New venture help, business in a soft play area?

[Lemmonie]

Hi. I have had a very informal chat with the owner of a kids soft play area who has a rather large open space which is currently unused. She is keen to have me in there offering nail, wax and tan treatments but I have some worries.

How do i arrange partitioning, has anyone here brought any and how easy/cheap/expensive is it?

Has anyone ran a business from a soft play area?

How would i arrange payement, flat fee, commision?

Apart from advising my insurance anything else i should consider?

thanks in advance

 

[Martin Duffy]

It's probably the ideal place for busy mothers to have these kind of quick maintanance treatments - I reckon it could be a real winner! The insurance will probably be the hardest thing re. safety of children in the vicinity, and I suspect a lot of it will come down to how it is partitioned. I would have thought straight-forward studwork & plasterboard would be best, which is fairly cheap & easy to put up (we managed it ourselves).

 

[Lemmonie]

Thanks for your words of support. I really want to make it work and my only massive worry is making money!

I have two kids under three and with no family to help it i need to not only cover initial outlay costs and rent but also childcare at nearly £10 per hour!!

The foyer area is well seperated from the kiddies so no worries there. I wouldnt do acrylics i must admit as the smell would be too much despite the 20ft ceilings! Just waxing, mani's, pedi's and spray tans.

Im excited and nervous in equal measures that are nearly cancelling each other out and leaving me headed for a sleepless night!

 

[Martin Duffy]

I honestly think it would be ideal for the kind of services you are offering. If you're unsure it might be worth doing a bit of research - go there & see how busy they get at different times of day & ask people if they have or are interested in treatments, and which ones.

It's always a nerve-racking decision, I was terrified, but now I wish I had done it sooner!

 

[Lemmonie]

I had thought of that too. Im going to knock up some kind of questionaire and ask the girls on reception to hand them out and then gather up end of the week and take a look.
Also going to se if i can get the mums to fill out their email address on the forms if they are interested then i can send details of opening etc. That way if it dosnt go ahead I still have a list of potential new customers for the home salon!!

 

[Martin Duffy]

That's good thinking! I use e-mail all the time, I send newsletters every 2 months, which always reaps a good harvest!

 

[bombini]

There used to be a similar set up to what you have described near where I work.

I know the therapist rented a room within the kids play barn and used to get quite a lot of waxing business but I heard that the more relaxing treatments like facials, massage etc didn't take off but as you aren't doing them it shouldn't be a problem for you.

I don't know overall how busy she was and I think the only reason she stopped doing it was because the childrens centre itself closed down.

Sorry I can't be more help but wanted to let you know that it is possible to do

 

[Cathie!]

There's a hair and beauty/nail salon near me which offers childcare facilities while the mums are pampered....it seems to be doing well. I would imagine the mum would need a friend with her to watch the child/ren while she was having her treatments done if it wasn't a proper creche facility.

Sounds like a great idea though, plenty of potential customers.

 

[YSL]

As a new Dad myself I think this is a great idea. Have you thought about advertising through the local NCT magazine as well?

I would chat the idea through with your proposed PI insurer too- insurers have a great way of finding problems and it is better to address their concerns now.

With regards payment I would think about some sort of licence arrangement- you take all the fees and pay a licence fee (a kind of rent) to the owner. Licences do have problems of permanence but this works both ways and gives you flexibility.

 

[Lemmonie]

Thanks everyone.

To YSL I am actually my local NCT's Social Secutary! Th aplay area is also very convientently situated (cant say more that that at mo!) so should be other work to be gained not just from parents.

 

[Zo Zo]

There's a hair and beauty/nail salon near me which offers childcare facilities while the mums are pampered....it seems to be doing well. I would imagine the mum would need a friend with her to watch the child/ren while she was having her treatments done if it wasn't a proper creche facility.

Sounds like a great idea though, plenty of potential customers.

This is a good point. I fear you might get some skanky mums who leave their children unattended in the play area.

 

[carlyfaye24]

sounds like a great idea to me, most of my friends all go together to these things so there would be no problem nipping off for half hour to have waxing etc done!
great for busy mums

 

[Lemmonie]

This is a good point. I fear you might get some skanky mums who leave their children unattended in the play area.

That really made me laugh!! You are probably not wrong but i hope to god you're not!

As a mum to toddlers myself i know most mums go to these things with a friend so you can nip to loo, get a coffee etc. Certainly when i was there yesterday pretty much everyone was with a friend/husband or grandparent.