---
title: "How Lisa Kozinn Went from songs for seeds Customer to Multi-Unit Franchise Owner"
url: https://burnaze.com/article/040a5bb9-2012-4a94-bfac-92d67cbb1494
source: "1851 Franchise"
original_url: https://1851franchise.com/how-lisa-kozinn-went-from-songs-for-seeds-customer-to-multi-unit-franchise-owner-2712404
category: "Enrichment & STEM"
industry: "Education & Childcare"
segment: "Enrichment & STEM"
topics: ["Development & multi-unit"]
published: 2020-02-28T17:12:02.000Z
modified: 2026-11-01T02:28:11.072Z
image: https://newimage.1851franchise.com/cdn-cgi/image/quality=85,format=webp,width=1280,height=720/story/featureImage/e30c2777c69243dbb332452327ed46914701.jpg
---

# How Lisa Kozinn Went from songs for seeds Customer to Multi-Unit Franchise Owner

**TL;DR:** Lisa Kozinn, a former customer of songs for seeds, is opening her second location of the music enrichment brand in New York City's Upper East Side neighborhood. She first discovered the brand when her twins took classes at its parent company, apple seeds, and later became the first songs for seeds franchisee in 2012.

*originally published in 1851 Franchise on 2020-02-28. [Read the original](https://1851franchise.com/how-lisa-kozinn-went-from-songs-for-seeds-customer-to-multi-unit-franchise-owner-2712404).*

## Story

**Customer-turned-****songs for seeds** **franchisee Lisa Kozinn is preparing to open her second location with the music enrichment brand, and she’s thrilled to do it in New York City’s Upper East Side neighborhood.**

**Kozinn started her** **songs for seeds** **journey when her twins, Dylan and Noah, were just five months old. They first took classes at the play-space brand apple seeds, which is the parent company to songs for seeds. Her children later took classes at songs for seeds, and Kozinn was impressed with the high quality of the music class.

The national franchise hires professional musicians across the country to teach children from birth to age 6 and provides a super fun environment in which young families can both learn and enjoy music, as well as critical aspects of early childhood development. These high-caliber musicians include Broadway performers and band members who perform at leading venues such as the Bowery Ballroom in New York City. They see songs for seeds as a valuable daytime employment opportunity, and children benefit by learning from experienced artists.

**Kozinn loved the customer experience so much that she decided to become the first songs for seeds franchisee. In 2012, she opened the brand’s first franchise, a beta location at the Manhattan Youth Downtown Community Center in Tribeca. The customer response to her Tribeca franchise has been strong and growing since its opening.

Kozinn noted that parents and caregivers also enjoy themselves when they bring their young children to music classes. This warm and positive response in Tribeca helped her decide to open a second songs for seeds franchise, and she is confident the brand will continue to be well-received on the Upper East Side once it opens in the coming months.

**This positive brand feedback also extends to her Tribeca franchise’s band members, who have worked at that location since it first opened eight years ago. Kozinn noted that her lead guitarist, Corey J. Feldman, is working on producing a rock opera with the musicians in his current band, Cousin Earth, a funky, rock n’ roll group that includes renowned ukulele players. Feldman even published “The Green Emerald”, a story book rock opera in 2009.**

**“They’re incredible,” Kozinn said of her band. “They love kids and also enjoy working on their own musical passions. The commitment of the band and the musicians has been amazing. They have been with me since the beginning since the program is so fun and also gratifying. Families often request our band for their birthday parties as well so the musicians often secure additional weekend work.”**

**Prior to franchising with songs for seeds, Kozinn worked at leading cosmetic companies specializing in product development and marketing. Upon leaving the corporate world, she launched a personalized-accessory business, Rhinestone Ruby. She sold the business after she had her children. Franchising with songs for seeds marked her re-entry into the business world, and today she is looking forward to bringing more joy to families through her music franchise. She loves the flexibility of her lifestyle as a songs for seeds franchise owner.**

**When scouting neighborhoods for songs for seeds classes, a local and large population of families is a crucial component, which makes the Upper East Side an ideal location for her second songs for seeds franchise, Kozinn said.**

