Romp n' Roll Franchise Blog

Building a Business that Fits a Community Need

Building a Business that Fits a Community Need

Sep 15th, 2016

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When you look around your community, what types of businesses stand out? A better question may be: Do most of the local companies solve a fundamental need for those in and around your area?

With increasing frequency, there’s a need for businesses to embrace a purpose-driven approach to operations. In franchising, the demand is even greater to put a business concept in place that meets a community’s need. This reflects a fundamental idea and initiative that separates Romp n’ Roll from many other brands.

As you consider your pathway to entrepreneurship, you have to carefully think about what your ultimate goal as a business owner is.

What Kind of Entrepreneur Are You?

Many times, the dividing line between businesses is non-profit and for-profit. However, it’s not always as black and white as that. There’s a growing list of for-profit business owners that value a purpose above annual profits. Inc. Magazine divided entrepreneurs into two primary types:

  • People who want to get rich
  • Individuals who want to use their accumulated wealth to fulfill a social need or enact change

There’s a stark contrast between these two sorts of people, both in the way they approach establishing their business and the outcomes they will eventually see.

According to Harvard Business Review, businesses that have a clear purpose and operate a concept that delivers on that goal are able to perform at a higher level than companies that lack a focus. In fact, 80 percent of business leaders don’t have a strong sense of their own purpose in their professional lives.

Where Do You Find Your Purpose?

Many prospective business owners look around at their local communities and may find it difficult to clearly identify what unique solution their business supplies or what needs it fulfills. For instance, there are several restaurant concepts for the same kinds of food, which can make the dividing line between these restaurants blurry. As a result, they have to differentiate themselves based on cost or possibly customer experience. Even so, it’s still a challenge to demonstrate the obvious need this type of business fulfills for the community.

A kid’s gym like Romp n’ Roll commonly provides a solution for many people in their local communities. As an article for Entrepreneur suggested, your goal should be to provide a must-have service or product, not simply something that’s “nice to have.”

Romp n’ Roll franchisees look around at their local community and see there’s a major deficiency in high-quality educational classes geared specifically toward babies, toddlers and preschoolers. Most other facilities focus on a very broad age range, which ultimately means their services are less extensive and more general.

What Sets Romp n’ Roll Apart?

By focusing on a niche market, Romp n’ Roll is able to become the recognized experts in the realm of early childhood development and consistently deliver experiences that create meaningful and lasting relationships with community members.

The purpose is very clear: Build a business that enables parents to foster the growth of their children in an environment and a facility that meets their specific needs. This approach not only galvanizes the community around the business but the staff as well.


Michael Barnett

Michael Barnett is the Co-Founder and CEO of Romp n' Roll. In addition to leading the Romp n' Roll management team, Michael is an active member of the International Franchise Association, the National Association for the Education of Young Children, and serves on the Board of Directors for Connor's Heroes and Juniata College Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership. He and his wife, Babz, were featured on the first season of ABC-TV's Shark Tank.