Letting Off STEAM

Bricks 4 Kidz franchisees are passionate about creative learning through Lego®

Children learn best when their minds are stimulated by curiosity – and if you can combine that curiosity with creativity and fun, you’re really on to a winner. So says Queena Lee, who is franchise manager for Bricks 4 Kidz in New Zealand. The company is an international award-winning educational franchise which uses Lego® bricks to teach children the principles of Science, Technology, Engineering, Art & Maths (STEAM).

Bricks 4 Kidz was brought to New Zealand by Lorraine Yu in 2018 and already has 14 franchisees here, including Jessie Robieson. After 5 years as an intermediate teacher, Jessie knew she loved working with children but didn’t like the paperwork that is such a big part of a teacher’s life these days. She took a new direction, working as a learning innovation specialist at Te Papa Museum of New Zealand for 5 more years. ‘That was a wonderful step for me with great opportunities around project management and leadership. I knew I wanted to stay in education, so I asked myself, “Where do I take my career after this?” That’s when I found out about Bricks 4 Kidz.

‘My research was intense, and I spoke to as many people as I could, knowing it was a huge step out of the comfortable world of teaching. It was scary, but it was a calculated risk; I could see the franchise model was easy to follow and would help me grow as a businessperson. Although I’m only two months into running my own Bricks 4 Kidz business in Wellington, I’m loving it and things are going really well. I haven’t looked back!’

A global success

Established in the United States in 2008, Bricks 4 Kidz is the largest provider of STEAM-based educational enrichment programmes in the world, with franchises in over 46 countries. Classes are designed to be fun and educational, with the aim of teaching critical developmental skills to create future problem solvers and innovators.

As Queena says, ‘Everyone wants a profitable business, and Bricks 4 Kidz delivers on that, but it’s also important to be passionate about what you do – and Bricks 4 Kidz delivers on both counts. This unique franchise offers multiple income streams: after-school programmes, pre-school programmes, holiday programmes, in-school programmes, corporate team-building events, Lego-themed birthday parties, robotics enrichment programmes and even senior citizens programmes.’

From banking to building blocks

While Jessie has a background in education, Auckland-based Mei Koh spent nearly 25 years in the banking industry before seizing redundancy with both hands. ‘I never thought I’d be in banking for so long,’ she laughs, ‘and when the opportunity came I thought, “If I don’t make a change now, I never will”. I thought about a new career in education, robotics or IT, and when I found Bricks 4 Kidz I was thrilled because it covers all of those things with the big bonus of working with younger children.’

Mei says it was the quality of Bricks 4 Kidz that particularly appealed. ‘When I looked at the franchise structure I was very comfortable, and the fact it is successful worldwide gives it even more credibility. With the support of a great franchise, this opportunity has potential for considerable growth.’

Mei began her new life as a business owner in January 2021 and has been impressed at how well the business bounced back each time after the various lockdowns. ‘During lockdown, we couldn’t run classes, which was frustrating, so Bricks 4 Kidz has developed materials to take all programmes online in the event of future disruptions. Now we are getting back to normal, I have doubled my class sizes this term and both holiday programmes are up in numbers, too.’

‘The programme itself still stands as well as it did when I started,’ Mei continues. ‘Lego® is an amazing toy and its design helps draw out children’s creative side from problem-solving to basic maths and much, much more. It is highly versatile and even used by engineers to check basic designs. Getting children collaborating imaginatively through this programme is highly rewarding to me.’

Opportunities for all

Bricks 4 Kidz is looking for people all over the country who are passionate about education and looking to operate a fun and profitable business.

‘Because the exclusive Bricks 4 Kidz Lego® Technic project kits are easily transportable, franchisees start immediately by operating in venues such as schools, kindergartens, community centres, libraries, youth centres and business premises,’ says Queena. ‘They can then establish a permanent Creativity Centre that can be used for classes, as a birthday party venue and for children’s entertainment events.’ Investment starts from $60,000 +gst.

‘Full training is provided, and there’s ongoing programme development and training, as well as access to operating and marketing systems, and constant back-up from the New Zealand franchise support office.

‘As Mei and Jessie have found, it’s a great chance to channel your energy and enthusiasm into something new,’ says Queena. ‘And you’ll never have another boring day at work. Contact me today to find out more.’

Advertiser Info

Bricks 4 Kidz

www.bricks4kidz.co.nz

Contact Queena Lee

M 021 463 778

qlee@bricks4kidz.com