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Child Care Center

All About Basics of Opening a Child Care Center

Where should you start looking when you want to open a child care center?

 

Right here.

So you have decided that opening a child care center is right for you. Congratulations! But how do you decide where to go after that? Do you want to start your own independent business or buy into a franchise? Buying a franchise is not as easy as researching the biggest name in child care and investing your money. With big names can come big expenses. Different child care centers also have different philosophies for how they teach children as well as the type of childcare they provide the kinds of things they provide. When you are researching childcare care center options, there are three basic facility types that you will find:

 

  • Purchasing an Existing Center
  • Starting a Fresh, Brand New Center
  • Operating the Center from Your Home

 

Depending on the type of child care center you want, you will receive different benefits and face completely different difficulties. Each type of child care center will work different for you depending on the location owner’s personality. If you’re considering a franchise, whether it’s a Cincinnati child care center or different industry altogether, you always have to consider your financial abilities, family needs, and economical situation in order to make the best decision.

Types of Daycares to Purchase

Each type of child care center brings different details that will dictate your business such as services offered, hours of operation, families served, and facility limits. When you start a partnership with All About Kids, we take a lot of the guess work out of it for you. The best part about purchasing a daycare center franchise like All About Kids is that we have a structure that has had proven success. We have already faced the problems that come with opening a child care center. We have problem-solved and have written an operations manual. Most importantly, we are ready to help you succeed.

Each type of daycare you available offers different options that should match up to your professional needs. This can mean financial alignment, family alignment, business style, personality type, franchise setup, and anything else that may apply to you personally. To help you decide if All About Kids is the childcare franchise for you, we have outlined the key ingredients to keep that make the difference between each location type:

 

Existing Daycares

There are pros and cons that come with purchasing any kind of facility that already exists. The cost for an existing child care centers may be higher initially, depending on what they come with. You should heavily research the options available and write out your available finances to make sure you can cover the cost. You will also want to talk to your franchise attorney and your franchisor before before you make a decision.

Benefits for Purchasing an Existing Child Care Center

Customer Base

When you purchase an existing facility from All About Kids or other franchisors, you ae also purchasing their clientele. This means that you will already have customers for your  child care center before your purchase. When you open a brand new location, you must invest time and money in marketing and publicity in order to bring attention to your new business. This is not cheap and is often very difficult and time consuming work. Many franchisees are happy to skip over the initial marketing and advertising for the first push of customer base since they do not know much about marketing for childcare centers.

 

Construction and Grand Opening

Building your customer base through marketing and advertising also means building your location and having a grand opening. However, if you purchase an existing location, you will also be excused from the months prior to opening your child care center that are made up of construction dates. There will be no grand opening unless you really want to show a change in leadership. Your job is simple: you step into the position after purchasing the location from the original owner and you continue to run it. The only way this may vary is if there are any renovations that must be done before you may continue operating the business. If this is the case, you may decide to have a grand opening party.

 

Rules and Policies

Your existing child care center will also come with policies, rules, and practice specifics that are already in place and that the staff is used to. This can be a huge stress reliever as you focus on learning all the franchise information while simultaneously growing your knowledge of childcare center ownership. While the rules and policies set by previous owners may be changed, you will always be required to follow your franchisor’s rules. If you do change any rules, you will want to warn your customer base ahead of time so there is a chance of less surprise. You will also want to ease your facility into those any changes you make so you do not lose current clients of your child care center.

 

Shopping for Supplies

You’ll save from overall shopping spree costs for equipment, food, toys, books, and other Cincinnati child care center necessities as your shelves should already be stocked from the previous owner. You should also be able to receive a list of needs from your franchisor or from the previous owner in case there is any shopping to do. This perk specifically means a smaller startup cost after the initial purchase which means you’ll have extra money to invest somewhere else in the program.

While your shelves will be stocked with toys, food, and what-have-you, it’s ultimately your decision which items you want to keep or replace. Your facility also comes with staff that may or may not need training, retraining, or replacement.

 

Staff

As a business owner, you’re in charge of the staffing and the training for your facility. The first thing you should do when you’re allowed is check out employee files for skills and training (or lack thereof). If any staff member is missing basic skills such as CPR or first aid, talk to them about getting the training or what the next step would be otherwise. Note that you have the power to terminate old employees of your Cincinnati child care center pending their employment contract. If someone doesn’t have the skills you want or the ability to teach and refuses to learn, you can cut them. Just make sure you’re staffed enough before you do so or that you have the ability to fill the spot quickly so you are not understaffed to the point your staff becomes overworked.

