3 franchise brands redefining relaxation
By Stefanie Ucci
In our busy lives, finding time to unwind can feel like a luxury. But the good news is, there’s a new wave of franchise brands making it easier to take a break, whether it’s by offering a home away from home, a hassle-free ride, or even just entertainment for kids. Here, Franchise Canada highlights three standout brands redefining travel and leisure. They each offer a unique opportunity to provide a little bit of rest and relaxation—they’re also creating opportunities to bring some much-needed joy to your business life, too. Read on to discover the brands making it all possible.
Bricks 4 Kidz
Bring back the nostalgia of childhood with Bricks 4 Kidz, an edutainment franchise that helps children develop essential STEM skills while having fun playing with LEGO® bricks. This brand bridges the gap between education and entertainment, with programs that are designed to make learning engaging and enjoyable. Through hands-on play, children can absorb STEM concepts while fostering their imagination and creating a sense of accomplishment in their creations.
“Bricks 4 Kidz combines the universal appeal of LEGO® bricks with a structured curriculum rooted in STEM education,” says Nishant Verma, Bricks 4 Kidz’s director of franchise development. “Its programs not only entertain but also educate, teaching children skills like problem-solving, teamwork, and engineering concepts. Parents are happy because they know their kids are away from screens and learning principles of STEM, while the kids are happy because they’re playing with the most reputable toy of all time.”
Verma says he was excited to join Bricks 4 Kidz because it presented an opportunity to develop a career that has a meaningful impact on young minds. “Seeing the difference we make in fostering children’s curiosity and critical thinking truly resonated with me.”
Bricks 4 Kidz is offering single-unit, multi-unit, and master franchise opportunities. Franchise owners can benefit from more than 20 streams of revenue, like school STEAM labs, pre-school, after-school programs, field trips, birthday parties, “Kidz Night Out”, summer camps, robotics, coding, video game designs, movie making, drone coding, and more.
As for the ideal franchisee, no specific educational background is required but a passion for the brand purpose is a must. They should also have strong organizational and communication skills, a desire to positively impact their community, and an entrepreneurial mindset.
So, what makes this such a standout brand? Well, they do everything in-house! Bricks 4 Kidz has a proprietary curriculum and technology, as well as educators and a marketing team to support their franchisees. “Our teams are in different time zones, as we are a global franchise, so this ensures 24/7 support. We are always innovating as our in-house R&D team is at work to stay relevant and create new curriculums based on changing needs,” says Verma.
His advice for those considering investing in a Bricks 4 Kidz franchise is to embrace the mission wholeheartedly. “Passion for education, the drive to inspire children, and a commitment to shaping tomorrow’s innovators—while actively engaging with parents and schools—are essential for success.” And a passion for building LEGO® would help, too!
Choice Hotels Canada
Whether you’ve spent a night at a Comfort hotel, a weekend at a Quality property, or a week at a boutique Ascend Hotel Collection locale, there’s one thing these hotel brands have in common: its parent company, Choice Hotels Canada!
With more than 7,500 hotel locations worldwide, and found in more than 200 markets across Canada, Choice Hotels is an exceptional “choice” for those interested in joining the hotel sector of the franchise industry.
“I think what makes us stand out the most is the fact that we are a Canadian entity, with a full team and boots on the ground across the country in all functional areas, from marketing, sales, revenue management, operational support, and more,” says Brian Leon, CEO of Choice Hotels Canada.
He explains that its franchisees come from a variety of backgrounds and experiences—it’s what makes this business so interesting! “There’s no one particular type of franchisee that’s drawn to the hotel industry. We see our diversity as a strength, as we can adapt our service model to all different types of ownership structures. Our system ranges from multi-unit corporate owners to new business owners who are first-time hotel owners, and everything in between.” He adds that the brand is seeing newer franchisees join who have experience in other franchise models, like fast food. “I believe the hotel franchise space provides the opportunity to build levels of equity and wealth that I’ve not seen in other franchise businesses.”
What are the benefits of joining this system? Well, it starts with business delivery via a central reservation system, which is responsible for a large portion of hotel revenue. There’s also the Choice Privileges loyalty program that attracts and retains business. Plus, Choice University offers an exceptional training platform for new business owners. Additional support includes operations, platforms, and resources designed specifically to create an easier-to-implement way for franchisees to run their businesses. “One of the things we’re very focused on is always having the strongest possible value proposition for our franchisees,” says Leon.
At the end of the day, there are innumerable franchise opportunities across the country and worldwide. So, how does one find the perfect brand for them? “It’s important to recognize not all businesses and franchise systems are created equal,” explains Leon. “I’m a huge believer in what a strong franchisor can bring to a business, but that doesn’t mean it’s true in all cases. So, being diligent about doing your research is the best advice I could give.” Don’t sleep on that advice!
Driverseat
Picture this: you’re gearing up for an exciting vacation getaway with your family, the bags are all packed, and the kids are excited as can be. There’s just one more item on your checklist—you need a ride to the airport!
With lots of people and luggage in tow, Driverseat is your one-stop shop for private and customizable shuttle solutions to get you from point A to B in peaceful ease. When travel plans get hectic, Driverseat is there to provide a comfortable and convenient ride for all types of needs. Driverseat’s services include wedding shuttles, brewery tours, corporate events, and sports games, while their specialized Care+ service provides transportation services for seniors and other vulnerable individuals that require more care. There’s a ride for guests of all ages and needs.
Just take it from CEO and co-founder Luke Bazely. Having been with Driverseat since day one back in 2012, Bazely believes the uniqueness of the brand is what makes it stand out so well as a business opportunity.
“Franchising is a big space and there’s lots of players out there, but we’re the only ones doing what we do,” says Bazely. “We have a really high-scale opportunity, and the upfront investment is quite low.” Driverseat has a wide range of revenue generation opportunities, including travel in high tourism areas, business to business, business to government, and other contract work.
When it comes to what the Driverseat team is looking for in investors, rest assured that anyone can be taught every aspect of running the business. “The key for us is to look for core values alignment—people who are aligned with the vision of the company. So, we’re looking for a cultural fit first and foremost, rather than experience or education,” explains Bazely.
He adds that he doesn’t measure the success of the system by the number of franchise locations or units open but by KPIs, including whether it’s meeting system revenue goals to achieve a nine-year target. If they can achieve those revenue goals, regardless of the number of units, that’s more important. He also takes customer and franchisee satisfaction into consideration of the brand’s overall success. So, if there are fewer Driverseat franchisees but they’re building much bigger businesses and are happy with their performance, then that’s more indicative of success. The brand exemplifies the ethos of quality over quantity.
Bazely’s ultimate advice is to really understand your “why”; that is, why you want to be in business. From there, you can then recognize how well you fit within a specific franchise system. “The actual work is not really what makes people successful or not—it’s about whether they align with the goals of a franchise, and if the goals align with what their own ‘why’ is,” he advises.
