want to open a daycare?

Re: want to open a daycare?

• hesakeeper

  February 2013

  imo, word of mouth is important for a daycare so it could be a slow start up. 
  
  second, you still need to keep up with all the licenses and laws for your state. the best way to do well is to be good at what you do. 

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• athlete010688 member

  

  February 2013

  Just out of curiosity, would this be out of your home or would this be in a center?

   My mom has had an in-home daycare for 25 years.

  

  

  TTC since June 2012

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• Erikan73 member

  

  February 2013

  bttrflyprnc7:

  I am seriously thinking of opening a daycare/preschool possibly with a afterschool program as well. I would try to find a place here in RI. I have my father who had told me a few years ago when i graduated that he would help me start one if i ever wanted to. i didn't at the time but for the last year i have been seriously thinking that the best way for me to make money. the teaching jobs just are not there right now. so my question to you woman is what do you think about this idea. do you think i could open one and do well financially? if i keep the cost down but not too low so i can make good money, i could always raise the cost when the economy goes up.

  I would look into the expense of having a day care such as the licenes, insurance, expense of toys, food, utilties, etc and don't forget a salary for you and possible an assistant depending on how many kids you plan on having. Once you figure out how how much you would have to charge to make a profit after all of your expenses try to evalute if the area your day care would be located in, would be able to afford the type of rate you would charge. You can give the best care, but if you are in a middle to low income area, you can't charge the same as if you are located in a higher income area. Good luck with this if you go for it.

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• dalm0m member

  

  February 2013

  You have a lot of work ahead of you before anybody can answer those questions for you. 

  First read a book called Birthing The Elephant.  It's about opening & a growing a small business as a woman on a shoestring budget.  Then start reading all the small business books you can get your hands on: 

  • The E-Myth;
  • The E-Myth Revisisted;
  • Profits Aren't Everything, They're the Only Thing;
  • Who Moved My Cheese
  • The Tipping Point
  • The Toiletpaper Entreprenuer
  • What They Still Don't Teach you at Harvard Business School;
  • Guerrilla Marketing
  • Marketing for Dummies

  etc. 

  Now make an appointment with your local Small Business Development Center.  It's a part of the SBA & they will give you free advice / counselng & help you write a Business Plan and a Marketing Plan.  You can't write either or know whether your day care will be profitable or even where to locate it until you do your market research to find out how much competition is in the area, what your fixed costs will be, how you will market your business & what will make you different from all the other daycares in the area. 

  You should also make an appointment to talk to people from SCORE.org another great source of free advice.  Find out if your state's department of labor offers any classes about owing / operating a small business.  Also see if there are any WBCs in your area.  Groups like NAWBO & Ladies Who Launch may also be able to help you but they have membership fees. 

   Talk to a good accountant, lawyer & insurance broker about all the technical stuff you may need; should you incorporate or be an LLC? what are the tax advantages? how do you pay quarterly taxes?  what kinds of insurance do you need -- CGL, workers' comp, E&O? what are employees vs independent contractors? etc. 

  Most (> 75%) of small businesses fail in the 1st year because the owners didn't do the proper advanced planning. 

  Good luck.

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• notyetthere89 member

  

  March 2013

  IMO, Daycare isn't a good money making scheme. There is too much to pay for to make it worth while. On the other hand...you could eventually make some money. 

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