We love welcoming new franchisees into the Pyjama Drama family, and this week we have welcomed the lovely Lynsey Bowen-Carpenter who is buying an established franchise in Runnmede & Woking - and we know she is going to be brilliant!

Every single one of our franchisees is different...

All businesses face challenges from time to time, and this can feel particularly difficult when you're running your business as a sole trader, as most of our franchisees are. That's why having the support of a franchise network is so helpful and can make all the difference to ultimate business success.

In a recent survey of our UK franchisees, nearly 80% responded that they were either "satisfied" or "very satisfied" with their income. This a great result, but what's more important to us is that we know the reasons why the few who are not satisfied, are in that bracket. For example, one franchisee has a young baby, and one has made a personal decision which leaves her with very little time to run the business. Franchisee satisfaction is incredibly important to us - that's why we don't shy away from asking important questions.

As the year draws to a close, I'm taking a moment to reflect on what a fantastic year it has been for Pyjama Drama, both Head Office, and our franchisees. If you're someone who might be considering joining us as a franchisee, I hope it gives you an insight into the innovative, passionate and dedicated team you would be joining!

When new franchisees start, marketing their new business is normally the thing they're most worried about. I always tell them, 'We're not marketing experts, but we ARE marketing Pyjama Drama experts!' We know that if they follow the model we suggest, they will grow a financially viable business. Ultimately, marketing a franchised business isn't rocket science; after all, you're buying into a proven business model. Your franchisor knows exactly how to market the business, and so long as the training is comprehensive and the ongoing support is there, you should have no difficulties at all securing work.

Over the summer, we asked our franchisees two questions:

1.) How satisfied are you with your work/life balance?

2.) How satisfied are you with the financial rewards of running your business?

How did they answer?

We all love winning new business but there's something special about those who were around when you very first started. Park Lane Nursery in Welshpool was the very first setting I taught in, over 15 years ago, and they still have a Pyjama Drama class every single week!

Quick quiz for you - if you answer, 'yes' to the following, you're most likely perfectly suited to being a Pyjama Drama franchisee...

Not all adults who work with children know how to play – do you agree? I believe that just as every child knows how to play, every adult (given that they too were once a child!) also knows. But, in part because the word ‘play’ is associated with children, all too often play breaks down because adults feel self-conscious, particularly when asked to engage children in imaginative play (which by its nature, dictates that we throw off our adult persona completely).

Yesterday, I decided to do the job of a franchisee as an experiment. I set myself the challenge of calling nurseries to 'sell' Pyjama Drama - the single thing franchisees say they dread most!