There's
a definite need for day care centers as more and more
mothers
of pre-school age children are forced to find jobs
outside
the home. This is due in part to the current economy, and
unfortunately,
to the high divorce rate, which means mothers who
might
ordinarily stay at home and care for their own children
must
seek income to help make ends meet.
Many
experts expect the demand to increase through the turn of
the
century, and the popularity of this type of business to
continue
growing from there. They base their forecasts on the
fact
that more and more young parents have happy memories of the
time
they spent in day care centers, and the learning experiences
they
enjoyed. And again, there is the continuing need or desire
of
young mothers to work outside the home.
Profitable
day care centers are much more glorified baby-sitting
services.
Social researchers have found that the most important
years
in a child's development are those from one to six. Thus,
the
exposure to the world in which he lives, the instruction he
receives,
and the habits he forms during those years, definitely
affect
his ability to learn and properly adjust as he progresses
on
through his years of formal education.
For
mothers of today--usually better educated than their
mothers---are
more aware of these factors and wanting the best
for
their children, are demanding the structured pre-school
education
and learning stimulation offered by modern day care
centers.
This is an honest desire of the mothers of pre-school
age
children--even those who aren't forced to work outside the
home.
Another
thing in your favor: Even though there seems to be trend
for
many companies to finance and operate day care centers for
their
employees in or close by their factories or office
buildings,
studies show that most working parents prefer to leave
their
children closer to home than where they work. Thus,
privately
operated day care centers in residential neighborhood
areas
should not be worried too much about competition from the
few
company operated day care centers.
The
first step toward start-up of a profitable day care center is
to
understand what makes them profitable.
There
are a lot of day care centers operating will full
enrollments
of 35 to 65 children, but just barely breaking even.
This
is generally the result of regulations imposed by the state
government,
causing exorbitant overheard costs of operation.
Basically,
you'll need facilities to handle 150 to 200 children
in
order to realize annual profits in the "before taxes" bracket
of
$100,000.
Check
with your state and local government regulatory agencies.
Many
states require day care centers to provide a minimum area
per
child, both inside and outside the building, plus at least
one
hot meal per day. A licensed teacher for every 15 to 20
children,
and even a licensed nurse on the premises may be
required.
Be sure to know the regulations in your area, and then
design
your business plan to meet these regulations.
Actually,
you can begin by operating a baby-sitting service, by
learning
and expanding from your profits, and of course, through
the
long term benefits of establishing a quality image. In fact,
we
recommend that you start small---with a baby sitting
service---and
build upon your progressive successes. Unless, of
course,
you have half a million dollars to invest.
Once
you're beyond the baby-sitting stage, out of your home and
backyard,
beginning to build a real day care facility, you might
try
locating in your church or one of your area's civic club
facilities.
Also, you should check out the possibilities of
renting
or buying a vacant house. A large ranch-style home with a
large
backyard would probably suit your need at this stage. But
be
sure you have zoning approval from your city council before
signing
a rent lease and finalizing your plans.
You
might find, if you have your business plan in order, that a
church
or labor union will sponsor your business, or even offer
financial
backing. Arranging some sort of partnership or
sponsorship
agreement with an established local organization will
solve
a lot of problems for you, not only in the area of space
but
in assistance with start-up costs and city-father approval.
Incidentally,
a day care center is perhaps the ideal business for
absentee
ownership or a group of professional investors. Keep
this
fact in mind as you organize your plan and seek financing.
See
our business report, HOW TO RAISE MONEY FOR STARTING YOUR OWN
BUSINESS.
Generally,
a "shoestring entrepreneur" in this business will do
very
well to locate in a vacant convenience store, or even a
vacant
grocery store in a larger shopping center. The zoning will
be
in your favor, plus you'll have adequate parking space, and
less
expense in partitioning or remodeling the building to suit
your
needs.
Ideally,
your day care center should be located on a main
thoroughfare,
with the building set back from the street. You
should
be on the right hand side of the street as the traffic
heads
towards the major business or industrial areas of your
community.
In larger metropolitan areas, this would be on the
city-side
of the "bedroom" communities. In smaller communities,
you
can locate just about anywhere except in the downtown area.
If
at all possible, you should plan your facility similar to a
hospital
or motel entrance. This would be a driveway from the
street
to your door, usually under a covered drive-thru, with the
driveway
continuing back out to the street. Your long-term
parking
space would be located in the center of the "U" or
between
the driveway and the street. You want to strive for the
convenience
for the parent in being able to drive right up to
your
door. She can drop off the child with only a few steps into
your
facility and easy access back onto the main thoroughfare.