 

The Cons of Existing Cincinnati Child Care Centers

Along with all the positive aspects of purchasing an existing Cincinnati child care center, there are also plenty of negatives.

 

Public Reputation

Because someone else used to run the business and keep everything in check (or not), you will have whatever reputation they had. If it’s a positive one, you have a great head start. However many franchisees who are selling out of their business or contract likely don’t have the best reputation with the public and/or franchisor. You’re going to have to work harder to recover the reputation of your Cincinnati child care center as well as inform the public that it’s under new management. You will want to talk to All About Kids for the specifics on that location, any PR they recommend, and the status of that daycare’s current public image. There may be no problems with it at all, but being informed is the best way to fight any adversity you may come across.

 

Current Clients

Once you’re in charge of the Cincinnati child care center, you’re going to be able to choose who is admitted to you program. However if there are clients that are particularly troublesome who were admitted by the last owner, you will have to deal with them respectfully and professionally. You can always talk to All About Kids about client policies and what client contracts should look like, but you may not be able to do much. If you have any families who aren’t paying their dues, are behind on their payments, or aren’t keeping up with what might be a new policy you implement, you should talk about excusing them from your service.

 

Policy Changing

If you’re planning to change any policies or rules at your newly bought Cincinnati child care center, should prepare yourself ahead of time for any possible drop in current clients. People generally have a very difficult time with change and when your clients find you’re changing the policy, even maybe a little, they may not react with open arms. Be prepared for hesitation or rejection of your new ideas, but don’t take it personally. You can always use this as an opportunity to show your new clients that you care about them.

 

The Building

When you purchase an existing Cincinnati child care center, you will have little to no construction at all which means what you get in the layout is what you get. This presents very little problems to those purchasing a the very franchise they’re interested in from a franchisee. You might not like how the building is laid out overall, but typically you won’t be given the opportunity to change it without shutting down and running a costly remodel. If you think that a lot of remodeling needs to be done for you to be happy, you may just want to consider starting from scratch as it may be more cost effective.

 

Startup Costs

The cost to startup can vary depending on what all you’re getting with your existing location. When you purchase a franchise from another franchisee, you have different fees to pay, such as the franchise transfer fee. You may also end up paying more up front for the building because it has all the supplies you need, though the savings you make will not be as apparent until you’re saving money by not shopping for all these items later down the line.

 

Brand New Cincinnati Child Care Centers in Ohio

All About Kids loves the idea of brand new locations because it shows expansion in our company with new locations being placed on the map throughout our target areas. It also gives franchisees the chance to pick their ideal locations for their Cincinnati child care centers.

 

Pros of Opening a New Cincinnati child care center

Building Plans

With brand new locations, you’re able to plan out what you want your Cincinnati child care center to look like. If you want it larger or smaller or have a plan for the layout that works with how we do most facilities, you’re able to have that level of control without placing more costs on top of the cost of the facility. You can also design the hottest, newest features that other Cincinnati child care facilities may not have yet.

 

Staff and Policies

With a brand new Cincinnati child care center, you’re able to hire staff from scratch which means building your own relationships and hiring only those who match your personality, work style, and the feel of your facility. You can also choose which skills you want to include as important for members of your team. You can specifically train the staff on special equipment and policies. This will also mean that you’re learning policies along with the staff or just slightly ahead of them. The policies in All About Kids locations are relatively stagnant, so you shouldn’t worry too much about changing policies other than small specifics that should always be talked over with your franchisor.

 

New Equipment

One of the best things you can ask for with opening a brand new location is purchasing brand new toys and equipment. While purchasing an existing Cincinnati child care center might save you the trouble of locating new or even used equipment, a brand new location promises toys and gear that may never have been used before. This gives you a fresh start and assurance that what you’re working on will not break unexpectedly unless mishandled.

 

Clientele

Instead of adopting the old clientele of the previous franchisee, when you open your own franchise, you pick who you want your clients to be from the very beginning. You can interview the families and get a feel for who is a good fit for your All About Kids location. When you do this, however, make sure that you do not discriminate as that can lead to legal problems down the line. When you’re interviewing families, you should choose based on philosophies, personalities, financial status, and whatever else you think is important for a happy, healthy business relationship.

