How to Start Crèche Business in Nigeria
What is crèche business?
In simple terms, crèche business is simply a daycare service or pre-nursery setting or centre where special care is given to kids and children aged one to six. crèche centers or homes are favorites for busy moms with limited time to handle the excesses of childcare while at work or on a vacation.
Creche centres may be recommended as a better alternative to house maids due to the many myths and realities surrounding the latter. Either way, both are all risks. Creche service job is mostly popularized more in the urban areas, due to the vicissitudes of city life. The trend continues to evolve with continuous rural-urban drift.
With this background, it is, therefore, needful to say that given the market potentials (busy mums, rural urban drift, city life etc.), setting up a creche centre would be good business. But is the business very difficult to do?
The answer is no.
To be able to run a successful crèche business, one must possess certain characteristics. These include flexibility and niceness, selflessness and care as well as being service-oriented. It is a time demanding job and needs someone who can pay great attention to details. You must also be very vigilant and watchful.
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Basic Requirements For Smooth Running Of A Creche Business
Obtain Proper Training
No doubt, some people are specially endowed with the gift of childcare. This natural talent makes children feel at home with them, even to the extent of preferring them to their parents.
But that notwithstanding, a diploma or degree certification course in daycare service and parenting is a step ahead of others. There are salient truths you would not discover till you get professionally trained. You can equally get trained informally, do a program online or enroll in a traditional classroom program. Whichever way, get trained. It helps.
Get Good Staffing
The excesses of running a creche business are not and cannot be a one-man show. For business efficiency, you will have to recruit qualified and dedicated staff to assist you in the running of the business. These can come from church, could be close friends or people you get by recommendations. All this is done to get the very best. You can’t be the one picking up the kids, serving snacks, hitting the market, to buy things, and at the same time keeping watch over the children
These workers could specialize in each of these services while you simply supervise and coordinate.
Installation of Facilities/Equipment
You need to provide efficient lighting, playing tools, sports facilities and other educational utilities at your creche. children like to play and have fun.
So, you must have a lot of play items to satisfy their urge and enthusiasm. Categorize the facilities based on age, class and serve them accordingly. Ensure that they are not endangering and that objects like sharp knives, blades, etc. are kept far away from children.
Get a trained electrician to fix the lighting. Get a trained technician to fix th play equipment. This is necessary to prevent the risks of fall, slip, injury and damage. Remember, the better the care, the greater the patronage and reward.
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Pay Attention to Feeding
for growth, strength, and vitality, the kids need to be fed with a good diet. Provide them the proper snacks and rationalize the feeding time. Meals fed must be highly nutritious spicy. Kids fancy colours. As such, colorful snacks would inarguably serve as a useful tool during the learning process.
With this method kids can equally learn about the basic colors while feeding. For snacks with alphabetical lettering, kids can through them learn the letters of the alphabet.
Get Good Security system
Constant security is a must at crèche business center. It is easier to manage the population of children when small but as it gets bigger there is a need for the presence of a security personnel at the centre.
Put everything in place against child trafficking, theft, harm, and injury.
Do Proper Market Survey
Doing proper market survey is necessary for every business. Its importance in creche business cannot, therefore, be overemphasized. Avoid rush and plan for the future. Market survey will help you with information on such things as special children needs, parents/guardians needs, materials and methods, siting, power supply and market availability.
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The Place of Advertisement
unless a business is put out for the public, it may never be cited. The proper way to achieve this is, through effective advertising and marketing. This could be by way of posters, radio jingles talk shows, online adverts, flyers and/or billboard. Take time to survey and employ the most effective marketing and advertising strategy best suited for your budget.
Do Effective Feasibility Study
Proper research and findings, just like the market research discussed above will enable you to ascertain the basis for the business startup, challenges and their solutions. A stick in time, of course, serves nine.
Put Aside Enough Capital
Creche business is somewhat capital intensive. You need money to buy equipment and other facilities, renting a space and hiring of staff. You even need money to register your business name and run adverts. This aspect, I guess should be well spelt-out in your business plan.
Consider Your Business Location/Sitting
Proper creche business goes with a proper venue or business location. This comes with basic government regulations guiding the sitting and running of creches. To say the least, the location must be neat, calm and conducive. Citing your creche close to offices gives an edge as it would be more convenient for the parents to easily check on their wards and pick them up after work.
