KIDDIE ACADEMY Franchise Complaints

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• I agree with the poster from rip-off report. The model does not work and most franchisees are struggling. In fact, only 10% of their franchisees are operating above 70% capacity which is generally the break even point.

• MEADE v. KIDDIE ACADEMY DOMESTIC FRANCHISING, LLC et al (Michael Miller Pres., Susan Wise CFO and Bill Endress COO) February 2011

• Kiddie Academy recently had over 20 franchised centers in New Jersey cease operating as Kiddie Academys and reopen as Bright Horizons.

• More Kiddie Academy failures coming and more franchisees forfeiting franchisee fees for centers that never open.

  Ask Mike Miller at Kiddie Academy about fees forfeited for failure to find a site?

• Kiddie Academy Franchisee Meade loses -

  MEADE v. KIDDIE ACADEMY DOMESTIC FRANCHISING, LLC et al (Michael Miller Pres., Susan Wise CFO and Bill Endress COO) February 2011

• 53 STATE VIOLATIONS and counting in just over a year of being open, including 7 SERIOUS RISK VIOLATIONS and 5 complaints! If considering having your child attend Kiddie Academy of Reynoldsburg or working for this company please DO NOT! What a disgrace to our community as well as the Reynoldsburg City Schools. Please log on to ODJFS and view the continuous state violations this center has received in just over a year of operating. My children no longer attend this daycare due to poor quality of staff, constant turn over, repeated state violations including teacher to child ratio, ownership greed, inconsistent policies and dishonesty. Recent state violations include leaving an infant in a dark room alone in a crib, leaving hazardous substances in reach of children, not enough staff, improper supervision, improper paperwork, unsafe equipment and programming, several incident report violations, first aid supply violations, administration of medication violations and more. When enrolled at Kiddie Academy I was informed that my registration fee would go toward materials and equipment. No such equipment was purchased for either of my children's rooms in fact the staff complained about not getting supplies or equipment from the owner Carol Haynes until recently added due to their Kiddie Academy Headquarter visit. I have witnessed staff having too many children, upset staff over leadership, staff and parents storming out of the building and a lack of organization in management. Several staff have stated that the Wage and Hour Division have inspected this company and found them in violation. If you are looking for child care in the Reynoldsburg area stay away from this one.

• Kiddie Academy corporate should be grouped with Monsanto, Comcast and Walmart as one of the most evil companies in the US. They owned 2 Kiddie Academies in the town which their HQ's are located. Out of the blue, 4 weeks before school is supposed to start, they sold both schools to a completely different type of school system. No warning, no implementation period, no explanation, NOTHING. The close proximity to the upcoming school year left the parents and children with almost no options. These kids and their school were treated like a cash voucher at a casino. They were sold without any consideration for the children and staff at the schools. DISGUSTING. KA Corporate should be ashamed. WILL NEVER STEP IN A KIDDIE ACADEMY AGAIN.

  This comment has been re-posted here:

  KIDDIE ACADEMY is Evil, Critic Claims

   

• Dan, These childcare franchises have no ethics and treat children as commodity. Interestingly, the Discovery Point franchiser Cliff Clark does not have any child of his own and did not adopt any. He and his wife operated their franchise operations just to milk money from the franchisees and nothing else. No support or moral whatsoever. They destroyed not only franchisees, but people worked with them. Very mean.

  One Franchisee in this board mentioned 70% occupancy to break even. Note that such type of analysis is not correct. It all depends on how much loan you have. If the building is paid for, you can break even at 25% occupancy. If you are owning a new center and let the franchise have half a Million profit on that building sale, you perhaps need 75% occupancy to break even. As far as Discovery Point goes, only the older centers are comfortably making money in GA because loan is less. We know of only one new center in south of Atlanta that got lucky and breaking even, others went bankrupt and there has not been any scratch on Cliff, only the franchisees were doomed along with their loved ones and their kids.

  Any lawyers to represent these bankrupt franchisees on contingency? None. So, these franchises keep on doing their roaring business and doomed franchisees cannot be found in any documents they publish. This fraud is allowed in the US and some have the same flavor as slavery.

• Kiddie Academy has to report to Maryland all the people who buy franchises and don't open a school. Why because Kiddie Academy keeps the fee when franchisees fail to get a site approved. Kiddie Academy makes some money with this.

• The same with Discovery Point. Not a little sum, but Cliff collects $60K by playing this trick. One of the Florida franchisees got some of it back by litigation/arbitration, but litigation fees ate most of the refund away.