Depending
on your city sign ordinances and your finances, go all
out
with your sign. Advertise the name of your name care center,
the
hours you're open, whether you accept drop-ins, overnighters,
or
weekenders, and of course, your phone number.
The
sign makers and advertising people may strongly advise you
against
so much wording on your sign, but in this instance, don't
listen
to them. Your sign should state all essential information,
and
serve to convince passers-by that you can handle their
child-care
problems whenever the need arises.
If
you initially locate in, or through the sponsorship of a
church
or labor union, these people can assist you tremendously
by
including a mention of your services in their membership
bulletins,
and by passing circulars or flyers.
You'll
need to decide on your regular day care hours. Generally,
these
are from 6 a.m. through 6 p.m. You'll also need to decide
whether
you want to offer breakfast for the children. If so,
you'll
have to plan for a cook and food supplies for morning
meals.
We'll discuss kitchen facilities and kitchen help later,
but
first decision must be if you will include breakfast. You'll
already
be set up with kitchen facilities and a cook because for
those
parents wanting to feed their children at your home, you'll
be
able to add $8 to $12 per week to their billing. By buying
your
food supplies in bulk, you'll probably be able to realize
some
savings in overall food costs.
Mid-morning
and mid-afternoon snacks are required in some states,
but
even where they're not required, they are pretty much
standard
fare in most day care centers. Fresh fruit, cookies, and
juice
are the usual snack foods served in most day care centers.
As
mentioned earlier, you'll definitely be providing a hot meal
for
the children at noon. This entails a cook, dishes, planned
menus,
food supplies in bulk, and perhaps even small size tables
and
chairs. You'll also have to have kitchen help and facilities
for
washing the dishes.
These
are just some of the important overhead costs you must plan
for,
and of course you will work to keep them as low as possible.
As
you should know by now, the greater the overhead, the more
children
you're going to have to take in, and the more children
you
take in, the greater your space requirements.
All
profitable day care centers operate according to planned
routines.
.The day is broken down into one-hour segments, with
pre
planned curricula, much the same as classes at a public
school.
A
typical day begins with a play period from whenever the
children
arrive until about 9 0'clock. For this, you'll need
indoor
sand boxes, toys, and perhaps a family sized television
set.
From 9 to 10 the children are separated into
groups---generally
by ages--and you hold a reading or story
telling
session. The mid-morning snack time is scheduled sometime
between
10 to 11. For the younger children, this might include a
mid-morning
nap, after snack time, a learning session is usually
held.
Typically, this is the time when guests are invited in to
speak
or entertain the children.
Work
with your Chamber of Commerce, civic clubs, and city
administration
for guests. Children will especially enjoy visits
by
policemen, firemen, and others who talk to them about
citizenship,
show films, and teach them about things they can do
in
the community.
You
can also get upperclassmen at your local colleges to visit
and
demonstrate such things as drawing, working with clay,
building
with wood, making things out of paper, and hundreds of
other
talents or skills they might might be learning. The
important
thing is to bring "outsiders" in to talk to the kids
about
goes on in the world.
Noon
to 1 o'clock is generally lunch time, and 1 to 2 is another
learning
session. During this afternoon learning session, you
might
offer the rudiments of reading writing and arithmetic.
These
teachings chores can be handled by college students
studying
to be teachers, retired teachers, or unemployed persons
with
teaching certificates. It's not so much a session to teach
proficiency
as a time to stimulate a interest in formal
education.
The basic goal of most day care centers is to instill
within
each child a desire to learn more about the world in which
he
lives. Thus, each child should be full of plans for "when I
get
to be six years old and start school, I'm going to..."
About
once a week, your afternoon learning session should be a
tour
or a trip to someplace that might be interesting as well as
educational
for the children. Again, you're making the idea of
learning
not only interesting, but an exciting adventure as well.
These
trips can be anything from a walk in your immediate
neighborhood
to loading all the kids into cars or onto buses and
taking
them to the zoo. Check it out first, but on th whole,
you'll
find most businesses in your area will welcome
opportunities
to show the children around their offices or
factories.
The same thing quite naturally applies to your city
offices,
fire department, police department, and radio or
televison
stations.
On
days when you don't have a trip scheduled, your "learning
session"
might be a film or program related to nature,
particularly
animals. The advent of the Video Cassette Recorder
has
opened endless possibilities in this area. Nap time and snack
time
will fill a period for younger ones, and books and quiet
games
will occupy older children who do not take a nap. When the
nap
period is over, they're allowed to play until their parents
come
to pick them up.
