A former CEFA student turned franchisee shares the lesson plan on opening an early learning franchise
The student becomes the teacher. After being one of the first students to graduate from early learning franchise CEFA (the acronym stands for Core Education and Fine Arts), Julian Beim is now one of its franchisees. This is less surprising when you learn that the franchise was founded by his mother, Natacha Beim, in 1998. Fast-forward to today and there are more than 40 franchise locations across Canada in B.C., Alberta, and Ontario.
Growing up as a CEFA student, Beim says he could see that it was special. “I was one of the first students to attend CEFA. It’s always been discussed at the dinner table, not just how the business works, but also the importance of the mission and education in general,” says Beim, adding that he was inspired to embrace continuous learning himself—today he speaks three languages, plays musical instruments, and is involved in many sports.
In 2021, Beim decided he wanted to join the franchise, and brought his stepfather Christian on as a partner. Now, the franchise has grown to a full team, and Beim says he was treated like any other applicant, although he needed less training.
Beim’s first task was finding a location, settling on one in Calgary’s northwest Beacon Hill neighbourhood. He then supervised the site renovation, hired faculty, and handled the myriad other elements that went into startup. His stepfather handled the financial aspect, with Beim focused on operations.
The ABCs of franchise success
Two years later, Beim is proud to be running a school offering spots for more than 100 students. “It’s been operating at essentially 100 percent capacity for over a year and a half. At the time, it was the fastest franchise to fill up in all of CEFA,” he says. So, what did Beim do next? He started working on a second location, which opened in the town of Okotoks, Alberta, in September 2024.
As a premium early learning franchise, CEFA provides a proprietary education-based curriculum for children aged one to five years old. Unlike traditional childcare, CEFA’s approach blends structured learning with hands-on exploration, ensuring a strong academic foundation while fostering creativity and emotional growth.
“Our goal is to create an environment that feels like an extension of the family, where children feel safe, supported, and excited to learn,” says Beim.
The curriculum introduces subjects like math, science, literacy, arts, and mindfulness, delivered through ECE-certified and CEFA-trained educators who guide children in both teacher-led instruction and child-led discovery. CEFA’s holistic methodology takes inspiration from established teaching philosophies, including Montessori and Reggio Emilia, while integrating innovative early education practices to nurture curiosity, confidence, and a lifelong love of learning. “We take the best research-based concepts from multiple approaches and refine them into a program that truly prepares children for life,” says Beim.
While Beim knew the routine, having grown up around the business, he says a first timer should be prepared to juggle many moving parts, from the construction process to hiring educators to getting the required licensing. Fortunately, he says CEFA provides comprehensive support at every stage, equipping franchisees with detailed training programs, operational manuals, and expert guidance. From hiring the right educators to designing an engaging learning environment, CEFA offers hands-on assistance with site selection, staff training, and ongoing operational support, ensuring each location upholds the brand’s premium early learning experience. The brand’s in-house curriculum development team also helps train franchisees and teachers.
Franchisees join from many different backgrounds, but Beim says that they all share an enthusiasm for the education sector. “More than your background, it’s your ability to learn quickly and work hard, because until the school is open and full, there’s money being spent just to maintain operations. You want to be doing everything you can to make that process as short as possible.” Beim says quick learners and those with critical thinking skills do well in this franchise, given that there are so many different skills required in the startup phase. He adds that franchisees need to love working with people. “This business is very people-centric. You’re spending almost every day with people—hundreds of people at times, because you’ve got about 100 kids, so that means 200 parents, so that’s 300 people plus all your staff.”
Learning from the ups and downs
In terms of challenges in the first year, Beim says that the need to move quickly to design a location, advertise for students, and hire staff is common to all franchises. Other challenges vary, depending on the particular school and especially the demographics of the territory. He points to his two locations as an example, where the Beacon Hill location in bustling Calgary stands in contrast to the school in the quieter town of Okotoks. Still, the routine was similar for both in the first year: he spent a lot of the startup phase providing tours to prospective parents, hiring staff (the Beacon Hill location has 16 teachers, two principals, and a chef), and administrative work.
Another important aspect to this franchise is overseeing operations. “It’s not just about having kids and teachers come into the school,” Beim says. “It’s about making sure that what we’re offering is better than other centres, which is only going to be done through creating a very positive and welcoming work environment for the teachers, and a very nurturing and loving environment for the students.”
After supervising the construction site, which is challenging because there are many moving pieces, from permits to unexpected delays, Beim says the biggest long-term challenge is managing people. “That’s the hardest skill, really understanding people and how to best support those people, and sometimes knowing when the person is not the right fit for the classroom or for the school entirely.”
He adds that taking the time to hire carefully from the start can be crucial. “The most challenging task of the first year is building a really good team, and having all the students settle into the routine of school. Once that’s done, the majority of people become part of this well-oiled machine. Then it’s easy to replace small parts. But building the whole engine first can be a little tricky.”
Teaching future leaders
While he warns that being a CEFA franchisee involves a lot of long hours in the beginning, Beim says the hard work really pays off. Once the business is in the “well-oiled machine” stage, the franchisee can choose to be more hands-off if they want. As he now spends a lot of time building the second location, his principal manages the day-to-day operations at his first. He notes that there are several franchisees who work on the school more as a business and own several locations, while others are more involved in the daily operations.
In the end, Beim says that the mission he heard as a boy at the dinner table is also what enticed him to become a franchisee. “It’s really meaningful work, selling education for children. You’re helping students get to where they need to go, not just the brightest students, but students who sometimes can’t access care at other places,” notes Beim, adding that he’s had students on the autism spectrum or with physical disabilities who struggled to get into other care programs. “If you have the bandwidth to support those children, you’re making a meaningful difference in places where it really counts. That alone makes it a very easy choice when it comes to choosing what kind of franchise you want to invest in.”
