Profitable knowledge destiny
The premium pre-school education concept ‘Blossom’ is all about imparting the ‘knowledge destiny’ to the children. In an interview, Zahra Hamirani, Esq, Founder/CEO, Blossom Childrens Nursery shares brand’s growth plans.
Namita Bhagat (NB): Tell us about the origin and concept of ‘Blossom Childrens Nursery’.
Zahra Hamirani (ZH): Blossom caters to modern families who require flexible, year round care and education for their children aged six months to rising five years. Blossom’s bright and modern aesthetic is central to their philosophy - that space impacts learning. The classrooms have articulated visions of space and the team has worked with an international group of engineers, doctors and teachers to provide a new vision of pre-school. The framework of the British EYFS curriculum is used along with the proprietary sky-garden approach and children have both creative and imaginative play based learning and structured activities and experiences to ensure that children achieve and develop into confident youngsters.
NB: What is the USP of the brand?
ZH: Blossom is all about teaching and understanding the ‘knowledge destiny’ we leave with our children. The curriculum imprint is so important in the early years and so when we were thinking about how we teach we also took an active interest in ‘what’ should be taught and discussed. I grew up in Canada and the United States where the idea to reduce, reuse and recycle was widely practiced. It was something I wanted our youngest children to learn, internalise and practice and so we developed the ‘skygarden’ approach to learning. We teach through ensuring that there are a variety of learning experiences from planting seeds to composting waste; from bringing in old water bottles to building a ‘recycled wall’ and thus finding new uses for old things. Qualified staff, a food program and a calendar with variety of special events mean a term at blossom is both fun and engaging learning. The Blossom Nursery provides a secure and stimulating environment where each child will blossom. Blossom is a safe place where families can leave their children, for comfort in good hands. The stimulation is world class with custom designed curriculum that is sensory in nature and blends required baseline learnings with a child's innate curiosity of the world.
NB: When and how did the brand opt for the franchise route for expansion?
ZH: We have just embarked on the franchising model in October 2011 where we attended our first franchise show. Working on the program prior to this was intense and we have managed to enhance our current offering by strategically directing ourselves towards franchising. Now a days, the Gulf and expatriate families are mostly dual income or where women are becoming more conscious of the benefits of a well run early child development centre as an option of care and therefore choosing this option for children as young as 6 months which is when children can begin with Blossom. There is such a need for quality nursery in the Gulf region as more expatriates flock to the opportunities here with expectations of the same standards as found in London, New York and Toronto. And this is where Blossom delivers - a British framework system that builds skills in children to embark on to ‘big school’ either here or in their home countries.
NB: How many franchised and company owned centres do you have at present?
ZH: Blossom currently has two centres in Dubai which were first started in 2009. In two short years, we have been named the Early Childhood Service provider of the Year 2011 by Arabian Child, awarded under the patronage of HH Shiekha Qassimi and are the first nursery in the Gulf deemed carbon neutral by Swiss organisation - myclimate. We are full and on waiting lists for both of our locations. We are working on building two more sites under corporate expansion, and looking forward to working with franchisees that have a vision to be aligned with a best practice international nursery experience.
NB: Could you share your further expansion plans?
ZH: Our vision was to create a world class nursery experience and to ensure this we need talented, motivated Directors to build up a Blossom presence in the knowledge economies of the Gulf where the opportunity for early years learning is growing as more families relocate here with young children. We are looking for partners in the Gulf, and in particular Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and even the UAE with a particular focus on Abu Dhabi.
NB: What requisites you prefer in a prospective franchisee? What is your preference in terms of area and investment?
ZH: We are maintaining a tiered approach to the offering catering to local demographics. However, we prefer those who wish to look at cluster or regional franchising where they are looking to open two to four centres in the next two years. A prospective franchisee must be business savvy and have a vision for excellence and the drive to deliver. Further, with a degree or experience in the early-years, sector will benefit but as training is provided in all areas of the business so these are not formally required. The investment will depend on the region.
NB: What kind of training and support will be provided to the franchisees?
ZH: A Blossom franchisee can expect to be fully supported and hit the ground running in a business that may have low barriers to entry but huge knowledge diversity which impacts the business it can take in. Everything from site design to curriculum, health and safety standards, staffing and more is covered in comprehensive manuals and support from a team that has created a successful and segmented niche in the early-years market. We have strong brand recognition and families know that a Blossom start is second to none.
NB: Could you give us an overview of UAE’s education industry particularly, in your segment?
ZH: The local education market is undergoing a dramatic shift. Traditional care providers with few skills or rote based models are fast closing or no longer finding success. The region has the fastest growing young, educated population having economic fortitude thus premium education is becoming the new choice of educated parents. The Blossom choice is one of these. There are new 21st century schools being developed globally that cater to the needs of a new age of learner which are student-centered, flexible, productive and accountable. These schools, like Blossom are growing in number. Of course, this is still a small segment within the traditional rote learning schools but the change is becoming more evident as families choose to be aligned with centers that reflect themselves and their aspirations.
