CA-SANDBOX-VR
Sandbox VR, the world's premier destination for premium location-based virtual reality experiences, is announcing significant growth milestones of its franchise program. The company saw 60% growth in franchise deals in Q2 with plans to open 280 new franchise locations in the next four years. This announcement comes on the heels of opening their 50th store on August 15. Located on the Gold Coast, the new location is the first Sandbox VR in Australia, expanding its global presence to four continents and nine countries.
Since opening its first store in Hong Kong in 2017, Sandbox VR has rapidly grown its global footprint with thriving corporate-owned locations and a robust franchising program. Today, its global locations see over 100k players monthly. In 2023, the company topped 1.2M tickets sold and has seen a 33% year-over-year increase in 2024 ticket sales. Sandbox VR’s corporate locations—37 in total—hit a revenue milestone with an average store topping $1.9M annually.
Sandbox VR's franchise program launched in 2019 for international markets and opened up for US territories in April of this year. In those four months, 33% of available Sandbox VR US franchise territories have been claimed by new and existing franchise partners. Franchising has been instrumental in making Sandbox VR the fastest growing location-based VR startup globally, and this US momentum signals continued rapid growth. Limited opportunities for prime locations and territory exclusivity are still available in the US.
“When I started building Sandbox VR, I set out to build the future of entertainment. I never would have succeeded without the right team of people helping me build the world's most immersive experiences using bleeding edge virtual reality technology,” said Steve Zhao, CEO and founder of Sandbox VR. “As we set our sights on expanding globally, we know it’s critical to work with the right partners. We are thrilled to announce the 50th Sandbox VR location in collaboration with our franchise partners, Bao Phung and Keith Le, and look forward to working with passionate franchise partners from around the globe to open hundreds more in the next four years.”
“We considered a different location-based virtual reality company when it came to exploring our franchise opportunities but ultimately determined that we wanted to partner with Sandbox VR, the leader in the category,” said Bao Phung, Owner of Sandbox VR Gold Coast. “Partnering with Sandbox VR was the most advantageous and strategic decision for our business, allowing us to introduce Australia to immersive games you can’t play anywhere else on the world’s most immersive full-body VR platform. The Gold Coast, which attracts 13 million visitors annually, is the natural choice for our first location. We look forward to introducing locals and visitors alike to a whole new reality.”
Sandbox VR’s UK and Ireland franchise partners, VR Entertainment Group, are proof of the strength of the Sandbox VR franchise program. Since launching their first store in London in July 2022—and their second in Birmingham a year later—they have surpassed the $10M revenue milestone. In London alone, VR Entertainment Group has seen a 16.8% increase in guests year-to-date and projects their 2024 revenue to top $5M.
“I believe our success is due to the strength of our partnership with Sandbox VR,” said Andy Scanlon, co-founder and CEO of VR Entertainment Group. “Their world class VR, brand, and wider corporate team, with our local expertise and determination to build Sandbox VR into the leading immersive entertainment brand in the UK & Ireland, has led to a nexus delivering truly amazing experiences for our guests.”
Sandbox VR is creating the future of entertainment by building the world’s most immersive experiences using proprietary virtual reality technology. Their patented motion-tracking system, which captures the movements of a player’s entire body, combines with high-quality haptics to provide players with unprecedented realism and complete immersion that’s not possible with home VR or other location-based VR platforms. Guests’ own bodies act as their game controllers; all they have to do is step into the virtual world and participate in the action unfolding all around them.
All Sandbox VR experiences—eight in total—are developed by in-house AAA gaming studios in Hong Kong and Vancouver, led by game industry veterans and are specifically designed for groups to play as social experiences. Teams of up to six freely roam and explore virtual worlds together, while relying on each other to succeed.
For more information and to make reservations, please visit sandboxvr.com. To learn more about Sandbox VR franchise opportunities, please visit https://franchise.sandboxvr.com/.
