PLANTATION, FLA. (WSVN) - Inside Westfield Broward Mall, Erick and Traci Leon are getting the word out.
They’re reopening one of their three Code Ninjas business locations in Plantation after an explosion gutted the mall it was located in.
“It’s been sort of surreal. It’s really surreal to me now that it’s been knocked down,” co-owner Traci said, “so I pass by and it doesn’t even exist.”
The Leons’ Code Ninjas business in Plantation was destroyed in July, when a gas valve caused the explosion that leveled the shopping center.
22 people were hurt in the blast — none of them at their store.
“It was devastating, but we were happy that no one was there, and we were closed for Fourth of July weekend,” Traci said, “otherwise, we would’ve been very busy, packed.”
“We were fortunate enough not to lose anyone or hurt anyone,” co-owner Erick said.
Now, the Leons are looking forward, using this Black Friday to promote their new location.
A first of its kind store, they said, will be bigger and better.
“We thought that Black Friday, Cyber Monday was the perfect opportunity to let everyone know we were coming back strong inside a very big facility — a very well-established facility here in the Broward Mall,” Erick said.
Code Ninjas has seen success here in South Florida and around the country.
Its businesses allow kids to build video games while learning computer coding and math in a fun way.
“The community has been awesome,” Traci said. “Plantation, the mall — everyone has been so supportive, and we’re ready for a comeback.”
The Leons said they’re aiming to reopen Code Ninjas at Westfield Broward Mall in mid-January.
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