Gravity Active Entertainment (Gravity), the UK’s premium leisure provider, is pleased to announce it has now expanded its Gravity network to Leipzig, Germany in its first European location.

Situated in the NOVA leisure and shopping centre, the purpose-built space that totals 5,300msq includes wall-to-wall trampolines, a ninja obstacle course, wipe-out, soft-play, party rooms, next-generation sound and light experience, fully themed food and beverage offering. It also has a state of the art Japanese themed e-karting experience, the first seen in Europe.

The site is operated by a new franchisee, Canadian born, Rocky Maddex. Rocky, who has a background in IT and global project implementation and relocated to Germany with his wife and children in 2018. The move comes as he diversifies his business interests and develops a pipeline of sites across Germany.

Gravity currently has other franchise offerings in the UK and the Middle East, with this being the first entrance into the European market. The Group also has 13 of its own sites in the UK, with the most recent being the largest opening yet in Wandsworth across 85,000 square foot, with the first ever e-karting track in the UK and also bowling with projection technology, alongside other activities. It also opened a more traditional trampoline park in Luton in October 2021.

“Given the impact from covid-19 and the changing high street, the Gravity opportunity came at the perfect time for me. I’d been looking at ways to do something different, complimenting my business, home life and young kids. The Gravity model fitted the criteria, and I believe it’s something I can scale in Germany; there is a real opportunity here to reinvigorate shopping centres. ” Said Rocky

The opportunity comes with €2.5 million invested from Gravity to support Rocky in setting up and the initial build. The site will be one of the first to feature the multi-level e-karting, which is new to the Gravity portfolio.

Michael Harrison, co-founder and Chief Growth Officer commented: “We are delighted to announce this first Gravity location in Europe as we continue to grow the brand. The landlord has invested over €40million in improvements to this development and given what we are seeing in the UK market, we have proven our ability to increase footfall to the high street. With these initiatives combined, the site is in a fantastic location and has all the key elements to be a success.

Our move into Europe is a significant step in our evolution as a brand and franchisor. Early on, we recognised that Europe represented a fantastic opportunity for us to grow the business and the franchise network. Leipzig is the first of those franchises, and we’re confident more will follow.”