Popularity of role-play fuels franchise expansion

Little Street was launched in 2013 and opened the UK’s first role-play town for under-eights in 2014. It operates two other centres in Frimley and Maidstone.

Sara and Rob Howe, the owners of the new West Byfleet play centre, used a £64,000 loan provided by NatWest to refurbish a former soft play area and open their own Little Street franchise.

With the help of the loan, Mr and Ms Howe were able to set up brand new children’s leisure facilities that are designed to encourage confidence and interaction.

Each Little Street play centre has a variety of themed rooms, scaled down in size to suit the needs of children, and carefully designed and filled with props to offer a creative and educational play experience.

Following the Little Street model of the pre-existing two play centres, the new West Byfleet centre has been built in the style of a miniature town, with areas replicating a construction site, supermarket, stables, medical centre, school, theatre and train.

The business has hired six local people and is set to become an important community facility for parents with young children.

Mr and Ms Howe said, ‘Having visited Little Street in Frimley, we were inspired to create a similar centre locally. We are parents of young children ourselves and so could see the appeal and potential of such a facility in this area instantly.

‘Little Street is unique in that we create play facilities that encourage children to interact with each other and mimic real-life situations,’ they added.

Like the other play centres, the new West Byfleet setting is available for exclusive hire for 90 minute play sessions and has a capacity of up to 70 people.

Hannah Elbaum, founding director of Little Street, said, ‘While role-play is not a new concept - with the idea prevalent in children’s museums across the US - there was nothing like Little Street in England. We created a role-play facility linked to the EYFS, designed to inspire children to explore life in the world around them and, to encourage parents to engage with their children in imaginative play, fostering a sense of connectedness.

‘Professor Tanya Byron’s “The State of Play, Back to Basics report” found that one in five parents in the UK admit to forgetting how to play with their children. Many parents tell us that they enjoy playing at Little Street as much as their child,’ Ms Elbaum added.

According to Ms Elbaum, Little Street has ‘created a new business model’ by offering pre-defined play sessions that are limited in time and to a certain number of visitors, to avoid overcrowding and to ensure a quality play experience.

Little Street is a turnkey franchise model, meaning it provides package so complete that franchisees only have to ‘turn the key’ and open the door to be in business.

‘While franchisees have some input into the design of their franchise, Little Street project manage the entire build and fit out. We provide a comprehensive operations manual, and require franchisees to work to strict brand standards,’ Ms Elbaum explained.

The initial Little Street franchise package includes five days of training, but ongoing advice and guidance is provided though regular meetings and daily telephone or email contact.

Propective franchisees will need the capital to invest between 30 and 50 per cent of the start-up costs for a new Little Street centre.

‘A successful franchisee will have the desire and commitment to run their own business but the ability to work to a proven system to ensure their success.  An excellent attention to detail is essential, and any previous marketing, customer service, business or educational background is beneficial,’ Ms Elbaum said.

Franchisees can approach the company and propose a location for a new site, and are then given a ‘territory’, provided the area is available.

According to Ms Elbaum, finding suitable premises is the biggest challenge in opening a Little Street.

‘We have received enquiries from across the UK, and can open a franchise anywhere in the country,’ Ms Elbaum said.

‘We are in discussions with a number of franchisees for three further sites in the South East, so hope to open a least one more Little Street in 2017. We then envisage steady growth, with three to four play centres opening each year.

‘In the past 18 months there has been significant growth in this market, with many role-play centres opening up across the UK offering this increasingly popular model.’

The Little Street model draws comparison with the global ‘educational entertainment’ company KidZania, which opened a child-sized city in West London in 2015, one of more than 20 mini-cities worldwide.