These 5 Children's Businesses Make Running Your Own Business Feel Like Fun and Games

They say never work with children or animals. But actually, both can offer great business opportunities. They’ll provide you with variety, make you laugh and certainly keep you active! Here, we’re looking at child-oriented business ideas and how they can work for you.

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Advantages of starting a kid-focused business

Running a children’s business can have benefits for your mental, physical and financial health, as well as the children you look after and their parents. Here are just a few of the biggest advantages:

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• For your pocket: Childcare will always be in demand, so you’ll be able to develop a recession-proof business. This means that, unlike businesses that sell luxury goods or rely on industry trends, you’ll be able to predict a stable income stream, no matter the economic climate. Also, if you have your own children, you’ll be able to save money on childcare. Of course, this depends on the type of business you run and the children it’s aimed at, but if you have the option to bring your own child along to work with you, you’ll save a significant amount of money over time.

• For your mental health: Working with children is incredibly rewarding. You’ll see them grow and develop, knowing that you’re supporting them on their journey. On bad days, their laughter and cheekiness will keep you positive. Also, the creativity involved in running a children’s business will keep your mind active. This can improve mental health and help ease conditions like anxiety and depression, so it can have a huge influence on your emotional wellbeing, enhancing both your work and home life.

• For your physical health: You’ll be on the move. Working with kids involves plenty of fun and games. From hide and seek to music workshops and role play games, there will be plenty of opportunities to keep active. This should improve your physical fitness and help you stay young. You’ll also have the chance to get fresh air when the children play outside – something which a lot of entrepreneurs don’t benefit from. Of course, you will do your fair share of administrative duties and office work, but that doesn’t mean you can’t engage with the children on a regular basis.

• For your social life: Kids’ franchises usually operate during standard business hours, so you’ll probably be working between 8am and 6pm. This means your social life shouldn’t be affected. You’ll still be able to spend time with your family in the evenings or meet with friends at the weekend. When you’re running your own business, this can be invaluable, as you’ll have the chance to unwind and relax in the company of loved ones. They’ll be able to support you and make sure you’re not overworked, particularly in the initial set-up stage.

• For the children you look after: It is thought that childcare can benefit children’s development. According to research by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, those who had experienced centre-based childcare displayed “somewhat better cognitive and language development and better pre-academic skills involving letters and numbers” than other children. This is a huge incentive for parents to invest in childcare. Also, children’s businesses provide structured care that makes sure the day is interesting and varied for their kids. Classes and workshops encourage babies and children to develop their skills, while the social aspect of childcare helps them socialise and learn how to communicate.

Try these child-oriented business ideas…

1. Banana Moon

Of all the options for working with children, the best franchises to invest in are undoubtedly the ones that are educational and help shape them as human beings. Being a Banana Moon franchisee enables you to do just this.

Banana Moon is a day-care franchise for children between the ages of three months and five years. You don’t need to have any previous experience of working with children, as a comprehensive training package is provided. This will provide you with all the skills and tools you’ll need to launch a financially and emotionally rewarding business.

You won’t just learn childcare techniques, but also how the franchise system works, how to effectively manage the daily operations of the nursery and how to promote your franchise in your local area. To help you do this, you'll also be given marketing material to raise awareness of the brand within your community.

2. Debutots

If you want to develop and inspire little ones but also value flexibility, Debutots could be the franchise business opportunity for you. It delivers performing arts classes in schools and nurseries, as well as at mother and baby events in the local area.

Not only do you get to teach children invaluable life skills, but you also get the freedom and flexibility to choose the hours you work. This is why it’s one of the best franchises to invest in, particularly if you’re a parent and want to become your own boss while being able to work around family commitments.

3. Intellidance

Intellidance is a low-cost franchise opportunity that helps children develop through music and dance. Children from three months to five years will benefit from attending structured dance classes appropriate for their age.

When you've received your initial training, you'll complete a series of written and practical assessments before you're awarded your certificate. Once qualified, you’ll own the rights to the Intellidance licence. And the good news is, there are no ongoing franchise fees, so you get to keep all the profit you make.

4. Kumon

Kumon is a slightly different franchise. It’s aimed at school-age children and could be the perfect franchise business opportunity for you if you’re passionate about educating children so they can build a better future. In a time when there is more and more pressure on young people to do well in their exams, opening a tuition franchise could be one of the best ways to start a rewarding and productive business.

Operating a Kumon study centre is a full-time commitment that will see you teach children maths and other academic subjects outside of school hours. You don’t need any previous experience or a background in education to open your centre. The only criteria you must meet is to be educated to degree level or equivalent, have a full driving licence and pass a proficiency test in both maths and English. And of course, you need to be committed to making a success of your franchise.

Once you’re on board, you’ll receive 11 days of training so that you can confidently apply the Kumon method of learning. Even when you’re running a successful Kumon training franchise, you’ll continue to receive regular training to keep you updated with any new and improved teaching techniques.

5. Leaps and Bounds

Offering an innovative exercise programme for little ones, Leaps and Bounds is a children’s franchise that parents know and trust. As a franchisee, you’ll be responsible for developing 30-minute classes that help improve skills such as agility, balance, climbing and co-ordination. And the benefits aren’t just physical. It’s been proven that exercise classes like the ones run by Leaps and Bounds can help with language development by using action songs and rhymes.

As you’ll be working with children from toddlers up to the age of five years old, you’ll need to have enthusiasm, confidence and excellent interpersonal skills. As your business grows, you’ll also need to demonstrate that you can motivate, lead and manage any staff you recruit to help you run classes. If you love working with children and are business-minded and committed, this could be the franchise for you.

Running your own business with a children’s franchise

Working with children isn’t for everyone, but with more women than ever returning to the workplace after having children, now is a great time to start a franchise in the childcare industry. It’s widely acknowledged that children benefit from learning more than just reading, writing and arithmetic, so there is a huge number of business opportunities to take advantage of.

Kids’ franchises can be incredibly lucrative, especially if they’re set up in a territory with plenty of young families and have a solid business model. But running a children’s franchise can be fun and rewarding as well. There are few jobs that allow you to get involved in playground games and music classes, for example.

But one of the main advantages of starting a children’s franchise is the flexibility they often provide. Whether it’s working 9-5 and keeping your evenings and weekends free, or simply scheduling individual classes for convenient times for you, you can make your business work well for your current lifestyle.

If you’d like to become a franchisee of a profitable kids’ franchise, you’re in the right place. The right franchise business opportunity for you could be among the popular, well-established and profitable franchises we’ve mentioned, but if not, browse our full list of children’s franchises here.