Dance your way to franchise

A company known for enhancing the creative side of the young minds and bodies through its movement, music and creative dance programs is Kinderdance.In an interview, Kirthana Ramarapu, Master Franchise Owner, KinderdanceInternational, India shares the future plans of her company.

Ramanjit Kaur (RK): Shed some light on the inception of Kinderdance International in India? Also, tell us about the kind of arrangement with which the brand has entered India?

Kirthana Ramarapu (KR): Kinderdance was introduced to India in April 2009 through Learning Parachute India Pvt. Ltd (LPIPL) who has been assigned the Master Franchise Ownership for India. When I moved back to India from USA with my two kids, I and one of my friends realised that there was nothing for the kids of two to five years of age. My love for education and passion for dance miraculously coincided with the Founder and President, Carol Kay Harsell who motivated me to perceive and explore this passion of mine to work with kids. This is how I started my own business as I was impressed with the Kinderdance concept.

RK: What is Kinderdance International all about? What kind of products and services it offers?

KR: Kinderdance programs blend educational concepts with various forms of movement, dance, and gymnastics. The program helps in developing gross motor skills, movement creativity, fitness, and body awareness. Each class is taught using lesson plans which incorporate original and traditional age-appropriate music and songs. We also place special emphasis on building social-skills, self confidence, and self-esteem and address obesity in young children.

RK: What inspired Kinderdance International to take the franchise route to expand its presence in India?

KR: We started its franchising in India in April 2010 to promote this fresh and unique concept to prepare children to enter the mainstream educational system both physically, mentally, emotionally and cognitively.

RK: What practices and initiatives have you introduced in Kinderdance International?

KR: We are the first in the history of Kinderdance International worldwide to introduce our programs as a part of the School curriculum successfully. Besides this, we promote a ‘Teacher Turn Entrepreneur’ model for our employees’ flexi hours in order to help maintain a balance in the work and family for women.

RK: What will be the eligibility criteria for selecting the franchisees of your company?

KR: Our motto in the world of franchising is to take control of your life and make a positive difference in the lives of young children in your area by becoming a Kinderdance franchisee. All we need in our franchisees is to have good communication skills in English language, and have a passion to work with kids.

RK: What kind of training and support will a franchisee gets after partnering with your company?

KR: The complete Kinderdance franchise training is provided to our franchisees which include book keeping, marketing, hiring and training along with Kinderdance program training. A hand held support for getting started and on-going support in the areas of marketing, advertising, management, training and so on.

At our franchisee training course, we teach our franchisees not only how to use our programs, but also why these programs work so well with children. Training begins with a comprehensive six – day course supervised and delivered by a Kinderdance Trained and US Certified Trainer at our India corporate headquarters in Bengaluru. The course includes classroom sessions; video instructions; individual meetings; on –site marketing and dance and motor development fitness education visit.

RK: How many franchised outlets do you presently have in India? What are your target locations to expand Kinderdance International in India?

KR: Currently, we run many company owned centres in Bengaluru in the form of after school and part of curriculum in schools. We have four franchisees in Pune, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chennai. Now, we are looking at expanding in major cities such as Mumbai and Chennai, Delhi, Punjab, Goa, Chandigarh, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad and so on.