Research into opening a soft play centre

[Jaysfinished]

OK i have had my three kids and have visited various soft play centre's and i think i could do it myself....so i am hoping to open indoor adventure play centre/ softplay in Nottingham.

I am right at the start of my venture and would like some help with research.
I would like to hear from anyone who has comments or ideas about what they would like to see in a softplay center.

Things like;
What times would you like it to open and close?

What would you like to see in the cafe?

How much would you expect to pay and for how long?

How would you like to see the ages segregated?

thanks ladies , i know you will come up with the goods!

we go to a few different ones, chilly kiddies, scallywags, cheeky chimps, go kids go and roaries.

chilly kiddies is in stourbridge, roaries is in telford.

the new scallywags at merry hill is going to be cheap. toddler sessions are £1.50 and an extra 50p for additional children.

wow nappyaddict, you have thought it through, maybe you should be setting one up too !

will post more later, baby needs a feed!

i think open at 9am so when older ones have been dropped off at school you could go straight there.

I would expect basic (but nice) food in the cafe, not too much hot stuff would keep waiting times down. For children a lunch box type thing as they dont tend to eat it there and eat on way home etcc. I hate queing in these places so would prefer to pay for expensive unlimited cup for coffee/tea etc.. and be able to use an area/machine (but not a cheep one) myself. Also same with kids drinks (dilute juice)expensive first cup of juice then unlimited refils.

I think people should get unlimited play in off peak times but in peak times about 2 hours would be good.

For older children the usual slides etc.. but i think there is never enough for the under 4's in these things. If there were more for this age group buisness would not be limited to after school and weekends. In this area i would like to see more car type things with track/road, kitchen area for pretend play etc no ball pool as they are always full of wee. For babies some bouncy chairs and mats with mobiles would be good.

I am always put off the ones in dingey warehouses with no natural light. The one i mostly go to has skylights so lots of natural light flooding in.

i went and did some 'research' at one softplay, today, it had skylights. I totally agree!

I see Rugrats (Banbury) has been mentioned a couple of times - I remember the owner doing street research on it long before opening it!

It is an amazing place to visit, but it is hideously expensive (£3.95 from 7 months of age). There is no reduction for siblings/multiple children (I'm a childminder) - but there is no shortage of customers. It is restricted to under 8s only, which means that it is a good place to visit with young children even in the school holidays.

There are so many good points about it too numerous to mention, but the owner (and it's not me!) has put a lot of thought and planning into it (parties, themed mornings, lovely staff, things to do other than climb!)

A new soft play has opened up near me, it is normally £2.50 but just £2.00 weekday mornings for those with pre-school children, i think thats a very good idea.

There are 2 areas for small/big children. The toilets are specially designed for young children to use themselves which is a really good idea.

The cafe food isnt the cheapest but not the dearest either, you have to get the balence just right.

Also lastly they do loyalty cards, so after 9 visits you get the 10th for free.

Good luck, id love to start one up

i think you can get a lot of money out of the party side of things. some do circus skill parties with a clown, balloon modelling and face painting, arts and crafts parties and cookery parties which are a bit different to your average soft play party. my cousin went to one where there was an animal person with skunks, meerkats, owls, snakes, spiders, hedgehogs, parrots etc. also my friend's little boy went to one where they made personalised teddy bear's and t-shirts and then had a teddy bear's picnic. i'm sure lots of little girls would love a princess party - but i'm not sure if the boys would be very impressed. maybe you could combine it with something a bit more boy friendly? we got to one which lets you hire out the whole centre for the day aswell if you want.

we went to ours this morning and found out they are just starting a morning session of messy play - so sand, jelly and water, pasta etc. sounds great - means i won't have to do the clearing up afterwards!

they are also starting trampolining lessons, a baby massage course and language classes in french and spanish. i'm thinking of signing ds up for the spanish ones.

ours also sometimes has book fairs and sometimes has different companies coming in to try and sell stuff. usually those home-sellers that do phoenix cards, usborne books, children's clothes etc.

there was something i forgot in the essential list too. a microwave for baby food and bottle warmer is fab so you don't have to wait in the queue to get it warmed up with a hungry, screaming baby.

also have lots of tables of 2 that you can push together if you need a bigger table. when our soft play is busy you can never get a table but there's always say 1 parent taking up a table for 4 or sometimes bigger while their kids are off playing.

shoshe is it three kids for a fiver even in peak times for childminders? ie school holidays/weekends/after school etc.

just looked at one near where we are going for half term and it has an outdoor area with "climbing frame, paddling pool, mega-sized sand pit, play houses, toddlers' cars... and more !

There's plenty of grass, picnic tables and deck chairs too, so bring along a picnic or choose from our full cafe menu."

you guys have helped SOOO much with your replies, i am so grateful you have taken the time to write all these things down, thanks once again,

• oh but don't stop the suggestions should you think of anything else!!!

Jay

PS when i am open, i will have a MN open day!!

have you got a venue yet?

no, no venue, i think thats going to be the thing that take a bit of time....i am on mailinglists and have spoken to some commercial agents...just have to wait and see!

Your biggest hurdle is finding a premises. I found a suitable warehouse for one I was thinking of opening only to find that I was the 18th person to enquire about it for use as a soft play and that the landlord didn't want it to be used for anything other than industrial anyway.

Speak to your local council planning department to see if they have any advise on what to look for. And also find out if the council have a business premises finding service.

Good luck!

Have a policy for clearing up vomit. I went to a newly opened soft play centre. A child with a vomiting bug (I heard her mum say she had one) was sick in the cafe. The mum cleared up the sick with a bucket of water. The bucket was taken into the cafe kitchen (i.e. where the food was being prepared). The sick child was then carried into the cafe kitchen by a member of staff (I have no idea why). I was horrified I left immediately and never went back.

euwww mumtoben... i think that goes without saying....

cleanliness is godliness.....

I live near Flint and a large one has just stopped trading too much local competition, I guess, particularly as its right by the leisure center - which is really cheap and has a similar thing. The reason I mention it is they did have some good kit and I don't know if theres any chance of purchasing it from them.

It was called Funny Bones.

Just a thought I know set up costs are really high.

I recently went to somewhere that I considered to be the play area to top all play areas it was called Folly Farm in South Wales. They have a web site. Low admission, offered off peak season tickets i think, but made on all the drinks, food and stuff. I don't usually buy in places and take my own (tight budget) but did there because it wasn't rip off prices.

Must mention cleaning - it should go without saying but i've been to two places where it definitely hasn't.

Best of luck

I used to go to one that rented a room in a primary school.It had 2 sets of gates,and seats were all round the edge so you could sit and talk but were looking straight ahead at your child who was only 3-8 ft away.There was a ball pall at one end all enclosed and lots of soft play equipment ,freestanding.There was a shelf behind the seats to put your coffee so it was safe.Age range was 0-5 yrs as there were baby walkers and bouncy chairs,they had sessions for 3-5yrs that started later at say 10.30-12.30pm,and on alternate days this was the early session,maybe 9.15am-11.00am.It was in use all day during term-time and holidays,but never seemed too packed.I have never been to one as good as this since,as it was run by mums,and not kids.