 

Special Classes

Since All About Kids is not only a Cincinnati child care center , but also has an education aspect, you can talk with your franchisor about any special classes you may want to implement that are within your franchisor’s catalog or even suggest courses we haven’t thought about yet. Though do not expect us to say yes to every suggestion. Remember that as a franchisee, it’s your job to keep the face and style of our company while also throwing your own personal kick into it.

 

Cons of a Brand New Cincinnati child care center

Startup Costs

Because your Cincinnati child care center is brand new, you will have to include the costs of accommodating the handicapped in your building along with purchasing state-of-the-art equipment and a brand new playground. The cost of startup can increase incredibly by just adding these few things to the list. Not to mention the price of purchasing or renting the land for your building and going through construction. From the cost of the contractors to the materials and the time spent building the location, you might find that the price tag goes up higher and faster than you had originally anticipated. Then you’ve got regulations to follow and licenses to obtain on a state and national level. Wiring, plumbing, fire alarms, security, and more will all be required as well and then make way for any complications or touch ups that may be necessary.

 

Advertising and Clientele

While you’re definitely able to be pickier about who your clients are, you first have to get them in the door. If no one knows you’re there, you’re not going to have anyone knocking for admittance at your Cincinnati child care center. You’ll have to talk to your franchisor’s PR to find out what marketing campaigns are in order from pre-opening to grand opening and beyond. You want clients ready and waiting before your doors open in order to start making back costs and turning a profit.

 

Licensing

Every Cincinnati child care center has to go through the proper faucets to license their facilities with the state. Every state has different requirements and methods for licensing. If you’re building a new daycare center, you will have to seek licensing for your location from scratch whereas purchasing a location from another franchisee, the location should already be licensed. You should start investigating this early on so you can get it done in a time effective manner and not be at the end of construction but waiting on the paperwork to come through with the end result of delaying grand opening because that paperwork hasn’t been returned yet.

 

The Cincinnati Daycare at Home

All About Kids doesn’t offer an ‘at home’ option for Cincinnati child care, so this guide is only touch on the offerings of in-home day care centers.

  • In-home Cincinnati child care centers offer smaller groups to child care professionals. With the right license.
    • You will be able to care for up to six children in your home. This counts your own children if they are in the daycare center.
    • Licensing your home for group child care can expand your home occupancy up to 12 children when you hire an assistant.
  • You will be able to work from home with your toys and equipment already there.
  • Home Cincinnati child care centers smaller capital and return up front.
  • In-home Cincinnati child care is often run by a single person which gives the kids one point of contact while larger facilities are run by employees on shifts and will offer families multiple people to talk to if they call or have a problem.
  • The small group setting of home child care offers a more intimate place for children to make friends and a lesser chance of being overwhelmed by social situations.
  • At-home offices are able to write off some home expenses on income taxes such as household items, electricity, water, garbage, internet, cable, and other supplies you use for your business.
  • If you’re working long hours at home, you will have fewer chances to leave your house, especially if you do not have a large vehicle for taking field trips.
  • Your own children may miss extracurricular activities if you’re taking care of someone else’s children in your home. Even if you close for the evenings, you can’t promise that parents will always pick up on time.
  • The way your house looks matters as it is not only your home, but also your place of business. You must take business considerations to the appearance with clean, healthy grass that’s mowed regularly, a fresh paint job, no broken or chipped windows, or siding and roofing that may appear loose, rotted, or otherwise damaged. Families may drive by during off hours so your house must always be 100% presentable.
  • In-home Cincinnati child care will predictably use the house more. This means things will need to be replaced and cleaned far more often. The extra daily use can show itself quickly and harshly.
  • Working from home with no help means that you will not have much time to socialize with other adults.
  • If you have family pets, they may not be able to participate during the day and may actually have to be locked up during business hours. Even the smallest mistake with your dog, cat, or other pet could end in a lawsuit. You may also lose customers due to pet allergies.

 

Conclusion for Purchasing a Daycare Center

Depending on your financial situation and what franchisors like All About Kids has available at the time, different options work well for different people. It’s not often that one of our franchises is up for sale by another franchisee, so in most cases, expect to open a brand new location. The perks of working with a franchisor is that you don’t have to worry about doing marketing and public relations on your own.

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