Childrens Lighthouse Centers Growing in Challenging Times; Franchise Opportunities Offer Stable, Established Small-Business Ownership
Childrens Lighthouse Centers, a 12-year-old Fort Worth, Texas-based children's' care and development business, are booming in one of the most challenging economies in U.S. history by offering parents an affordable, educational, fun and safe childcare environment and by giving entrepreneurs an opportunity to own a small business far away from the mad and unpredictable corporate world.
Childrens Lighthouse Learning Centers are in 24 locations in Texas, North Carolina and Florida with a steady or growing enrollment despite the international money woes. In Texas, Childrens Lighthouse centers are located predominately in the Greater Dallas/Fort Worth, the Greater Houston and San Antonio areas.
Because the bad economy is forcing more families into a 2-working parent situation, Childrens Lighthouse Centers is finding demands for quality and affordable childcare in neighborhoods with young families is the strongest in decades.
In response, Childrens Lighthouse franchisees are opening 11 new franchise centers in the next 12 months and more are planned. The new centers are not only existing services area, but also in California, Colorado, Georgia and New Jersey.
"The Childrens Lighthouse Learning Centers corporation in an aggressive expansion mode," says Childrens Lighthouse President Pat Brown. "Families in new and growing neighborhoods are demanding childcare that is affordable, fun, secure and educational.
"Childrens Lighthouse Learning Centers is the unique situation of not only experiencing an increased demand for its outstanding childcare services, but also an increased interest in our franchise by entrepreneurs seeking a chance to own a small business—a business which financial institutions are readily financing because of the strong demand for childcare services."
Childrens Lighthouse centers are state-of-the art childcare facilities where education and fun go hand-in-hand. Each center is dedicated to providing a safe, quality and loving environment as well as excellent education services to each of its students who range in age from 6-weeks-old infants to 12-year-olds.
Childrens Lighthouse Centers is distinctive in the childcare business.
As the only childcare franchise with an extensive group of corporate-owned centers, Childrens Lighthouse has a proven understanding of the childcare industry as well as the challenges of the industry. Based on its own experience, Childrens Lighthouse corporate staff provides guidance on the best facility location and designs, the ideal staffing standards and requirements and services and amenities that parents prize the most. As a franchiser, Childrens Lighthouse Center offers franchise center owners planning and design, access to third-party financing, pre-development consultation and pre-development training assistance in addition to its proven A Beka educational curriculum and unparalleled support.
Mike Brown, Childrens Lighthouse's chief executive officer, says there are some basic tenets which drive each and every Childrens Lighthouse center: Affordable and educational care, a fun environment, a quality and committed staff, a proven curriculum and a location near an elementary school in growing and easily accessible neighborhoods.
"From experience we have learned that Childrens Lighthouse Learning centers are just as much a reason why parents decide to move into a particular neighborhood as are the schools, the churches, the shops and the location," Mike said. "Each and every franchisee tells us that our demographic modeling services, which identify potential sites, demand and services features to pinpoint an ideal location for a new learning center, are keys to their success."
Mike also points out that Childrens Lighthouse Centers offers third-party financial assistance for new centers through a long-standing relationship the company has with the federal Small Business Administration and other financial institutions.
The Browns say the time between the beginnings of talks with an entrepreneur about building a new center to the opening of the doors to a new center generally is 18 months. With corporate assistance, each new center opens with a substantial enrollment.
The first corporate Childrens Lighthouse Learning Center was opened August 1997 in Grand Prairie, Texas and continues as the cornerstone of Childrens Lighthouse's business. More than 300 children, ranging in ages from 6-weeks-old to 12-years-old, are enrolled at the Grand Prairie center, located at 4636 Highway 360. The first franchise center opened September 2001 in Katy, Texas which today serves more than 200 students with a staff of more than 30 teachers.
Steve and Stefani Kulawick, owners of two Childrens Lighthouse Learning Centers in San Antonio, Texas chose a Childrens Lighthouse franchise over others they investigated because of the culture of family which permeates the Childrens Lighthouse network.
"When we started looking around we actually looked into six or seven franchising companies," Steve explains. "We have to a lot of companies and had conference calls, but none were as personable as the Browns and the Lighthouse staff was. "
Because of Stefani's 20-years of experience in the child care industry, Steve said, "We were discouraged and we were thinking: Should we open our own independent center." Steve, a "lawyer by trade who now works fulltime with his wife, says the family opened its first center almost two years ago and will open a second center in two months, says he "gave up law and enjoys what I do now a lot more."
When the Kulawicks discovered Childrens Lighthouse Centers, the uniqueness and quality of Childrens Lighthouse Centers was evident immediately
"The Browns came down to San Antonio and drove around looking at possibilities," Steve recalls. "We went up to Fort Worth and looked at their schools and centers there. We didn't talk about money and franchising until the third trip. With the others the first things out of their mouths was money instead of getting to know us."
The familial culture and support did not stop when the Kulawick's purchased their franchise.
"The advantage with franchising with Childrens Lighthouse is accessibility," Steve says. "The Lighthouse organization and its people are accessible. They have an outstanding website that is for franchisee centers that is easy to use and not overwhelming. You can get marketing materials, forms and data easily."
Proof of that the Childrens Lighthouse Learning centers are the best home-away-from home for children is the satisfaction of parents who enroll their children in a Childrens Lighthouse center, Steve says.
"Parents really like the facility itself" in addition to the outstanding staff and curriculum, Steve says. "We have an elegant building. It is rock and stucco exterior. They like the big space, the openness with a lot of classrooms. They like that we are there all the time and accessible. They even have our cell phone numbers.
"Really, overall, there is a culture of family, from owners of Childrens Lighthouse corporation to the centers."
Childrens Lighthouse received a Dallas and San Antonio Business Journal "Best Place to Work" award as well as Jacksonville, Florida Family Magazine's Readers Choice designation as "Best for Families" business in 2007 and 2008.
Childrens Lighthouse is the only childcare company to offer through its CenterConnect software an electronic resource to effectively manage a center from a pre-opening checklist to enrollment tracking system.
Childrens Lighthouse was conceived in 1994 when Mike and Pat Brown recognized that parents in the 21st Century sought more than just a place to drop off their children for the day. The Browns heard parents demanding for their children a care center that is not only fun but security and educational.
As successful businessmen who had owned and operated a thriving manufacturing company, Mike and Pat Brown spent three years researching what parents today want from their childcare provider as well as the best practices of excellent childcare companies from around the country.
