Castle Quarter has become home to the first ArrowHeadz venue, which opened on Saturday 31st August.
ArrowHeadz features three dart lanes, accommodating up to four players at a time, bookable by the hour. Two of the dartboards boast state-of-the-art Scolia Pro systems with automated scoring. There’s a small cafe-bar and a retail store where players can buy darts equipment, too.
The launch at Castle Quarter comes as the numbers of people participating in darts and watching it on TV, is on the rise. The sport’s soaring popularity is partly credited to the teenage darts prodigy Luke Littler, who narrowly missed out on the 2024 World Championship title in January. And whose popularity has introduced darts to a whole new generation of fans, springboarding it firmly back into the mainstream.
Founder and owner of ArrowHeadz, Cameron Clarke, is a fan and player himself, and first started playing darts three years ago. He explains; “I was working away from home with a friend who was a huge darts fan, and we’d venture out to find a pub with a dartboard most evenings. I haven’t stopped playing since, and it sparked my idea for the business.
“Playing in pubs throughout the UK, I realised there was a huge gap in the market for a venue that offered the latest darts technology with great lighting, high quality boards and raised oches. And I started to think about creating a venue that blended retail and leisure, which offered something different to the usual pub environment. When Luke Littler burst onto the scene and the interest in darts exploded, I decided it was time to bring my vision to life and here we are opening our first venue.”
In Norwich, Cameron hopes to offer darts enthusiasts and beginners a friendly space where they can play darts, compete against others and buy their sports equipment too. And has ambitions to open more venues UK-wide.
Cameron adds; “Ultimately, we’d love to have people competing against one another remotely in other ArrowHeadz venues, using camera technology from Scolia, so that’s something we are working towards in the future. And we’d love for people to think about forming their own ArrowHeadz team in Norwich, as breaking into an established darts team can be tough. We hope to run our own competitions, coaching workshops and give people the chance to hire out the venue for small private parties too.”
The retail store means players can try their darts before they buy, something that’s not possible when ordering online. Cameron explains; “I know I’ve been disappointed when I’ve bought darts online, only to find out that they aren’t right for me once I started to throw them. Customers can try a wide range of weights and styles before they buy with us.”
Rob Bradley, centre manager of Castle Quarter adds; “It’s really exciting to welcome another competitive socialising and sports venue to the Castle Quarter leisure quarter, and we wish Cameron every success with the new business. It’s a perfect place for anyone new to the sport to start playing darts. Book a lane, keep practicing and who knows, we might just discover the next Luke Littler here at Castle Quarter!”
As a former shopping centre, Castle Quarter is fast transforming into the city’s leading social, leisure and lifestyle destination with more than half of all units in the centre now occupied by leisure, dining and social experiences.
ArrowHeadz opened on Saturday 31st August and can be found on the ground floor of Castle Quarter, opposite Putt Putt Noodle, the indoor golf attraction.
Opening hours: Weekdays 11am-8pm (closed Tuesdays), Saturdays 10am-10pm, Sundays 10am-4pm.