Whenever
possible, you should encourage the children to be
outside
during play periods. If you have lots of playground
equipment,
you won't necessarily always have to have organized
games,
but you will have to have a playground
supervisor---someone
to watch the children and see they don't get
hurt
as they play. You can hire part-time help for this chore,
perhaps
from the local colleges, for minimum wage. If your city
ordinances
do not cover the specific age requirements of a
playground
supervisor, you might be able to hire students form
your
neighborhood high school. Select all the people you can hire
relative
to their affinity with children and their dependability.
Be
aware of today's climate of extreme concern in protecting
children
in day care situations.
Your
playground will require a fenced-in area. Drive around and
look
at the playground equipment in play yards of your public
schools
and day centers in your area. You should have the basic
sandboxes,
swings, slides and jungle gyms but in this area you
can
be creative and original, provided your equipment meets
safety
standards.
Some
states require that you have a registered nurse on the
premises,
but generally, the main things needed are medical
information
from the parents and a written procedure to follow in
case
of accident or illness. Basically, when a child is injured
or
becomes ill, you should take them to the nearest medical
center,
while another staff person gets in touch with the
parents,
and explains what happened. If the parent cannot be
present
at the medical center, all information should be passed
on
to them immediately it is available.
It's
a good idea to have all helpers indoctrinated with basic Red
Cross
first aid knowledge, and have a well equipped first aid kit
on
the premises. As for any requirements to a fulltime nurse, you
should
be able to hire registered nurses who are either not
working
or looking for extra income. You might be able to "hire
the
license" of a registered nurse. You should pay a small fee to
hang
her license in your office, and she agrees to be available
to
serve your needs when you call.
Most
day care centers are currently charging from $35 to $65 per
child
for a five day week, plus $5 to $10 more for the inclusion
of
breakfast, with another $1 per meal when they serve an evening
meal
to the child. If you do receive pay in advance, you can very
quickly
get "in the red." We strongly suggest setting up your
financial
structure and clients payment schedules with this in
mind.
By
having your customers pay in advance, you'll eliminate a lot
of
bookkeeping chores and time, the problems of collections, and
you'll
have operating funds with which to run the business. A
point
to stress when asking for payment by the month, in advance,
is
that because monthly payments are based on only four weeks of
day
care, they'll be getting a week free service every three
months.
Every
profitable day care center requires a sharp manager or
director.
This person might be yourself, or someone you hire for
the
job. Regardless, this person will be the key to your success.
The
director should have empathy with people, be an excellent
judge
of people, be sales orientated, and have an outgoing
personality.
As much as anything else, this person must have the
ability
to listen to, and really hear what other people are
saying
without the influence of preconceived opinions, or making
snap
decisions. This person has to have the success of your
business
in mind at all times, which means building and
maintaining
an impeccable reputation.
Your
director will be responsible for the hiring and supervision
of
your other help and the budgeting, scheduling and overall
day-to-day
operation of the business. It is imperative to the
success
of your business that you have the very best person you
can
get in this position, regardless of the cost. A good director
for
a day care center will command salary equal to teachers in
your
public schools, plus fringe benefits allowances such as free
enrollment
for their children and perhaps medical and dental
insurance
if you choose to provide group coverage.
When
a prospective client calls to ask about your services, you
should
explain how you operate, and emphasize your invitation for
them
to bring their child in so the two of them can be taken for
a
tour of your facilities.
Once
in the center, your manager or director takes the parent and
child
on a tour, all the while explaining to parent the
advantages
of the center's structured learning and play program
compared
with everyday run-of-the-mill baby-sitting services.
It's
important to have the child along, because he sees the other
children
at play, he will be drawn to them, and this will greatly
influence
the parent in deciding that your center is the right
place
for his child.
After the tour, steer the parent back into your
administrative
offices
and propose enrollment of the child. Begin by asking
where
the parent works, what hours and if he or she ever has to
wok
overtime. You then ascertain the hours they'll want to drop
off
and pick up their child.
Strict
procedures are absolutely essential regarding the pick-up
of
any child. Frightening as it may be to contemplate, we have
all
read accounts of strangers (or non-custodial parent)
kidnapping
a child. Printed forms must be provided and
authorization
signatures must be compared when anyone other than
the
legal guardian takes a child from your care. You will learn
these
requirements from your licensing office. Our advise to you
is
to follow them meticulously.
You
should have a slickly printed, quality brochure showing your
rates,
your services, an outline of the curriculum, and a
statement
of your benefits goals for the children.
Check
with a legally qualified person about the need for a
contract.
The parent will probably simply fill out a
questionaire-file
card giving address, place employment, medical
information
about the child, and place he or she may be reached
in
case of emergency.
Most
day care centers accept all children between two and six
years
of age. An there are many nowadays who take infants from
six
weeks.
