Contrary to what you might glean from the franchise name, you don’t need to be creative to run a Creation Station franchise.
Sarah Cressall, founder of the children's franchise, describes how its art and craft classes relieve the burden on mothers, both those whose children attend and those which buy a franchise.
Adam Bannister: How would you say this franchise is good value?
Sarah Cressall: It’s designed specifically around a mum’s busy life. And it’s relatively low cost with start-up help and ongoing support.
It’s designed specifically around a mum’s busy life. And it’s relatively low cost with start-up help and ongoing support
AB: And what exactly does this support entail?
SC: We support you in growing your business at a rate that suits you.
And we provide links with a lot of other organisations and businesses, for example Sure Start, government-backed agencies, museums... As the UK’s leading specialist provider of children’s activities we can help other organisations increase their footfall and customer uptake.
We help people get contracts with soft play areas and other commercial organisations to promote what they do.
AB: What do you get for your money?
SC: You get an awful lot in terms of a full toolkit.
You get arts and crafts materials, copyrighted, specifically designed session plans based on government educational guidelines, a full, branded uniform, a branded admin pack, files, folders, bags, innovative menu signs, outdoor leaflet holders and a web page optimised to your area.
There’s also a franchise forum to share knowledge. We run a conference, Inspiring Imaginations Across the Nation, seminars and training groups where we share ideas.
You get the benefits of wholesale purchasing systems and we equip you with the skills, knowledge and confidence to run a successful business.
And we tailor the training to each and every person, to fit in with their lifestyle and needs.
AB: How exactly is it tailored to each franchisee?
SC: It’s up to them how long they choose to work. You can work part time or full time.
It’s predominantly term time only, with extra income from evening workshops and holiday sessions.
Each franchisee has the option to tailor their business to what suits them. If they’re more interested in working with government projects, for example, we can help them develop that part of the business.
AB: Do you get mostly mothers then?
SC: It’s designed specifically for mothers.
It’s flexible. There are some mothers with six-month-olds who do two mornings and others whose children have started school and may want to work four or five mornings.
The business allows time for family life. As they grow and get more confident, franchisees can employ people to run the business.
We run different types of workshops. Exploration, which is for one to five year olds and predominantly takes place in term time – although there are holiday sessions – has won a Practical Preschool Award.
We also run art and craft birthday parties, events for organisations like the brownies, events and fetes for charities, etc.
AB: What are the biggest revenue generators?
SC: The steadiest income and best brand awareness is Exploration, which generates a minimum of about £25 an hour.
Birthday parties are good. Every child has a birthday, and every parent struggles to think of something to do for their child’s birthday.
Birthday parties usually generate a minimum price of £100. They’re generally £40-plus an hour, and events can be from £250 a day.
