Introduction
Target Market
Blessed Palms Daycare Center seeks to establish itself as the go-to solution provider for employed parents seeking a safe place where they can leave their toddlers pursue their professional goals, in Florida. The parents targeted by Blessed Palms are typically between the ages of 25 and 40 years. They include those who are just beginning to settle in their careers as well as those who have matured and are holding executive positions which require frequent travels.
Competitor Analysis
Florida has several day care facilities including Alaqua Lakes KinderCare and Kid City. These daycares have incorporated preschools running hand in hand with the other programs. They are also licensed and they have been in operation for some time. Kid City USA, for instance, is well established with several branches including Apopka, Wekiva Springs, Oviedo, Sanford, and Douglas Avenue among others. They are averagely rated on Yelp; most of them have below 3 star-ratings. However, they are all concentrated in the heart of Orlando, Florida and places including Leesburg, Ocala, and Brooksville, among others do not have daycares.
Business Development Goals and Competitive Advantage
Blessed Palms Daycare seeks to expand and go to the un-entered areas Leesburg, Ocala, and Brooksville among others. These areas have working populations which may desire the services but may not be able to take their toddlers to the far flung facilities (Grand View Research, 2022). Also, Blessed Hands Daycare will offer competitive pricing and flexible payment options for its clients. Another strategy that Blessed Palms Daycare will exploit will be the use of social media to advertise its services.
Management Team
For Blessed Palms Day Care Center to succeed, it will require a board of directors, center director and assistant director, lead teachers and assistant teachers. It will also require teacher’s aides, a secretary, accountants and human resource managers, maintenance workers and transportation staff as shown in figure 1.
Board of Directors
The board of directors will be the governing arm of the Blessed Palms Day Care Center. It will be responsible for establishing and enforcing the policies of the day care. It will also provide oversight of all the functions of Blessed Palms day care including financial, regulatory, and hiring. The board will also supervise the day care director and it will be made up of the directors who are the shareholders of the day care.
Director and Assistant Director
These personnel will be responsible for the day to day management and supervision of the day care center.
Lead Teachers
Every age group of children will have a lead teacher who will be responsible for developing and implementing a planned schedule of their age-appropriate activities. There will be lead teachers for the following categories: under one year, between one years and two years, between two years and three years, between three years and four years, and above four years.
Assistant Teachers
These teachers will be implementing the activities for the different age groups on a day to day basis. They will be assigned their duties by the lead teachers.
Teacher’s Aides
These personnel will be responsible for helping the teachers as they implement the day to day activities. They will be assigned work by the assistant teachers and will be responsible for undertaking any duties that the assistant teachers may not be able to accomplish as they teach like calming babies, feeding them, cleaning them, and putting them to sleep.
Secretary
The secretary will be responsible for official correspondence, and will assist the director and assistant director in executing their duties. They will be at hand to receive queries through electronic means and face to face meetings.
Accountants and human resource manager
The accountant will help in managing the finances of the company through keeping robust accounting records. The human resource manager will ensure that all necessary staffing needs are fulfilled according to the company’s policies.
Maintenance Workers
These personnel will ensure the premise is clean and habitable.
Transportation Staff
The transport manager will ensure that all transport arrangements are made accordingly. The drivers will assist in driving the different buses and minivans to their respective destinations to facilitate the movement of staff and day care children
Marketing/Customer Care Team
This team will comprise marketers, advertisers, and customer care personnel. They will develop and implement the day care’s marketing and customer care plans.
Operations Plan
Blessed Palms Day Care Centre aims at being the daycare of choice in Florida with a reputation for adherence to safety protocols, offering excellent facilities for toddlers. To achieve this, the board and the various departments will work in concert to ensure all the company objectives are achieved. Since it has not started operating, the operations plan will involve the steps taken leading to the launch of the business and the celebration of its first anniversary. The goal is to get at least 100 clients by the end the first year and maintain them through the second year. The details are as shown on Table 1 below.
Growth Plan
Opportunities
At the moment, there is an increasing demand for day care facilities as most young couples are engaging in employment. This trend is expected to increase in the near future, in Florida. It offers Blessed Palms day care an opportunity for growth. In order to grow, Blessed Palms Day Care has set a growth plan for the first two years. The main goal, in the first two years, will be to set up the desired facility according to the provided operational plan and fill it with at least 100 regular clients.
Marketing Plan
A marketing team comprising advertising and marketing experts as well as customer care personnel will be hired. They will develop marketing and customer care strategies and convert the potential customers into clients. The business will lean more towards digital marketing which entails the use of social media and mailing services. The social media platforms are great networking places where most of the targeted customers spend most of their time. Also, the digital platforms are relatively cheaper and faster than other forms of advertising. The major platforms targeted are Google Search Engines (SEO), WhatsApp Messenger for Business, Facebook, and Telegram. The company will have a sponsored page with scheduled posts on Facebook. It will also join different communities through its WhatsApp Messenger for Business.
Financial Plan
The initial capital will be obtained from the directors of the business. They have each committed to contribute $2000000 to help in setting up the center, giving a total of $10000000 seed money for the venture. Once the business starts, it will form partnerships with banks to obtain a commendable credit score which will qualify it to get loans for future operations and expansions. A comprehensive budget for the first two years is presented on Table 1 below.
Estimated Revenue and Break Even period
Working with an assumption of a minimum of 100 clients, the daycare hopes to charge $5000 per client per month. In two years, total revenue will be $12000000 sufficient to cover all the operational costs. The initial capital is $6,190,000, therefore, it is expected that Blessed Palms Daycare will breakeven in two years’ time.
Table 1 Operational Plans.
Total Budget: $6,190,000.
Reference
Grand View Research. (2022). U.S. Child Care Market Size, Share & Growth Report. Web.