Of
course, your personnel in this situation will be thoroughly
oriented
in infant care, an you must ascertain if these babies
are
well brought in to you. Otherwise, you put yourself in the
position
of "hospital" care instead of day care.
Generally,
children aren't allowed to bring toys from home. You
may
want to allow the children to bring their own blanket from
home
for nap time, but if you allowed toys from home you would be
opening
"Pandora's box" of possible problems relating to sharing
and
ownership. In light of this, you will want a full complement
of
appropriate toys and play items in your center.
If
your decide to include short-term baby-sitting services, a
good
idea would be include within the layout of your facilities a
small
one bedroom apartment for a live-in person or couple. An
older
retired couple would be ideal, with the husband also as
maintenance
and handyman.
Around-the-clock
baby-sitting services, in addition to your
regular
day care center, can add tremendous and immediate
cash-flow
profits to your business, but correspondingly increase
your
payroll for qualified personnel. Such services would enable
the
parents to drop their children off in the evening, and leave
them
around the clock or over the weekend. There will generally
be
no need for any planned program because these children will be
sleeping
during most of the time they're in your care.
As
you establish the image and reputation of your day care
center,
the parents in your area will be much more inclined to
leave
their children with you for baby-sitting duties. And
because
you are considered tops in the area of responsibility,
you'll
be able to charge the very top rate of the baby-sitting
fee
structure. Keep current with fees charged by other quality
businesses
similar to yours.
The
demand for uplanned or emergency baby-sitting services is
very
large. Not too many day care centers are aware of this
potential
for extra profits yet, but the ones that are find that
their
incomes can increase by 30 percent or more ! We certainly
recommend
consideration of this idea for anyone involved in a day
care
service.
Another
area that could mean enhanced profits for you is bus or
van
pick-up service for the children. Of course, this would
increase
your operating costs (and consequently your fees) but
the
convenience of pick-up is gaining in popularity. You'll need
a
custodian for indoor and outdoor cleanup, and if you have
access
to a bus or van, he could be assigned additional duties as
the
driver. Some day care centers offering pick-up service for
their
children contrast with local transportation services for
their
children contract transportation services to provide this
service.
Be certain of the driving experience of your driver if
you
contract for this transportation service.
Most
day care centers open with very little fanfare or
advertising.
Generally, even without advertising most are
reporting
90 percent capacity enrollment within six months.
With
grand opening fanfare, and a strong advertising campaign,
you
should be able at 90 percent capacity within your first six
weeks.
In an area where a severe shortage of day care facilities
exists,
and with the right advertising and promotion, even
sooner.
Your
first step should be the door-to-door, hand-out distribution
of
a quality informative brochure. To save on costs, you can hire
students
attending advertising classes in you area colleges or
even
a free lance advertising copywriter to help you with the
design
and writing of this brochure. However, the bottom line
should
be that you have a good commercial printer do the printing
on
the best paper can afford. All of this has to do with the
image
you're wanting to create, and the quality of the service
the
"buyers" feel they're getting for the prices you are
charging.
Don't skimp on your brochure--you're aiming at people
looking
for the best place for their children.
You
should place at least a two-column by four-inch grand opening
display
ad in you local newspapers. At the same time, you should
place
similar ads in the local magazines and other publications
catering
to the working mother. Send along a group picture of
your
staff, and a story about your services with your advertising
order.
Phone the editors at your local newspapers, radio and TV
stations
and invite them out to your grand opening.
Be
sure to place a "service information" ad in yellow pages of
your
telephone directory. This should be the largest size you can
afford.
And remember that you need to make contract for a yellow
page
ad well in advance of the release date of the directory.
After
your grand opening, and until you attain full capacity,
continue
to hand out your brochures at the entrances to the
office
buildings which house companies employing working mothers.
Continue
to run ads in your local newspaper, although these ads
needn't
be quite as large or run as regularly as the grand
openings
ads. Run an ad in the classified section describing your
baby-sitting
services.
At
your grand opening, offer free refreshments for everyone.
Coffee
and punch for the adults, with juice for the children, and
cookies
for everyone. You should have members of your staff
circulating
among the parents to answer any questions and hand
out
brochures about the center.
You
can begin small, and expand in stages with your profit.
However,
you must draw up a long-range plan detailing exactly
what
you intend to do, and each milestone you'll have to pass
before
proceeding to next your goal. In this way, you can succeed
and
attain not only the ultimate business, but also the kind of
profits
planned at the start.
The
basic, and bottom line secret to success with your own day
care
center will be your ability to hold your costs in line while
achieving
maximum capacity enrollment. You've got the plan, and
my
best wishes for success!
No comments:
Post a Comment