NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. — Adrian Griffin could have taken his business anywhere.

Griffin said he could have continued his expansion of ninja warrior adventure parks in the UK and opened stores in Germany or Australia.

But in the end, there was really only one place he wanted to be – California. Specifically near Newport Beach, California.

“The only reason all of this is happening is because I love California, but I love Newport Beach,” Griffin said during a media preview of the American Ninja Warrior Adventure Park to Spectrum News on Thursday. “For me, it’s a lifestyle change.”

Griffin, CEO of American Ninja Warrior Adventure Park, and company director Matt Tofts have opened the first of what they believe to be many American Ninja Warrior Adventure Parks, and it will arrive at a center shopping near you.

The two built a streamlined, toned down, inflatable version of the hit NBC TV show “American Ninja Warrior” in a 17,000 square foot space on the second floor of the MainPlace mall in Santa Ana.

Tofts said NBC collects royalties and helps with the design.

The venue, formerly four vacant retail storefronts, is divided into two main obstacle course sections: just like the TV show, under bright purple and yellow lights, visitors can climb the monkey swings, navigate through spider walls, balance on tilting logs. , hang on to the floating bridges and try to climb a warped wall in a section.

Many obstacles were adjusted due to mall ceiling height restrictions, Griffin said. And unlike on TV, there’s no splash zone where competitors fall if they fail a course.

There’s also a 10,000-square-foot inflatable section for those who want to run — or bounce — around a simpler, kid-friendly obstacle course with slides and a battle beam.

“It’s a great way for the whole family to get involved,” Tofts said, noting that many teens and adults can cruise the ninja warrior course while little ones can have fun in the inflatable room.

The ninja section may also be interchangeable with new upcoming courses. Visitors pay around $20 per hour to take the course.

Griffin said that since news of their arrival, mall operators and landlords flooded their email inboxes to open one at their location.

“Since the news broke, we’ve had all the owners email us,” Griffin said. “It was smashing.”

A visitor runs the warped wall at the new American Ninja Warrior Adventure Park at MainPlace Mall in Santa Ana. (Spectrum News/Joseph Pimentel)

The concept comes as malls across the country struggle to attract and keep tenants amid the coronavirus pandemic. Even before the pandemic, malls faced a changing shopping landscape as shoppers turned to the ease of purchasing items online, creating a slew of traditional small and big box store closures during the so- saying retail apocalypse.

Some news reports said the pandemic had accelerated the mall’s demise.

Last year, malls across the country faced historically high vacancy rates. According to Moody’s Analytics, in April 2021, regional and super-regional shopping centers had a record vacancy rate of 11.4%. According to The New York Times, citing analytics firm Green Street, there are about 750 vacant anchor spaces in the 1,000 malls tracked by the company.

Things have improved as stay-at-home restrictions have eased and vaccination rates have increased.

People want to go out. But many malls are still struggling, said Scott Burns, senior general manager of the Los Angeles office of JLL, a commercial real estate services firm. Burns was not involved in the deal with American Ninja Warrior Adventure Park.

“Malls have been under pressure,” Burns said in an interview with Spectrum News. “We lost quite a few operators during the pandemic and even before it. There has been a lot of consolidation and some have not succeeded. Many of these malls are overbuilt. Shopping habits have changed. People don’t go to malls often because they can shop from home.

Burns said mall owners need to give people a reason to shop.

And the American Ninja Warrior Adventure Park could help mall owners attract people to their regional malls.

“We see a lot of these types of entertainment, catering (restaurants and entertainment) and experiential operators,” Burns said. “He’s been very active over the past 12 months.”

He predicts that the American Ninja Warrior Adventure Park will be a big hit. These types of attractions increase foot traffic and dwell time in the mall.

“It’s a new concept in our market, but it comes with instant brand recognition,” Burns said. “Everyone will want to see it.”

“The addition of this exciting new high-end entertainment venue is a perfect example of a leasing strategy focused on creative first-to-market concepts that connect with the community in new and meaningful ways,” said Jonathan Maher, Centennial Vice President. property management in a press release. Centennial owns the MainPlace shopping center.

Griffin and UK TV partner ITV opened the first Ninja Warrior UK park in Wigan, a town in Greater Manchester, in 2018.

The concept has grown rapidly, with 14 Ninja Warrior UK parks across the UK now open. Two more are expected to open in the coming weeks and four are under construction.

Griffin said each location attracts 200,000 to 250,000 visitors per year.

American Ninja Warrior Adventure Park CEO Adrian Griffin and corporate director Matt Tofts pose inside the American Ninja Warrior Adventure Park in Santa Ana. (Spectrum News/Joseph Pimentel)

Griffin and Tofts said the goal in the United States is to open more than 100 American Ninja Warrior adventure parks over the next five years.

The two wouldn’t say where a second location would open or where else they were exploring.

For Griffin, Southern California is where he wanted to be. He loves the outdoors and the seascape.

“[It’s] the opposite of what I’m used to in Manchester, England,” he said.

When Griffin expanded his shopping empire outside of the UK, Griffin pulled out a map and analyzed all the malls within 15 to 25 miles of Newport Beach, and found a perfect fit at MainPlace Mall in Santa Ana.

“It’s a great location with great visibility and freeway access,” Griffin said. “It’s a family friendly area, excellent demographics and next to many interesting attractions.”

Griffin said his goal is to create an inclusive place where average Joe and Jane can channel their inner ninja skills and have fun.

During the media preview, several visitors wore headbands and gloves as they tackled the various ninja warrior courses. The park opened on Friday.

Soon, to retain visitors, they add technical features such as a time element so people know how fast they finish each course and a leaderboard on a TV screen to track how fast others finish.

Griffin said he wanted to expand to the United States four years ago, but the pandemic set him back two years. It was actually good timing.

“It ended up coming at the right time because families were turned away and looking to get out and have fun again,” he said.