Chris Rodgers knows what it's like to build a business during both a boom and a bust. "I was in the oil and gas industry," he said. “We were in North Dakota during the fracking boom. We started an environmental services company and were cleaning up oil spills and various incidents. That is what I started my business career doing in 2011. We were selling supplies for the BP oil spills, and then it became a boom town for the next few years. Around 2015, oil prices went way down and killed the industry up there, and that business came crashing down.”
Instead of chasing the next commodity cycle, Rodgers and his wife began looking for a business with stronger long-term fundamentals, meaningful community impact and consistent demand. That search eventually led them to Building Kidz.
"We started looking at various models, including the day care business," Rodgers said. "We knew there was a strong demand in the area, and we had some friends who had done it. We thought this brand was something really special and we knew it would be a great team to be a part of.”
Today, Rodgers owns Building Kidz of Roswell in the Atlanta metro area, one of the brand's standout schools. His story illustrates why Building Kidz continues to attract entrepreneurs looking for both strong financial performance and the opportunity to create something lasting within their communities.
While evaluating preschool concepts, Rodgers appreciated that Building Kidz was still an emerging franchise system where owners could help shape the brand's growth.
"The Building Kidz team was a little smaller, and I knew there would be more flexibility working with the concept," he said. “They had the performing arts aspect of the business that I also really liked. At first I was a little skeptical, but now after being in it I can see that it’s a huge differentiator.”
That arts-integrated approach has become one of Building Kidz's defining competitive advantages. Through its proprietary Learning Through Life Experiences curriculum, children develop academically while also building confidence, communication skills and creativity through music, dance and theater.
Building Kidz leadership believes those differentiators continue driving demand as parents increasingly seek educational experiences that go beyond traditional child care.
Finding the right location proved to be Rodgers' first major challenge.
"We were searching for a good building all over Atlanta, but there was just nothing we could really locate," he said. “We decided to do it in Roswell. We renovated a building, turned it into a school and opened the doors in 2019.”
Launching a relatively new brand required patience. "The brand itself was very new at the time, so we really had to earn the trust with families in a big way to be successful," Rodgers said. "We looked at it as an opportunity to put our flag down and build out what the brand was going to be in our community. We put our little personal touch on it out here and made it more about building a community around the school, being more intentional with the families and making them feel like it's a safe place and somewhere they are welcome.”
Like many child care operators and business owners, Rodgers faced enormous uncertainty when COVID-19 temporarily shut down operations. But demand quickly returned. "Child care became a must for dual-income families, and we really blew up in a big way during that time," Rodgers said. “The school got full about a year after that, and we were able to handle the need very quickly.”
As Atlanta continued attracting new residents following the pandemic, enrollment demand continued climbing. "Especially because everyone moved here following COVID, things really became crazy," Rodgers said. “I was able to buy a piece of land next to the school with the goal of building another building. It took us about a year and a half to plan, develop and build all of that. In 2024, we opened another building next door for overflow and for the kids who used to be on the waitlist.”
With flexible real estate options and strong demographic analysis during site selection, Building Kidz franchisees like Rodgers can scale alongside growing markets as demand increases.
While enrollment growth has been rewarding, Rodgers says the most meaningful moments happen on stage.
"The performing arts aspect of this business has really been great," he said. “We do a big show twice a year. We do five or six shows with different families and have over 300 people come through the show each day. That is always the best part of the year, and that has been so rewarding.”
Those performances embody the Building Kidz mission while strengthening relationships among families throughout the community.
"We've been so intentional with making people welcome here," Rodgers said. "We do a lot of events in the house, and people really get to know one another. If your kids are infants, you may live in the community for the next 10 years, so you can connect people in a way that they didn't even realize they needed or wanted. We have an ever-growing community of people that is getting bigger and bigger every year."
As Rodgers expanded his campus, he leaned on Building Kidz's support team for guidance.
"The support has been good from the team," he said. “As we are growing, we are bouncing ideas off of them and figuring out the best way forward.”
That collaborative approach reflects Building Kidz's broader philosophy of partnering closely with franchisees through development, operations and long-term growth. The brand combines data-driven site selection, personalized operational coaching and one of the industry's strongest support ratios to help owners maximize both impact and financial performance.
For Rodgers, however, the business has never been just about enrollment numbers or expansion. "It's really a people business," he said. “There is a lot of responsibility that comes with it, but you can look at that as a challenge or an opportunity. There are a lot of kids, a lot of parents. You are impacting a lot of people. If you look at it that way, that is the best message to be passed along. If you look at this as a spreadsheet, you are missing the point.”
