Two friends who opened a haunted house in a Denver shopping complex in 2002 with their own money have turned it into a multimillion-dollar entertainment business over the past 24 years.
asserted
who → open → years
Chris Stafford and Warren Conard started the attraction in Colorado, charging visitors around $15 per ticket.
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Stafford → start → ticket
By 2026, their company, Thirteenth Floor Entertainment Group, had expanded to 18 seasonal Halloween attractions across the United States, paying around 4,500 workers during the 2025 Halloween season.
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company → expand → season
The business has come a long way from its early days, when the two friends had limited money and had to find inexpensive ways to create frightening experiences.
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friends → come → experiences
Today, the company operates haunted houses in several American cities, alongside escape rooms, axe-throwing venues and other entertainment attractions.
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company → operate → rooms
During the 2025 Halloween season alone, it paid around 4,500 workers.
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it → pay → workers
Stafford, the company's CEO and founding partner, recently spoke to People magazine about how the business began.
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business → found → magazine
His interest in haunted houses developed long before he entered the business world.
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he → haunt → world
As a teenager growing up in upstate New York, he was invited by a friend to help frighten visitors at a haunted house operated by the friend's family.
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he → grow → family
He was just 15 at the time, but the experience stayed with him.
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experience → stay → him
Stafford continued working at the attraction during Halloween and met Conard there.
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Stafford → continue → Conard
The two became friends and discovered that they shared an interest in creating frightening experiences for visitors.
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they → become → visitors
They even discussed starting a similar business together, although neither was in a position to pursue the idea immediately.
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neither → discuss → idea
How first haunted house started
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house → haunt → ?
After finishing school, Stafford moved to Colorado for college and eventually began working in banking.
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Stafford → finish → banking
Over the years, he built a career, got married and started a family.
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he → build → family
Conard, meanwhile, went into marketing.
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Conard → go → marketing
Their earlier business idea resurfaced in 2001 when Stafford contacted Conard to find out whether he was still interested.
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he → resurface → Conard
Within two months, Conard identified a property in a Denver strip mall that could be used for a haunted house.
uncertain
that → identify → house
They inspected the space and decided to proceed.
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They → inspect → space
The attraction opened in 2002, with tickets priced at approximately $15.
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attraction → open → 15
Both men continued their regular jobs and used their own funds to keep the business running.
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men → continue → business
Their early efforts also involved finding practical alternatives to expensive equipment.
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efforts → involve → equipment
For example, they wanted visitors to hear a chainsaw, a sound commonly associated with haunted houses.
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visitors → want → houses
But using an actual chainsaw inside the building was difficult, so they installed speakers to produce the noise instead.
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they → use → noise
The sound frightened visitors enough to send some towards the exit.
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sound → frighten → exit
Recalling the experience, Stafford told People, “It was terrifying.”
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It → recall → People
The attraction gradually developed into a serious business opportunity.
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attraction → develop → opportunity
Stafford began thinking about leaving banking, although the decision involved considerable financial uncertainty.
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decision → begin → uncertainty
His job provided a regular income, employment benefits and a work-life balance he enjoyed.
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he → provide → income
The 2008 financial crisis became an important factor in his decision.
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crisis → become → decision
After spending years considering the move, Stafford finally left banking in 2010 to focus entirely on the haunted-house business.
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Stafford → spend → business
18 Halloween properties across the US
The company subsequently moved beyond its first Denver attraction and developed a much wider entertainment business.
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company → move → business
By 2026, Thirteenth Floor Entertainment Group had 18 seasonal Halloween properties, including attractions in Chicago, Denver and Houston.
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Group → have → Chicago
Its portfolio also includes experiences that are not centred entirely on Halloween.
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that → include → Halloween
One example is Otherworld Philadelphia, a 40,000-square-foot immersive art installation created through a joint venture with Otherworld, a company based in Columbus, Ohio.
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example → create → Columbus
Some of its Halloween attractions operate in buildings with unusual features.
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Some → operate → features
In San Antonio, Texas, visitors can experience an attraction inside a roughly 115-year-old building that includes a three-storey slide leading into the basement.
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that → experience → basement
The company has also operated Dark Harbor aboard the Queen Mary and collaborated with the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose, California.
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company → operate → Jose
Managing so many attractions means the company must regularly introduce changes.
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company → manage → changes
…and 18 more, not listed.
The Aporia
