Active entertainment business secures up to £30m worth of funding

Castleford-headquartered active entertainment brand, Gravity, has  confirmed it has secured up to £30m in funding to deliver its growth and expansion plans.

The funding  has been provided by Sculptor Real Estate, the real estate business of Sculptor Capital  Management, Inc.

Established in 2014 as a trampoline park operator, Gravity now leads the active entertainment market in the UK with 17 sites in operation nationwide, plus this year’s newly opened international sites in Mauritius and a second location in Saudi Arabia, which both run as a franchise. This takes its  franchise sites to six. 

This new injection of funds will facilitate the business’ roadmap to grow and strengthen the brand. 

Having launched the next phase of its offering in 2020 in Wandsworth, London the business is on track to open new Gravity Max sites in Liverpool One, planned for H1 2023, and Westfield Stratford, scheduled for Q4 2023.

The funds will also drive expansion with Gravity expected to confirm a pipeline of venues  in major UK cities as well as further growth overseas.  

In addition Gravity will be investing in the refurbishment its existing Gravity Active sites.

Alongside operational improvements, the business plans to strengthen its senior leadership team with strategic hires in the coming months that will support wider growth and development of the brand.  

Gravity’s net revenue exceeded £27m in 2022, up from £17m in 2021. The business is projecting revenues of more  than £50m in 2024 based on the committed pipeline. 

Harvey Jenkinson, co-founder and CEO, said: “This funding has come at a pivotal  and exciting time for Gravity with the launch of our Gravity Max brand at Liverpool One and London Westfield Stratford this year.

“We are thrilled to build our relationship with Sculptor on this investment. 

“This backing will help us realise the full potential of the Gravity brand, ensuring the rollout of our business plan and achievement of strategic objectives.

“We look forward to further establishing Gravity as the international name in active entertainment and providing our customers at every site with the  best possible experience.” 

Will Dear, co-head of European Real Estate for Sculptor, added: “Gravity is at the forefront of  experiential leisure trends with a track record of driving customer footfall and dwell time around its  locations.

“We are excited about our investment and to support the business plan and growth of the leading player in active entertainment.”

Gravity is backed by Guinness Asset Management and was advised on the transaction by KPMG Corporate Finance and Irwin Mitchell.

Mike McDonald, managing director in KPMG’s Consumer and Leisure M&A team, said: “Harvey, Michael, Simon and the team have developed an innovative and exciting experiential leisure proposition that brings together multiple active entertainment activities under one roof.

“Customer response has been fantastic and developers are keen to partner at high footfall locations across the UK and overseas.

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