The Cipher Room
The Cipher Room is an independently-owned, Sydney-based escape room operator running two venues with six in-house designed escape rooms for consumer groups, corporate team-building, and families, monetised through per-person online bookings, gift vouchers, and merchandise.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2016
- HeadquartersNewtown, Australia
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What The Cipher Room does
The Cipher Room is an independently-owned escape room operator founded in 2016 in Sydney, Australia, by two escape game and puzzle fanatics. The company runs two physical venues — Newtown (640 King Street) and St Peters (31-35 May Street) — offering six themed 60-minute escape room experiences (Espionage, The Cabin, The Marlowe Hotel, Metamorphosis, La Rébellion, Mr Pepper's Toy Shop) accommodating groups of 2–8 players with difficulty levels ranging from 3/5 to 5/5.
All puzzles (electronic, wooden, graphic, magnetic), concepts, narratives, sound design, and lighting are designed and manufactured in-house. Sets are built using props sourced from local second-hand and vintage shops, reclaimed and recycled materials, and detailed atmospheric theming. An in-room camera and audio monitoring system enables staff to provide hints and assistance during gameplay. The company also sells branded merchandise (t-shirts at A$30, caps at A$45) and gift vouchers through its own e-commerce store.
Revenue is generated primarily through self-serve online bookings at per-person tiered pricing (A$65–79 depending on group size), supplemented by gift voucher and merchandise sales. The customer base spans social/celebration groups, corporate team-building clients, and families. The Cipher Room has earned multiple international accolades, including the TERPECA Top Room Award (2022, the first Australian recipient), two Golden Lock Awards (2024), and Time Out Sydney Recommends (2025). The company is bootstrapped, founder-owned, and operates with a team of approximately five employees, with no disclosed external funding or parent company.
The Cipher Room firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- The Cipher Room
- Legal name
- The Cipher Room
- Website
- https://cipherroom.com.au
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2016
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- The Cipher Room is an independently-owned, Sydney-based escape room operator running two venues with six in-house designed escape rooms for consumer groups, corporate team-building, and families, monetised through per-person online bookings, gift vouchers, and merchandise.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
The Cipher Room industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Escape Room Entertainment
- NAICS
- Amusement Parks and Arcades (7131)
- SIC
- Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Escape Room Games & Mystery Puzzle Boxes Retail (CRALALAM)
Keywords
Where The Cipher Room is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Newtown
- HQ country
- Australia
- HQ region
- Oceania
Offices2 records
Markets served
The Cipher Room business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Escape Room Bookings: Per-person fees for escape room sessions. Pricing tiers based on group size: 2 people at $79/pp, 3 people at $75/pp, 4-6 people at $70/pp, 7-8 people at $65/pp. Children 4 and under play free.
- Gift Vouchers: Gift vouchers sold with customizable amounts. Recipients can choose date and time. Optional gift box add-on available.
- Merchandise Sales: Branded merchandise including t-shirts ($30) and caps ($45) sold through the online store.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | 2-person booking |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | 3-person booking |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | 4-6 person booking |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | 7-8 person booking |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels5 records
The Cipher Room product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Cipher Room designs, builds, and operates immersive themed escape room experiences at two venues in Sydney (Newtown and St Peters). Each 60-minute game accommodates 2–8 players, featuring in-house engineered puzzles (electronic, wooden, graphic, magnetic), bespoke set design, sound design, and lighting, monitored by staff via in-room cameras who provide hints. The company also sells gift vouchers and branded apparel as ancillary offerings.
Product overview
The Cipher Room is an independently-owned escape room company operating two venues in Sydney, Australia (Newtown and St Peters). The company offers six distinct escape room experiences with varying themes, difficulty levels, and age recommendations. At the St Peters location: Metamorphosis (post-apocalyptic bunker thriller), La Rébellion (dystopian France resistance mission), and Mr Pepper's Toy Shop (creepy haunted toy shop investigation). At the Newtown location: The Marlowe Hotel (1950s film noir detective adventure), The Cabin (serial killer investigation), and Espionage (1940s spy mission). All games accommodate 2-8 players, feature bespoke in-house puzzles, and include professional monitoring via in-room cameras with staff available to provide hints. The company also sells merchandise (t-shirts and caps) and gift vouchers as supplementary offerings.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Metamorphosis Atmospheric thriller escape room set in an underground bunker in 2062 post-apocalyptic world where a toxin has spread across the world; players explore the bunker and survive from mutants. Located at St Peters venue. Difficulty 4/5, recommended for ages 12 and above.
- La Rébellion Epic adventure escape room set in dystopian France where players are part of a resistance group infiltrating a secret bunker owned by a despotic leader. Awarded the TERPECA Top Room Award in 2022 and 2024 Golden Lock Award. Located at St Peters venue. Difficulty 4.5/5.
- Mr Pepper's Toy Shop Creepy mystery escape room inside an abandoned toy shop where players work for a supernatural consultancy investigating haunted properties. Winner of 2024 Golden Lock Award. Located at St Peters venue. Difficulty 3.5/5, recommended for ages 16 and over.
