In 2025, 6 Pillars Marketing (6PM) was proud to create a custom Grand Opening Launch Campaign for Dave & Buster’s as it relocated to its dynamic new location at Ala Moana Center. To build awareness, spark enthusiasm, and drive traffic, the 6PM team left no marketing stone unturned, leveraging a range of strategies from our comprehensive 6 Pillars of Integrated Marketing. In the months leading up to the opening, the Dave & Buster’s team worked to finalize the 45,000-square-foot space, while we generated a monumental buzz for the April 2025 launch. 6PM is pleased to have played our part in helping Dave & Buster’s Ala Moana quickly become the brand’s #1 grossing location in the country.
6PM Tactics Employed: Public relations, experiential marketing, branding, graphic design, creative strategy, media & entertainment, social media marketing, celebrity & influencer marketing, photography & videography, event planning & production, stage management, scriptwriting, and event staffing.
6PM executed a far-reaching public relations campaign, including custom news releases and extensive media outreach. The initial “coming soon” communications also announced that D&B was hiring for over 80 positions. Subsequent releases announced the “Find the Flag” community scavenger hunt and the long-awaited grand opening date, along with opening-day promotions and a complete list of exciting new features.
Before the grand opening, 6PM coordinated a Private Media Preview event, providing a curated media experience inside the tech-forward space. Reporters enjoyed a grand tour, presentations by local team members, interview opportunities, and a chance to savor (as well as video and photograph) signature cuisine and beverages.
In addition to securing and managing dozens of pre-opening and opening-day interviews, our team arranged a live broadcast on the opening day with HI Now Daily to highlight the promotional activities.
The result of our comprehensive public relations outreach was widespread coverage in television, radio, print and online media outlets. We achieved exposure on all three Honolulu network TV stations (morning and evening), as well as in the Honolulu Advertiser’s Crave publication and Pacific Business News, among many others.
The launch campaign also included a magnificent VIP Preview on the Friday preceding opening day. 6PM’s experiential marketing team imagined, planned and produced all aspects of the celebration. It was an evening that won’t soon be forgotten by the VIP guests who attended the exclusive event – and the thousands more who saw it shared across social media channels far and wide.
Honoring Hawaiʻi’s deep cultural traditions, the evening began with a traditional Hawaiian blessing ceremony and heart-pounding taiko drum performances just outside the Dave & Buster’s doors. 6PM ambassadors warmly greeted each guest at the entrance for a paperless check-in, while Miss Hawaiʻi and a host of local beauty queens and princesses welcomed each arriving guest with a fresh flower lei. A Power 104.3 radio remote broadcast kept the energy pumping both on-site and on the airwaves.
As guests poured into the new space, they explored the sprawling location while savoring innovative cocktails and an extensive lineup of mouthwatering dinner buffet offerings prepared in the Dave & Buster’s craft kitchen. To further enhance the evening’s cultural themes and add to the excitement, attendees were entertained by a vibrant Chinese lion dance, which moved artfully throughout the venue to bring luck and prosperity, as well as a performance by the Polynesian Cultural Center.
Award-winning Anuhea, a longtime entertainment partner of 6PM, lit up the evening with a stellar headline performance. Magically, Anuhea elevated the already electric atmosphere at the celebration, engaging the crowd with her beloved music. Guests also enjoyed a host of impromptu performances, as Anuhea invited numerous local entertainers from the star-studded audience to take the stage.
To ensure exposure and enthusiasm beyond the four walls of our captivating event, 6PM harnessed the power of organic social media, engaging an array of successful strategies and tactics. With everything from celebrity emcees to high-profile influencer guests, a step-and-repeat photo backdrop, and a 360-degree photo op — and more — the celebration was designed to encourage maximum sharing across a broad spectrum of social media platforms.
6PM retained Brook Lee, former Miss Universe beauty queen and television host, and actor Kekoa Kekumano, of Aquaman and Rescue: HI Surf fame, to serve as masters of ceremonies. The locally rooted hosts brought their star power to the VIP celebration, ensuring a flawless execution of the evening’s itinerary from the stage.
The 6PM team leveraged its extensive network to curate an invitation list filled with celebrities and influencers, both local and those with ties to Hawaiʻi. Lifestyle, food & beverage and entertainment influencers were encouraged to tag, share and collaborate with Dave & Buster’s Ala Moana to increase engagement and reach. To further increase exposure, 150 Yelp Elite Squad members were also invited to preview the new venue.
By the end of the evening and in subsequent days and weeks, Hawaiʻi influencers and celebrities unleashed an explosion of posts, Reels, Stories, TikToks and more, sharing their personal experiences in true coconut-wireless fashion.
Strong pre-publicity resulted in a crowd of hundreds eagerly awaiting the opening of Dave & Buster’s Ala Moana. Numerous media hits throughout opening day ensured that momentum continued long after the first 100 guests in line received free game play and more.
From start to finish, the Dave & Buster’s Launch Campaign was enhanced with the skilled production of 6PM’s graphic design team. A few of the creative pieces developed for the campaign include a variety of branded invitations, a comprehensive event-day program, a custom step-and-repeat photo backdrop, informational event wayfinding signage and more.
6PM arranged for the entire launch campaign to be captured through high-quality photography and videography, providing our client with an extensive collection of captivating images for future brand marketing, promotional materials and social media.
