Why Start a Pre-school?
Running a preschool can be a very rewarding and profitable venture. An entrepreneur who is interested in children education and also having a business might find that opening a preschool would meet both desires. Before starting a preschool, one must be prepared by ensuring that they carefully plan out the venture from the beginning, by researching on local and state laws that govern preschool education business.
What Does It Take to Start a Pre-school?
There must also be planning as regards space, getting insurance, developing a curriculum, hiring additional staff, advertising and registration of children. A preschool program is a business that requires that no details be overlooked.
Pre-school Industry Overview
Preschool industry operators provide day care services for children under the ages of three and four to prepare them for kindergarten. The dispersion of the preschool programs reflects in the geographic distribution of the children, which is also influenced by the cost and supply of preschool programs, income and housing affordability patterns, labor, and child care subsidy policies. Also, varying state and local regulations and licensing requirements affect employment in this industry.
List of Niche Ideas Within the Pre-school Business Industry
As regards the niche in this industry, the services offered are mostly uniform in nature and any differing services all have to point to the same goal which is educating the children in a safe and fun environment. Some preschool directors incorporate certain niches into their curriculum, such as;
- Teaching the children in other languages
- Gymnastics
- Dancing
- Singing
- Taking the children out on community field trips like visiting farms, restaurants, the museum, and other such exciting places where the kids can learn.
One thing though with field trips, you would need to have a huge insurance for any incident that might happen to the property caused by the kids, harm to the kids themselves, or to one of your staff. Specializing in niche is mainly done to stimulate the interest of the children, while unlocking their potentials.
The Level of Competition in the Pre-school Business Industry
When starting a preschool program, entrepreneurs should be aware that the demand in this market is largely driven by growth in the youth population, and secondarily by income and employment. The profitability of individual preschool facilities depends on how well they can favorably compete with their rivals through good marketing and efficient operations.
Large preschool facilities have the advantage of economies of scale in advertising and administration over smaller preschool facilities. However, smaller preschool facilities can compete in local markets if they own convenient locations.
Economic Analysis
Before starting up a preschool program, entrepreneurs need to be thorough when carrying out their feasibility study and research, and also be certain about the location that they intend to site their facility. In recent times, the demand for preschool program dropped due to the economic downturn and more people especially mothers being out of jibs and staying home to take care of their children, but as the economy has improved, so is the demand for preschool gradually increasing as more parents are going back to work.
This is why it is important for entrepreneurs going into this business to note that, the demand for preschool services is driven by more parents having an increase in their disposable income, and being able to pay for such services. Preschools services depend on demand to be able to operate and generate revenue.
Is a Pre-school Worth Starting from Scratch or is Buying a Franchise Better?
The common belief is that it is better to start one’s own business from scratch rather than buying a franchise. Starting one’s own preschool has certain challenges especially as new owners might underestimate the start-up costs, and the growing competition isn’t making things easier but it also allows the entrepreneur build his or her strategies from successes and drawbacks, especially if they are starting out small.
However, buying a franchise isn’t all that bad as those that buy a franchise get a value of immediate income better than one who starts from the scratch and might have to wait to break even in 1 or 2 years. Also, those who buy from franchise usually get training and consultation from those they buy the franchise from. Even though each side has its pros and cons, the ultimate decision of how the business should start depends solely on the entrepreneur and the vision he has for his preschool program.
Starting a Pre-school from Home – Technical & Manpower Details
Some of the equipment and children tools needed to launch a preschool business can be bought as fairly used and they will serve you for a long period of time if well managed and utilized. It is safer and economical to purchase some of the tools and equipment as fairly used for a preschool business especially if you just want to start the business on a small scale. Some of the fairly used tools and equipment can be gotten cheap at online stores.
These are some of the equipment that you would need to fully launch your preschool business;
- Laminator
- Play structures
- Indoor Play
- Computers
- Phones
- Printers
- Card Stock
- Markers
- Magnets
- Paper Links
- Crayons and Colored Pencils
- Foam Sheets and Stickers
- Construction Paper
- Child Safe Scissors
- Binders
- Ziploc bags
- Glue
- Scrap Paper
- Beads
You can totally run your preschool business from home as long as you meet with all the local requirements. If you must get an office facility, ensure that it is in the right area and that it is safe and conducive for the children and staff.