- The Marlowe Hotel Film noir private investigator escape room adventure set in 1950s New York; players break into a hotel to retrieve incriminating documents for a singer being blackmailed by a gangster kingpin. Entirely black, grey and white themed. Located at Newtown venue. Difficulty 5/5.
- The Cabin Serial-killer detective investigation escape room where players investigate a cabin connected to a serial killer case. Atmospherically creepy with no jump scares. Located at Newtown venue. Difficulty 4/5, recommended for ages 12 and above.
- Espionage 1940s spy mission escape room where players are newly recruited spies solving puzzles left by a missing agent at a safe house. Family-friendly with no scary content. Located at Newtown venue. Difficulty 3/5.
- Gift Vouchers Gift vouchers available for purchase that recipients can redeem for any available escape room game and date, with customizable amounts and optional complimentary gift boxes featuring The Cipher Room mini-suitcase design.
- The Cipher Room T-Shirt Black cotton t-shirt with screen-printed The Cipher Room logo, unisex fit, mid-weight 180 GSM, 100% combed cotton, available in sizes XS to 3XL, priced at A$30, with delivery to Australia only.
- The Cipher Room Cap Black cap with embroidered The Cipher Room logo, 100% cotton, structured 6-panel design with curved peak, embroidered eyelets, padded sweatband, and Velcro closure, one size fits all, priced at A$45, online sales only.
Quantifiable outcome
- 60-minute gameplay plus 10-minute introduction, 90 minutes total experience
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use The Cipher Room
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
The Cipher Room technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
The Cipher Room partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators6 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights4 records
The Cipher Room competitors and assessment
Company assessmentRegional players
- Cluedunnit Escape Rooms: Australian escape room chain with multiple themed rooms. Comparable themed puzzle experience and target audience (groups, families, corporate), with overlap in difficulty tiers and storytelling approach.
- Strike Bowling: Australian bowling and entertainment venue operator. Regional LBE peer offering group entertainment (bowling, karaoke, events) targeting the same corporate team-building and celebration occasions in the same geography.
- No Escape: Melbourne-based escape room operator with strong reputation and multiple themed rooms. Comparable product offering (themed puzzle rooms, team-building) and similar independent-operator positioning, but primarily serves Victorian rather than NSW customers.
- Red Herring Escape Rooms: Australian independent escape room operator with similar boutique, design-focused positioning. Comparable product (themed puzzle rooms), target customers (groups, corporates), and independent operator model.
Direct peers
- The Escape Game: US-based escape room chain with multiple themed venues. Closest international peer in scale and product sophistication, with comparable themed rooms, corporate events, and award-winning design, but operating in a different geography.
- 60out Escape Rooms: US-based independent escape room operator known for highly themed, award-nominated rooms. Direct peer in the boutique, design-led segment with comparable immersive puzzle experiences and emphasis on proprietary set design.
- Escape Hunt: UK-origin escape room brand with global franchise presence including Australia. Operates themed escape rooms targeting similar group entertainment and corporate team-building use cases, and competes in the premium escape room tier Cipher Room occupies.
- Exitus Australia: Sydney-based escape room operator running multiple themed rooms in the city. Direct peer in the same product category, customer base (groups, corporate team-building, celebrations), and geographic market as The Cipher Room.
Broad incumbents
- Timezone Australia: Large Australian arcade and family entertainment center chain. Broad incumbent competing for the same location-based entertainment and group-outing discretionary spend, with overlapping family and corporate event use cases.
Emerging players
- Bounce Inc: Australian trampoline and active entertainment venue chain. Emerging LBE player competing for the same group entertainment, family, and corporate team-building occasions, with different core activity but overlapping audience and pricing tier.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
The Cipher Room social profiles
Digital presenceThe Cipher Room financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
The Cipher Room leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
The Cipher Room funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
The Cipher Room M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about The Cipher Room
What does The Cipher Room do?
The Cipher Room designs, builds, and operates immersive themed escape room experiences at two venues in Sydney (Newtown and St Peters). Each 60-minute game accommodates 2–8 players, featuring in-house engineered puzzles (electronic, wooden, graphic, magnetic), bespoke set design, sound design, and lighting, monitored by staff via in-room cameras who provide hints. The company also sells gift vouchers and branded apparel as ancillary offerings.
Is The Cipher Room a public or private company?
The Cipher Room is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was The Cipher Room founded?
The Cipher Room was founded in 2016. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is The Cipher Room based?
The Cipher Room is headquartered in Newtown, Australia, in the Oceania region.
How does The Cipher Room make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Escape Room Bookings are the primary driver. The others are gift Vouchers and merchandise Sales.
Who are The Cipher Room's main competitors?
Regional players on record are Cluedunnit Escape Rooms, Strike Bowling, No Escape and Red Herring Escape Rooms. Direct peers are The Escape Game, 60out Escape Rooms, Escape Hunt and Exitus Australia. Timezone Australia is listed as a broad incumbent. Bounce Inc is listed as an emerging player.
Does The Cipher Room have an API?
No public API is recorded for The Cipher Room.
What industry is The Cipher Room in?
The Cipher Room's product category is Escape Room Entertainment. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRALALAM, Escape Room Games & Mystery Puzzle Boxes Retail. Its NAICS code is 7131 and its SIC code is 7990.