The trauma a working mother faces when she first drops off her
baby at day care must be experienced to be understood. I witnessed
it firsthand as Ashley Mad-docks' stay at her first
insti-tution lasted a total of three minutes--until my wife learned
our daughter would be spending the day in a crowded, snotty,
Plexiglas box. In the ensuing years, our daughters found refuge in
the homes of neighbors in need of a little extra cash. Eventually,
we used in-home care. There was no structure, no educational
stimulation and, frankly, little information regarding the
background of our help. Ashley survived, but her life certainly
would have been enriched had we been able to find a more nurturing,
educational en-vironment for her formative years.
Fortunately for many new parents today--and there are a lot out
there right now--fran-chising has once again come to the rescue. In
particular, Cartersville, Georgia-based Primrose School Franchising
Co. has created a wonderful place for children ages 6 weeks to 5
years. Older children, up to 12 years of age, may also benefit from
programs before and after school. Each weekday morn-ing, after a
reasonably priced optional breakfast is served, Primrose vans roll
from each of the 68 Primrose School locations to local schools to
deliver their precious cargo, then pick them up after classes have
adjourned.
Recently, I toured a new facility in Lewisville, Texas, with Jo
Kirchner, who was named Primrose's president and CEO when the
company was acquired by Security Capital Corp. earlier this year.
Kirchner's tour showed me this: A Primrose School has a
comfortable country charm about it, and the franchise has developed
and refined a number of proven procedures, from a curriculum that
includes branded multi-media software to security.
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According to Luane McWhorter, a franchisee in Lewisville, one
reason a Primrose franchise is a joy to operate is it's not
open on the weekends, and parents are required to retrieve their
children by 6:30 p.m.--hours that certainly beat the heck out of
staying open in the mall until 9 p.m. every night.
However, building and opening a franchised location can take up
to a year from the time the franchise agreement is signed and
require a total investment of as much as $1.8 million. Primrose has
formed an alliance with Newcourt Financial to lighten the burden on
potential franchisees seeking investment capital. Due to the track
record of the concept, Newcourt has shown a willingness to provide
up to 85 percent of the initial investment in the form of a secured
loan.
However, finding appropriately priced real estate can be a
challenge, as you must find a minimum of 1.7 acres of acces-sible
yet undervalued property in a growing area populated with
dual-income families.
Potential franchisees need to have cash liquidity of $225,000 to
$270,000 to be considered. According to Kirchner, only one in 50
applicants is granted a franchise. If you think you'll be lucky
enough to make the cut, you can review the franchisor's
earnings claims found in Item 19 of the UFOC.
Todd D. Maddocks is a franchise attorney and small-business
consultant. You can reach him at TMaddocks@aol.com.
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