Burn the Ships Story
The story of Jordan and Emma Walbridge, and why they went all in.
Fate, coincidence, or something more
Love at first sight?
A combat army veteran from Oregon boards an overnight train in Thailand, assigned seat in hand. He looks up. Standing in the aisle, ticket outstretched, searching for her seat, is the most beautiful woman he has ever seen. Blonde hair, blue eyes, and British. Their seats are directly across from each other.
The idea that couldn't be unheard
A dreamer and a pragmatist walk into an airport.
Just over a year later, they marry at the courthouse steps in Lake Oswego, Oregon. Jordan, a dreamer and Emma a pragmatist, come up with a radical idea to make airports entertaining: a premium video game lounge in airports (it was Emma’s idea who accidentally said it out loud and Jordan couldn’t stop thinking about it). With the savings they had, newly married, they compromised, buy a house first (Emma’s requirement) and then start the business they called Gameway. With Jordan’s secure job in medical device sales and Emma waiting on her legal worker’s permit from the U.S. government, they move into their first home.
The moment everything changed
One week later. A paintbrush in her hand.
One week later, while Emma was painting one of the bedrooms, Jordan calls her into the office. He received a call from HR, his territory was eliminated, he was let go. Just like that — no job, newly married, mortgage signed. With a paintbrush still in hand, she encourages him that he can find another job. In that moment, Jordan had a singular focus and he said to her,
“Babe, the way I see it, we’ve landed on the island of Gameway and the only way to be successful is to Burn the Ships and go all in.”
Jordan Walbridge, Co-Founder
One year later, they proved it.
Dallas Fort Worth Airport
One year later, living on what Jordan called a “top ramen diet”, on July 1st, 2018, the Walbridge’s successfully opened the first Gameway at Dallas-Fort Worth’s (DFW) airport to a sold-out crowd. The business grew despite the covid shutdowns, increasing locations throughout the U.S. They were hyper focused on customer experience knowing that the millennial travelers, who also grew up playing video games, desired entertainment with their transactions.
The evolution
Portal Lounge was born.
Being an independent owned company in an industry dominated by a handful of global giants, Jordan and Emma next set out to revolutionize the traditional common use lounge space. The vision: a tech-forward airport lounge that blends premium hospitality with video gaming, music, and social energy to create a modern, high-vibe experience for today’s travelers. They called it Portal Lounge.
And the only way they know how to bring that vision to life?
Burn the Ships. Go all in.
