Chris Stafford and Warren Conard didn't start with a business plan; they started with a $15 ticket and a spare room in a Denver strip mall. In 2002, the two friends poured their own cash into a haunted house, balancing the scares with their day jobs in banking and marketing. They lacked budget for professional effects, so they rigged up speakers to mimic a chainsaw, a trick that supposedly sent patrons fleeing back to the exit. It was terrifying, Stafford told People, but the fear sold well enough to keep the lights on.
The leap from hobby to industry happened in 2010. After the 2008 financial crisis shook the banking sector, Stafford left his stable salary and benefits to run the haunt full-time. That risk paid off. Thirteenth Floor Entertainment Group now controls 18 seasonal Halloween properties in cities like Chicago, Denver, and Houston. They’ve also branched out into escape rooms, axe-throwing, and a 40,000-square-foot immersive art installation in Philadelphia called Otherworld.
Scale brings logistical headaches. Stafford notes that the team modifies about 30% of every existing attraction annually to keep the experience fresh, a process that can take 12 months for a new site. They even operate out of a 115-year-old building in San Antonio featuring a three-story slide into the basement, and have partnered with the Winchester Mystery House in California. The goal remains simple: you don't need expensive prosthetics to scare people, just the right sound and a little darkness.
The human cost is the biggest metric. While the core staff numbers around 80 full-time employees, the seasonal surge is massive. Thirteenth Floor paid roughly 4,500 workers during the 2025 Halloween season. The next construction window opens now, as the team begins the 12-month build-out for the upcoming cycle.