Code Ninjas is deepening its Florida presence with the announcement of a two-unit deal in the Jacksonville area. The agreement marks four total units under franchisee Ryan Clark’s ownership in Northeast Florida, whose newest location is set to open in Q2 of this year in The World of Golf area, with an additional center on schedule to open its doors in Spring of 2024.
The Jacksonville market has quickly become an epicenter of business innovation, earning recognition as one of the top 10 cities for entrepreneurs in 2022. However, the reason for the brand’s recent growth can be attributed to Ryan’s commitment to providing an educational service that complements Jacksonville’s public school systems, offering coding courses as not only a way to learn problem-solving and behavioral skills, but gain confidence and social interaction capabilities. Ryan also hopes to contribute to the business community’s growing need for high-caliber talent in the technology industry.
“Ryan is performing exceptionally well as a franchisee,” said CEO Justin Nihiser. “There’s oftentimes an obvious causation as to the kinds of people that tend to fit well in the franchise model, and Ryan’s military experience is undoubtedly a direct correlation to his work ethic, adaptability, persistence and the way in which he carries his responsibilities with such pride.”
Ryan’s involvement with Code Ninjas began well before he invested in the brand. Prior to setting roots in Jacksonville, he was on active duty as an officer in the Air Force for nine years before transferring to the reserves, where he currently serves part-time. Yet, the turning point of his career was his entrance into product management development, where he admitted to feeling underprepared in his lack of technology training. In the wake of his concerns regarding his own personal skillset, Ryan had his children’s best interests at top of his mind, which is why he immediately enrolled them in Code Ninjas.
“I believed there to be a huge gap in the education my children were receiving and worried they weren’t being equipped with the skills they needed to be successful in the real world,” he explained. “To be successful in this day and age, you need to have tech skills. I knew there had to be other parents out there exploring the same avenues, which lead me to bring Code Ninjas to Northeast Florida.”
Ryan’s recently-discovered passion for children’s education won’t be slowing down any time soon. The entrepreneur has set plans to continue to grow the Code Ninjas brand across Northeast Florida, hoping to reach 10 Code Ninjas centers across the area, and even expanding his services beyond coding, potentially offering assistance for former ninjas who are entering the job market or pursuing tech-specific educational goals, such as robotic certifications.
“My goal is to be the place where Floridian kids go to become innovators, entrepreneurs, and prepare for the future,” added Ryan. “15 years from now, I want our Ninjas to be leaders in space and technology, working on rockets – or even flying them!”
