Why Lightbridge Academy is Targeting Northern Virginia-Washington D.C. as a Hot Market for Franchise Development

Lightbridge Academy® , renowned and trusted early childhood education and child care franchise with nearly 70 open units, is on a mission to bring its Circle of Care philosophy — which places equal importance on the children, parents, teachers, franchisees and community within every center — to more and more markets throughout the country. In particular, the Lightbridge Academy team is actively seeking additional franchisees that are a fit for the brand and looking to expand in the Northern Virginia-Washington D.C. area.

“It is a breakthrough market for us,” said Lightbridge Academy CDO Craig Murray . “We are currently under construction with three locations in the Northern Virginia area, but it is still an underserved market, not only for Lightbridge Academy but for the child care industry in general. There has been tremendous national focus on the high demand for quality educational child care, and working families need a solution .”

Northern virginia market

The Lightbridge Academy team has identified room to add a minimum of 10 centers throughout the Northern Virginia and D.C. area from Alexandria to Leesburg, including markets like Manassas, Woodbridge, Ashburn and Chantilly.

Lightbridge Academy recently celebrated a two-unit signing in the Northern Virginia area with husband-and-wife franchisee team Mojy and Afshin Afsharnia .

“We are excited to be a part of the Lightbridge Academy team,” said Afshin Afsharnia. “When we started this journey, we were very familiar with the Virginia market because our daughters went to private school there. There is a lot of demand in the area, and while many larger competitors may seem saturated, there are a lot of new families moving into the area, which creates even more demand. Most of the parents trying to enroll their children in child care centers are often stuck on waitlists.”

Looking ahead, the Afsharnias say they are thrilled to start building brand recognition for Lightbridge Academy in the state of Virginia and are eager to provide a much needed service to their community.

“We both believe that education starts at a very young age,” said Mojy Afsharnia. “What you learn then is going to affect you for the rest of your life. We are so excited to be involved in helping support the young minds of the future.”

Growth strategy

To continue building momentum in the Northern Virginia market, the Lightbridge Academy team is leveraging a new strategy — proactively leasing real estate sites at the corporate level before franchise owners are signed. While opening a child care center can traditionally take up to two years, this new strategy allows Lightbridge Academy to utilize its partnerships in the development world and shorten that time frame, giving franchise owners the possibility of opening immediately upon signing in certain markets, while giving the landlord a guarantee as well.

“We are already looking for opportunities in the metro D.C. and Northern Virginia areas to be ahead of franchise sales,” said Murray. “This is a great example of the multi-pronged approach we take on real estate. With an abundance of available land to purchase and build new centers, as well as plenty of second generation spaces, this is an ideal market for us, and we are looking for franchise owners to help us bring our Circle of Care philosophy to the families of the area.”