ABOUT SANDBOX VR
Sandbox VR is the world's premier destination for premium, location-based virtual reality games. The company has created the world’s most immersive full-body VR platform and boasts exclusive games, including original and branded experiences, such as Squid Game Virtuals, created in collaboration with Netflix. Now operating in 50 locations and attracting over 100k players monthly, Sandbox VR is rapidly growing its global footprint with thriving corporate-owned locations and a robust franchising program. The company has been recognized as one of Fast Company’s 2024 Most Innovative Companies and is the 129th fastest growing company in America on the 2024 Inc. 5000 list. Sandbox VR is headquartered in San Francisco, California with offices in Hong Kong and Vancouver. The company’s latest round raised over $37 million from investors including Andreessen Horowitz, Alibaba Entrepreneurs Fund, Gobi Partners, and Craft. Individual investors include Justin Timberlake, Katy Perry, Kevin Durant and Will Smith.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240903348064/en/
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Lone Star Announces Sale of SENQCIA to Noritsu Koki15.1.2026 14:30:00 CET | Press release
Lone Star Funds (“Lone Star”) today announced that an affiliate of Lone Star Fund XI, L.P. has entered into a definitive agreement to sell SENQCIA Corporation (“SENQCIA”), a leading provider of mission-critical building products and solutions in Japan, to Noritsu Koki Co., Ltd., in a transaction that represents a total enterprise value of approximately $519 million. Headquartered in Tokyo, SENQCIA develops, designs and distributes essential structural solutions that enhance the resilience, integrity and long-term safety of buildings and infrastructure. The company’s diversified product portfolio serves a broad range of end-markets and property types that are used in many iconic landmark properties across Japan. SENQCIA’s solutions help address key structural challenges facing Japan, including increasing natural disaster risk and aging infrastructure and building stock. During Lone Star’s ownership, SENQCIA has enhanced its go-to-market strategy and reinforced its operational resilience
Altris and Draslovka Partner to Scale Europe’s First Sodium-Ion Battery Technology Supply Chain15.1.2026 14:00:00 CET | Press release
Altris, a Swedish sodium-ion battery developer, and Draslovka, a global leader in specialty chemicals, have entered a strategic partnership to build Europe’s first industrial-scale sodium-ion cathode value chain. Under the comprehensive agreement that includes a total 19.3 MEUR in-kind investment by Draslovka in Altris, the two companies will scale fully connected production of Altris’ patented sodium-ion cathode active material (CAM) at Draslovka’s facility in Kolín, Czech Republic, supplying up to 350 tonnes of CAM annually. Draslovka and Altris are partnering to convert an existing line at Draslovka’s Kolín facility for production of Altris’ sodium-ion CAM, enabling rapid time-to-market and capital-efficient scale-up. Once ramped, the line will support production of up to 350 tonnes annually – a European-controlled supply equivalent to around 175 MWh of sodium-ion cell capacity. As part of the agreement, Draslovka is making a new in‑kind 19.3 MEUR strategic investment in Altris to c
CPP Investments Increases Commitment to Canadian Market through Northleaf Capital Partners15.1.2026 14:00:00 CET | Press release
Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) and Northleaf Capital Partners (Northleaf) today announced a significant expansion of their longstanding Canadian investment partnership, supporting the growth and scaling of domestic private companies. CPP Investments has committed to invest an additional C$750 million through its established Canadian mid-market program managed by Northleaf, bringing CPP Investments’ cumulative commitments to the manager to more than C$3 billion since inception. The customized mandate focuses on maximizing net returns through a diversified strategy that includes primary fund commitments to small and mid-market Canadian buyout funds, secondary investments, and direct co-investments focused on the domestic market. “There are compelling investment opportunities in the Canadian market, and our two-decade long partnership with Northleaf has proven to be an effective and scalable way to invest in homegrown businesses with patient, long-term capital,” sa
Vantage Data Centers Completes £200M Tap of Existing £600M Industry-First EMEA Data Center Asset-Backed Securitization (ABS) and Adds New £54M Class B Tranche15.1.2026 14:00:00 CET | Press release
Financing will support the company’s expansion across EMEA to keep pace with AI and cloud demand Vantage Data Centers, a leading global provider of hyperscale data center campuses, today announced it has raised an additional £254 million in securitized term notes. £200 million was raised through a tap of the existing Class A-2 Notes while £54 million was raised from the new Class B Tranche. This builds on Vantage’s debut public issuance in 2024 raising £600 million, which was the first-ever EMEA data center ABS completed in sterling. The Class A-2 Notes are rated A-, A (low) and A by Standard & Poor’s, Morningstar DBRS and Scope Ratings, respectively. The Class B Notes are rated BBB- by Standard & Poor’s and BBB by Morningstar DBRS and Scope Ratings. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260115777091/en/ Vantage’s 148MW Cardiff, Wales, campus is one of Europe’s largest hyperscale data center campuses. The new notes
QPS Selects Oracle Argus Safety Database to Enhance Pharmacovigilance in Clinical Trials15.1.2026 13:57:00 CET | Press release
QPS Holdings, LLC (QPS), an award-winning contract research organization (CRO) focused on bioanalysis and clinical trials announces the successful implementation of Oracle Argus, a premier pharmacovigilance system designed to support comprehensive safety case management for clinical trials. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260115711485/en/ Derek Grimes, EVP, Global Head of Clinical Research at QPS Holdings, LLC. The adoption of the Oracle Argus drug safety platform underscores QPS’s commitment to advancing patient safety, regulatory compliance, and operational excellence across its clients’ clinical drug development programs. Integrating this industry-standard safety platform strengthens QPS’ ability to capture, manage, and report adverse events in accordance with global regulatory requirements. “Ensuring patient safety and data integrity is at the heart of what we do when conducting clinical trials,” said Dere
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom