With workers expected to head back into the physical office, and with the continued necessity of dual incomes for most millennial-aged family households, there is an increasing need in the country for day care providers. National child care center brands are consequently revving up expansion plans, especially targeting mid- to higher end suburban metros that are experiencing rapid population growth, notably mid-sized cities with a growing tech center. Ideal retail space includes standalone pads and end caps of strip centers and power centers near single-family homes and elementary schools, as well as ground-floor office spaces in metro business parks. Units in new development projects, including malls that are undergoing mixed-use redevelopment, also appeal to these early childhood center brands.
Landlords are keen to lease their larger spaces, in the 10,000- to 15,000-s.f. range, to notable child care tenants, as these brands guarantee a high volume of parent drop off/pick up customers five days a week during off-peak hours, boosting foot traffic for the other co-tenants. As early childhood education facilities are facing increased political scrutiny with regards to curriculum and teaching methods, well-branded nationally known establishments with a great reputation will be sought after by discerning parents. Look for The Learning Experience, Kiddie Academy, The Goddard School, Primrose Schools and Children of America to all be focused on major U.S. expansion in the coming years.
The Learning Experience has lofty goals of opening between 75 and 100 new units per year over the next two years in areas underserved with day care facilities, especially in new states for the brand such as Alabama, Nebraska and Idaho. Continued growth will occur in the suburbs of Florida, Georgia, California, New York, Texas, Virginia, Oklahoma and Ohio. The Learning Experience seeks turnkey built-to-suit space that is about 10,000 s.f., with an outdoor playground area of 5,000 s.f., in either freestanding buildings or outparcels (on a lot up to five acres), as well as end caps in affluent power centers. Ideal co-tenants include higher-end grocers, such as Whole Foods Market and Sprouts Farmers Market.
Preferred areas should have high-traffic counts and a population of 75,000, with 5,000 children under the age of six within a five-mile parameter of a potential site. The average household income in a potential area should be at least $75K. The Learning Experience focuses on allowing children, up to kindergarten age, to develop themselves intellectually, socially and cognitively through hands-on interactive play and through vibrant elements such as bright interior colors.
Kiddie Academy is on track to open between 30 and 40 new units per year over the next three years. Growth will be concentrated in areas experiencing strong population increases, especially within California, Colorado, Texas, Virginia, New Jersey, Connecticut and Maryland. New territories the brand is especially eyeing for franchise expansion include Sacramento, Calif., Phoenix and Tucson, Ariz., Salt Lake City, Oklahoma City, Austin, Memphis, Tenn., Cleveland, Detroit, Milwaukee and Madison, Wisc. Sites should be near elementary schools and along major commuter routes with strong daytime populations.
Space to be either leased or purchased should be in the 8,000- to 13,000-s.f. range, with at least 2,500 s.f. for an outdoor play area, in either freestanding buildings (with a .75 to two-acre lot size), inline or end cap spaces in grocery-anchored power centers, as well as the ground floor of offices. Ideal co-tenants include convenient-errand brands, such as CVS Pharmacy and Albertsons. Kiddie Academy incorporates character development, STEM-infused technology and health and fitness into its curriculums for children up to kindergarten age.
The Goddard School is on track to open approximately 25 to 30 new franchise units per year over the next two to three years. All regions in the U.S. are being targeted, especially Texas and the West Coast markets, notably Southern California. Future regions expected to be eyed for growth include the metros of Boise, Idaho, Salt Lake City, Omaha, Neb., Des Moines and Louisville, Ky.
Seeking spaces in both suburban and urban locales, The Goddard School centers on buildings approximately 10,000 s.f. (on a minimum one-acre lot for standalone pads), including space for a playground area. For office building sites, space should be primarily on the ground floor. Retail pad sites near single-family homes and elementary schools are preferred.
The Goddard School is especially open to spaces in new mixed-use development projects, such as its unit expected to open later this year at the Regency Square mall redevelopment in Richmond, Va., in which the brand will overtake the former 12,000-s.f. New York & Co. unit on the second level. The mall redevelopment will include 320-unit luxury apartments, developed by Thalhimer Realty Partners and Rebkee, and that will take over a former Sears store.
The Goddard School will also occupy 9,962 s.f. of plaza level building space of the Seymour Redevelopment, a mixed-use project in Montclair, N.J., developed by Brookfield Properties and Ironstate Development Co., which will also house 200 luxury apartments. The Goddard School, with 574 franchises in 38 states, is an early childhood education brand focused on the social-emotional development of children up to kindergarten age.
Primrose Schools looks to open approximately 25 new units per year over the next two years. The child care brand is targeting units to lease or purchase in the urban and suburban metros of Phoenix, Boise, Boston, Chicago, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Nashville, Tenn., Austin, New York City, and regions in New Jersey within 30 miles of NYC. Western markets, including California’s Silicon Valley and Reno, Nev., as well as the larger metros of both Oregon and Washington, will also be zeroed in on. For its urban locations, Primrose Schools seeks space between 10,000 and 15,000 s.f., with a 5,000- to 6,000-s.f. outdoor play area, in the first and second floor of office buildings near hospitals, colleges and mid- to upper income residences, with a population of 1,500 children under the age of four within a two-mile radius.
For its suburban locations, Primrose prefers standalone buildings, such as former sporting gym spaces, in middle- to upper-income residential areas for its conversions, in the 8,000- to 10,000-s.f. range, with ample parking, and a population of 2,000 children under the age of four within a two-mile radius. Primrose Schools has a reputation for providing a balanced approach to education, offering a mix of intellectual, creative, physical and emotional learning for children up to the kindergarten level.
Children of America, expecting to open between 10 and 15 corporate-owned new units per year over the next two years, is seeking space in growing suburban middle-class markets, and is currently scouting out sites in new states for the brand such as Colorado, Nevada, Tennessee and Arizona. The child care center is also looking to grow in Texas and South Carolina, while continuing its expansion along the East Coast, notably New York and North Carolina, as well as within Indiana, Illinois and Ohio. The brand is interested in freestanding buildings and end caps in neighborhood strip malls near QSR co-tenants such as Subway, but will consider inline units.
Space should be on one to 1.5 acres, in the 8,500- to 13,000-s.f. range, including two-story structures, with an additional 5,000 s.f. for an outdoor play area. There should be at least 20 parking spaces available, and a minimum of 3,000 children under the age of four in a three-mile radius. Family-friendly neighborhoods with an average household income of at least $85K are preferred. Children of America is especially interested in working with developers to be a part of new build projects. The brand is renowned for its preschool and kindergarten programs that encourage flexible options for children to make their own choices for learning.
