About EROAUS

The people and the purpose behind Australia's escape room owner community.

Our Story

Escape Room Owners Australia (EROAUS) is a national network dedicated to supporting and uniting escape room owners across the country. We provide a collaborative space for sharing knowledge, solving challenges, and strengthening the industry through connection, advocacy, and best practice. Built by owners who understand the realities of the business, EROAUS exists to help escape rooms succeed together.

The EROAUS26 group photo - 50+ owners gathered in Canberra
EROAUS26, Canberra - nine years after a handful of owners first found each other.

What We Stand For

Collaboration Over Competition

We believe a rising tide lifts all boats. Owners helping owners makes the whole industry stronger.

Shared Knowledge

From pricing to prop-building, the answers usually exist within the community - we just connect them.

Advocacy

A united national voice for the escape room industry when it matters most.

Community First

Meetups, drop-ins, and friendships - because this industry is more fun together.

The People Behind EROAUS

Chris

Chris

Cofounder · Riddle Room, Canberra

Started the group in 2017 and has been quietly keeping the lights on ever since.

Jesse

Jesse

Cofounder · Riddle Room, Canberra

The other half of the engine room - helps keep EROAUS running, from events to the surveys and everything in between.

It takes more people than this to run EROAUS - as the site becomes a bigger resource, this wall will grow.

A Few Questions For Chris

Why did you start EROAUS?

Everyone I've met in the escape room community has been incredibly welcoming. Very early on, I knew I wanted to connect with more owners so we could share ideas, support each other and help the industry grow.

No one understands escape room owners quite like other escape room owners. We have such unique, weird and wonderful jobs, so it's helpful to have people to talk to who are in the same boat.

What's changed since 2017?

The industry has grown enormously, with more than 200 venues now operating across Australia. Most people know what escape rooms are, and the standard of game design and construction keeps getting higher.

It's been great to see how creative and inventive owners have become. As the industry continues to grow, it becomes even more important to have a central community where we can connect, share knowledge and help each other.

A message for the community?

Don't be afraid to share information with other owners. We're part of a unique industry where everyone benefits from having more great games.

The better the experiences are across the industry, the more customers discover escape rooms, enjoy them and want to play more. We don't compete in quite the same way as many other industries, and I think that's one of our greatest strengths.

Code of the Community

Every room has rules. These are ours.

  1. Owners helping owners. Share generously - the answer you give away today comes back to you doubled.
  2. What's shared in the room stays in the room. Numbers, struggles and stories shared in confidence stay in confidence.
  3. Competitors in the market, allies in the community. We compete for bookings, never against each other's success.
  4. Contribute before you promote. This is a community first - self-promotion earns its place through participation.
  5. Assume good intent. Disagree openly, kindly, and about the idea - not the person.

Get Involved

EROAUS only works because owners put their hands up. You don't need to commit to much - every bit helps the community grow. Here's where we can always use a hand:

Host a Meetup

Run a local catch-up in your city, or put your venue forward for a future annual meetup.

Run a Session

Lead a drop-in, share what you know in a talk, or host a themed discussion on Discord.

Contribute Data

Fill in the surveys, help design the next one, or crunch the results for the community.

Build Something

Write for the site, help with events, or bring a skill we didn't know we needed.

Put Your Hand Up

Or just mention it in the Discord - we'll find you something fun to do.