Dan Kennedy and his wife, Jennifer Chown, are the owners and operators of Bradford Escape Academy, the town’s first and only escape-room game experience.
Both Kennedy and Chown are professional engineers and decided to take a chance and try something new when they opened their own business in Bradford West Gwillimbury in March 2016.
With a Masters of Business Administration degree and years of experience working as a financial analyst, Kennedy said this new venture was a total change of direction for him.
“This was a left turn, an opportunity to try something creative… It’s been amazing,” Kennedy said. “Me and my wife have worked hard at it, and it’s been a great learning experience.”
The object of the game in an escape room is to use logic and creative thinking to either escape a space or locate a certain object. Kennedy said they are a lot of fun and designed his rooms with the customers’ enjoyment in mind.
“Our rooms are unique in the way they’re designed. I’ve always shied away from doing the more traditional escape-room themes that you see… We’ve always tried to come up with a unique idea,” he explained.
“The puzzles are serving a story; it might be breaking into a vault, or solving a mystery.”
The space has grown from one room of play to three, including The Interview, Alien Abduction and Shadow Marsh.
The Interview was the first room created and is based on a job interview gone wrong.
Alien Abduction was introduced in 2017, taking players on a walk out in the park on a summer’s evening and getting zapped up by a bunch of aliens into outer space.
The latest room, Shadow Marsh, opened in December 2018 and takes place in 1950s Bradford. The premise is about a large development coming to town and how the people react to it.
“My mom recently tried the room and she was enjoying the soundtrack,” Kennedy said about the latest room addition.
And although escape rooms have been around for a while, Kennedy said he continues to see new faces all the time.
“We are still getting a good portion of our customers who are just discovering escape rooms now,” he said.
There are many escape rooms popping up all over the Greater Toronto Area, but Kennedy said there is no competition when it comes to business.
“Having good businesses in place with great rooms and great experiences is good for the entire industry,” he said.
With Bradford’s rate of growth, Kennedy said eventually there will be more entertainment options for people in town, but for now there are not too many besides going out to eat and drink.
“One of the things as a business owner that we struggle with (is) people don’t tend to think of Bradford for their entertainment options,” he explained.
“The escape-room business is a niche business. Not everyone wants to go out and use their brain when they’re looking at their entertainment options.”
Whether you are new to escape rooms or an experienced veteran, Kennedy said there are options for all skill levels.
“We definitely design the rooms so that people can get small victories, and definitely help is always available for customers,” he said. “All rooms are definitely a challenge.”
Thousands of people have come through the space over the past three years, and Kennedy said it is always fun for him to watch groups come through and play.
“When people discover things in escape rooms it can be really funny,” he said. “As a game designer, you’re always really gratified when people solve something and they’re extremely happy.”
Most escape rooms have a minimum of three player requirement, but Kennedy boasts his rooms also accept two-player bookings.
“Two-person teams (have) been a big selling point for date nights,” he said.
Kennedy and Chown enjoy running the business because it allows them to create their own hours, as they are appointment-based only. This gives them flexibility to spend time with their three children, aged 12, 17 and 19.
“The idea was always, the business had to serve the family rather than the family serving the business,” he said. “It’s always been about supporting the family and continues to be about that.”
Bradford Escape Academy is open seven days a week by appointment only at 76 Holland St. W. You can book online at bradfordescapeacademy.com/.