**“Our brand looks for areas with lots of young families,” Kozinn said. “The amount of space is another factor. It also has to be a space that is comfortable and clean for the band.”**

**As a franchisee, Kozinn still gets as much enjoyment out of attending the songs for seeds classes today as she did when she participated when her children were younger. She enjoys watching parents and caregivers get enjoyment from the class each week and watching the children learn and grow. The feedback she receives from families over and over is always so positive, which is what continues to keep Kozinn feeling a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction with the job she and her band are doing.**

**In terms of day-to-day tasks, Kozinn works on local marketing efforts to promote her business. Franchisees of songs for seeds are not required to be musicians themselves—they simply need to run the business and hire their band members. Also, songs for seeds franchises do not require brick-and-mortar locations. Instead, franchisees partner with local spaces in which to hold classes.**

**The** **customer service component to a songs for seeds franchise is a major part of the business****, as songs for seeds caters to families with small children. Franchisees should be enthusiastic about serving that particular population. Kozinn is adamant about getting in lots of one-on-one time with families to make sure they are satisfied with the classes.**

**“You need to be a hard worker who wants to give back to your community,” she said. “You need good customer service. Keep in mind you are working with moms and local parents. You need that proper customer service attitude when interacting with the families.”**

**Kozinn is** **thrilled with her decision to grow with the brand** **and open a second franchise.**

**“For anyone who is interested in opening, I think that songs for seeds is a great franchise,” she said. “You are around people that are happy. The kids are happy and they’re learning each week. It’s an upbeat and feel-good franchise as far as the business is concerned.”**

**Kozinn also loves the lifestyle flexibility that songs for seeds offers its franchisees.**

**“It’s a very engaging type of business that you can be involved with,” she said. “It is also flexible. If you have kids at home it’s a flexible job that you can easily work around your schedule. It doesn’t tie you into a corporate time schedule. It is ideal for people who are in the second phase of their career.”**

**As for Kozinn’s children, all of that music education has paid off. Today, her twins, who are now in the fifth grade, play instruments in their school’s band.**

**“They absolutely fell in love with instruments at songs for seeds before they could even walk,” she said. “There, they gained a sense of love for music and instruments. The main thing is that it’s a feel-good business to have which keeps people coming each week, and I look forward to expanding into the Upper East Side.”**

**Kozinn is expanding her enterprise at an opportune time. The children’s music education franchise is rapidly expanding. The brand was founded in 2009 by the** **husband-and-wife teams of Allison and Craig Schlanger and Alison Qualter Berna and Bobby Berna****, who previously founded the play-space brand apple seeds in 2007, which is still in operation.**

**Today, songs for seeds** **has 24 locations across the United States****, seven of which are in New York City, and it is expanding rapidly throughout the New York Metropolitan Area. Franchisee Molly Pfeifer, for example, is opening a songs for seeds franchise in January in the bustling Queens neighborhood of Long Island City.**

**Kozinn’s decision to expand her franchise reach has thrilled the songs for seeds founders, who view her as integral to the brand’s growth.**

**"Without Lisa there would be no songs for seeds franchising,” Allison Schlanger said. “She took the class with her twins for as long as possible, until they aged out. When we told her we were looking to expand the program she immediately said she wanted to be involved. It was Lisa’s ability to bring songs for seeds to a new neighborhood and her quick success that encouraged us to franchise the program. Thanks to Lisa, we now have songs for seeds in more than 20 neighborhoods across the country.”**

***The startup costs for a songs for seeds franchise range from $92,250 to $122,650. The franchise fee is $45,000. Multi-level financial incentives include two units for $70,000 and three units for $90,000. To learn more about franchising with songs for seeds, visit*** ***

## Entities

- 1851 Franchise (publication)
- franchise expansion (topic)
- Education & Childcare (sector)
- new york (location)
- business growth (topic)
- customer experience (topic)
- music education (topic)
- franchisee profile (topic)

---
Originally reported by 1851 Franchise (https://1851franchise.com/how-lisa-kozinn-went-from-songs-for-seeds-customer-to-multi-unit-franchise-owner-2712404). Summarized by Burnaze (https://burnaze.com/article/040a5bb9-2012-4a94-bfac-92d67cbb1494).