales in Ireland fell by 9.5 per cent.
Hughes attributes this to what he calls “the Stellafication effect” — the experiential offer of an atmospheric, luxurious space combined with restaurant-quality food and beverages that the Stella has given cinephiles.
It’s something Omniplex has emulated at a standalone property the group owns in Belfast. With nine screens, The Avenue offers lounge seating and a bar that serves freshly made pizza, burgers and small plates along with all manner of beverages.
“For cinemas it’s a change of concept. The successful ones now offer a full food and beverage offer, a one-stop shop,” Cronin notes.
“No developer will build a cinema as a standalone and lease that. Most landlords might develop a cinema with restaurants around it.”
Cronin cites the opening of two Lane7 outlets last year, the firstin Dundrum and the second on Chatham Street in the city centre. He also notes the arrival of Roxy Ball Room into the Irish market with its soon-to-open premises in Central Plaza on Dame Street.
Roxy Ball Room, which has 20 venues across the UK, is growing rapidly within the competitive socialising sector. Turnover reached almost €47.5m (£40.6m stg) in 2024, representing 24 per cent growth following the opening of four new sites that year. It opened a further five venues in 2025, with another four planned for 2026, one of which is the Central Plaza site. With a current planned opening date of late October, this is the firm’s first foray overseas.
“Rather than focusing solely on market share, we see our growth and expanding estate as a reflection of the increasing demand for the type of experience Roxy offers,” its managing director Ben Turnock explains.
“A key point of difference for Roxy is that we bring multiple formats of gaming together under one roof. Rather than being a single-format competitive socialising venue, guests can move between games and experiences throughout the night. Dublin will also be the first time we bring our Crazy Pool concept and wider multi-format gaming offer to Europe outside the UK.”
Roxy will experience stiff competition from the already-established Lane7, a self-described “entertainment and late-night activity bar offering boutique bowling, interactive darts, shuffleboard, and retro arcade games”. It now has two premises in the capital.
In a press release at the time of its Chatham Street opening in April 2025, MD Gavin Hughes said: “Dundrum was just the warm-up. We’ve seen how much Dubliners love what we do, so we’re bringing the heat to the city centre. Lane7 Chatham Street isn’t just a bowling alley — it’s a place where nights out take on a life of their own. Whether it’s pre-drinks before hitting town, a wild work do, or just a casual Tuesday that got kicked up a notch, we’ve got it covered.”
With 20 venues across the UK, Roxy Ball Room sees Dublin as a natural first international step. “It has a strong social culture and many similaritiesto the UK markets where we have already established the brand,making it an exciting opportunity to take the concept overseas while still operating in a market we understand,” Ben Turnock says.
The strength of Roxy is the variety of its offer, adds commercial director Ben Warren. “Guests aren’t committed to one activity for the whole evening. They can play Crazy Pool, move on to tech darts, grab a drink, play ping-pong or beer pong and then continue the night in the bar.”
Photo: Roxy Ball Room
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