The Warrior Factory, a ninja-style obstacle and athletic training facility, is set to open the doors to its new Brantford location on Monday, February 2, 2026.
Operated by the ownership group behind the Hamilton Warrior Factory, the expansion into Brantford makes this the gym’s second location in Ontario. The Warrior Factory specializes in ninja-style obstacle training and fitness-based programming, offering structured and recreational options for individuals, families and competitive athletes.
The company is known to host open play sessions, adult and youth classes, birthday parties, camps, Ninja nights, home-schooling, toddler time, competitive team training and of course, competitions.
“We’re going to be hosting our first competition here in Brantford on January 31, and so we’ll have about 150 athletes here qualifying for the provincial and world championships,” said Jeremy White, owner and operator of both the Ontario Warrior Factory locations. “So there’s multiple divisions and we compete in different leagues, and if you’ve ever seen the television show American Ninja Warrior, the competitions are like that but without water.”
White went on to say that it’s a particularly exciting time for the sport for several different reasons.
“There’re different leagues that run throughout the world, and this is actually the first season Ontario has had its own provincial league, so that’s been really exciting; it’s called Ninja Obstacle Sports Ontario (NOSO), and I’m the chair of that league as well,” he said. “On top of that, in 2028, it will be the first time that the Ninja obstacle sport will be in the Olympics. They’ve taken horse riding out of the modern pentathlon, and replaced it with this, and so it’s really become this major thing because those athletes are now trying to learn the sport.”
While the gym isn’t quite complete just yet, given that the space was operating as Kardia Ninjas previously, it already features 6,000 square-feet of obstacle equipment including rings, trapeze bars, floating logs, warp walls, devil steps, cliffhangers, salmon ladders and more.
“We’re now just working on creating the birthday party area with tables and chairs, as well as our tiny Ninja area for the kids that are ages two to five,” said White. “Once all of that is done and we have the rest of our branding up, we’ll be ready to go.”
“The nice thing is that this facility was already operating as a Ninja warrior gym, so it has an amazing set up and a great following already,” he continued. “Joel Smith and his family opened Kardia Ninjas back in 2020, but they had been looking to sell the space since September. Personally, we thought Brantford would be a great place to expand our operations, especially since this is already one of the bigger Ninja gyms around. Another reason we decided to expand here is because the Brantford location is a great mid-point for the people traveling from London and Sarnia to come out for our competitions, and vice versa.”
Although Smith will no longer be running the operation, White said that the former owner and a majority of the staff will still be around for the time being.
“People love the Smith family; they’re just amazing people to know and the people who come here are like family to them,” he said. “I think there were a lot of sad faces when they initially told everybody they were selling, but everyone seems to be happy with how it’s working out. I was actually at a competition in Sarnia yesterday, and another gym owner said to me ‘if there’s two gyms that can merge well together, it’s you two.’ And that’s because Joel and I have the same mentality and we’re here because we love it, and the parents from both of our gyms have the same mindset. So I think it’s going to be good and we’re happy to have Joel and the family still on board while we make the change over.”
Karen Gottschling, whose nearly 14-year-old son, Carter, has been part of Kardia Ninjas since it opened, said she was happy to know that the gym was in good hands.
“We’re really excited for the new life that’s coming into the gym,” she said. “When we were told that Joel was thinking of selling, we as parents, got together to try to save it, but we’re all so excited it’s worked out this way. We all know Jeremy and we know the Warrior Factory, so we all love him already, and I’m excited for all the new things that are coming.
Gottschling went on to say that she personally loves that her son will continue to have space where he can thrive.
“I love the fact that the sport is competitive, but everybody supports each other; even the parents are all so supportive and there’s just a lot of love… everyone is rooting for each other,” she said. “I also appreciate that because they’re not competing on a ‘team,’ they’re individualized and so there’s so much room for the kids who may not do as well in a traditional sport and for the neurodivergent, to still be part of a team atmosphere and have fun in a safe place. That’s one thing Joel has always done – made this a safe space where everybody is accepted and loved – and I know that’s something the parents and Jeremy want to keep.”
“I know for Carter, he loves feeling like he can fly,” continued the mother. “He loves the obstacles and the friends he’s made here. He’s just accepted, and he’s made connections with others who are similarly athletic so it’s just been great for him.”
Kimberly De Jong’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative.The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at kimberly.dejong@brantbeacon.ca.
