Founded in 2011, Urban Air Adventure Park has over 230 parks open or in development.
Urban Air Adventure Park’s newest franchisees are cautiously optimistic about opening their Ann Arbor, Michigan, location sometime next year. But, then again, they say it may take longer.
“The Ann Arbor market specifically is a very tough market to get into as far as finding the availability of space we’ll need. I think we’re going to be in a little bit of holding pattern for a while until we find the right location,” said Samir Patel, who along with his cousin, Dr. Roshan Patel, recently signed a single-unit deal with Urban Air.
Samir Patel, who lives in Columbus, Ohio, worked in financial services in Manhattan out of college, at UBS and Deutsche Bank, before transitioning into franchise ownership. Roshan Patel lives in Salt Lake City, Utah, where he is a gastrointestinal pathologist.
The Patels are looking at opening in Ann Arbor in 12 to 18 months, which will give them the time needed to lease space, complete permitting and construction, along with the hiring and training of employees needed to run a 30,000- to 55,000-square-foot indoor adventure park with over 20 different attractions.
In the meantime, the multi-unit franchisees own six Learning Experience preschools—five in Manhattan and one in Chicago. They also have a real estate development project in the pipeline in the Washington, D.C., market.
Buying into the Urban Air franchise system provided the multi-unit franchisees the opportunity to diversify their portfolio while at the same time remaining in the youth enrichment space, a franchise category that has posted impressive growth for many brands coming out of the pandemic.
“What we liked about Urban Air was that they are the market leader in this space as far as younger kids, up to 12, 13, 14 years old,” said Samir Patel. “We felt like they have a stronghold on that segment versus some of the other parks that are catering to a wider audience.”
Samir Patel credits his dad and his uncle, Roshan Patel’s father, with being his franchising mentors and laying the foundation for his entrepreneurial success. He said the family co-owned about a dozen Dunkin’ locations in New Jersey for about 12 years until they sold their portfolio of restaurants last year. As kids, the cousins worked in their family’s Dunkin’ franchise in Columbus, Ohio, before eventually building their own franchising business portfolio.
“When my dad first came here from India and settled in Chicago, he worked at a Dunkin’ Donuts there and then over time he moved to Columbus and got his own franchise there,” Samir Patel said. “I pretty much grew up in the franchise world, and can remember being on a milk crate at 8, 9 years old, helping ring out customers, making donuts and cleaning counters at my dad’s store.
“My dad taught me everything I know about customer service skills and focusing on high-quality products and services,” he said.
Founded in 2011, Urban Air has more than 230 parks open or in development. The entertainment park for kids, which features ropes and obstacle courses, laser tag, dodgeball courts and go-kart racing courses, was CEO Michael Browning’s original concept. Since then, Unleashed’s portfolio has grown to include Snapology, The Little Gym, XP League, Class 101 and Premier Martial Arts.
Urban Air Adventure Park, which is owned by Unleashed Brands, features ropes and obstacle courses, laser tag, dodgeball courts and go-kart racing courses..
Unleashed Brands was bought by Seidler Equity while the company faced a number of lawsuits filed by franchisees across a number of brands. In 2020, a group of 50 Urban Air franchisees sued Urban Air Adventure Park, claiming changes to the family entertainment brand were adding untenable costs to their operations that were never disclosed in the franchise disclosure documents when they signed.
Samir Patel said he and his cousin did their due diligence and determined an Urban Air location in Ann Arbor was “a sound investment.” They still have their concerns.
“With rents and interest rates going up and the labor market being what it is now, we have a lot to evaluate. It’s going to be very challenging for sure,” he said. “Location is everything in franchising, especially in the space we’re in, and that’s why we need to be real careful about deciding where we want to put our park.
“We do feel good about being in the children and entertainment space and with Urban Air. This is where we want to be,” Samir Patel sad.
The investment range for an Urban Air Adventure Park is $3.7 million to $8.2 million, according to the company’s franchise disclosure document, depending on the size and scale of the venue.