To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit: https://1851franchise.com/buildingkidzschool.
Building Kidz School
SPONSORED
After his oil and gas business collapsed, Chris Rodgers found success with Building Kidz, growing enrollment, expanding his campus and building long-term franchise value.
Chris Rodgers knows what it's like to build a business during both a boom and a bust. "I was in the oil and gas industry," he said. “We were in North Dakota during the fracking boom. We started an environmental services company and were cleaning up oil spills and various incidents. That is what I started my business career doing in 2011. We were selling supplies for the BP oil spills, and then it became a boom town for the next few years. Around 2015, oil prices went way down and killed the industry up there, and that business came crashing down.”
Instead of chasing the next commodity cycle, Rodgers and his wife began looking for a business with stronger long-term fundamentals, meaningful community impact and consistent demand. That search eventually led them to Building Kidz.
"We started looking at various models, including the day care business," Rodgers said. "We knew there was a strong demand in the area, and we had some friends who had done it. We thought this brand was something really special and we knew it would be a great team to be a part of.”
Today, Rodgers owns Building Kidz of Roswell in the Atlanta metro area, one of the brand's standout schools. His story illustrates why Building Kidz continues to attract entrepreneurs looking for both strong financial performance and the opportunity to create something lasting within their communities.
While evaluating preschool concepts, Rodgers appreciated that Building Kidz was still an emerging franchise system where owners could help shape the brand's growth.
"The Building Kidz team was a little smaller, and I knew there would be more flexibility working with the concept," he said. “They had the performing arts aspect of the business that I also really liked. At first I was a little skeptical, but now after being in it I can see that it’s a huge differentiator.”
That arts-integrated approach has become one of Building Kidz's defining competitive advantages. Through its proprietary Learning Through Life Experiences curriculum, children develop academically while also building confidence, communication skills and creativity through music, dance and theater.
Building Kidz leadership believes those differentiators continue driving demand as parents increasingly seek educational experiences that go beyond traditional child care.
Finding the right location proved to be Rodgers' first major challenge.
"We were searching for a good building all over Atlanta, but there was just nothing we could really locate," he said. “We decided to do it in Roswell. We renovated a building, turned it into a school and opened the doors in 2019.”
Launching a relatively new brand required patience. "The brand itself was very new at the time, so we really had to earn the trust with families in a big way to be successful," Rodgers said. "We looked at it as an opportunity to put our flag down and build out what the brand was going to be in our community. We put our little personal touch on it out here and made it more about building a community around the school, being more intentional with the families and making them feel like it's a safe place and somewhere they are welcome.”
Like many child care operators and business owners, Rodgers faced enormous uncertainty when COVID-19 temporarily shut down operations. But demand quickly returned. "Child care became a must for dual-income families, and we really blew up in a big way during that time," Rodgers said. “The school got full about a year after that, and we were able to handle the need very quickly.”
As Atlanta continued attracting new residents following the pandemic, enrollment demand continued climbing. "Especially because everyone moved here following COVID, things really became crazy," Rodgers said. “I was able to buy a piece of land next to the school with the goal of building another building. It took us about a year and a half to plan, develop and build all of that. In 2024, we opened another building next door for overflow and for the kids who used to be on the waitlist.”
With flexible real estate options and strong demographic analysis during site selection, Building Kidz franchisees like Rodgers can scale alongside growing markets as demand increases.
While enrollment growth has been rewarding, Rodgers says the most meaningful moments happen on stage.
"The performing arts aspect of this business has really been great," he said. “We do a big show twice a year. We do five or six shows with different families and have over 300 people come through the show each day. That is always the best part of the year, and that has been so rewarding.”
Those performances embody the Building Kidz mission while strengthening relationships among families throughout the community.
"We've been so intentional with making people welcome here," Rodgers said. "We do a lot of events in the house, and people really get to know one another. If your kids are infants, you may live in the community for the next 10 years, so you can connect people in a way that they didn't even realize they needed or wanted. We have an ever-growing community of people that is getting bigger and bigger every year."
As Rodgers expanded his campus, he leaned on Building Kidz's support team for guidance.
"The support has been good from the team," he said. “As we are growing, we are bouncing ideas off of them and figuring out the best way forward.”
That collaborative approach reflects Building Kidz's broader philosophy of partnering closely with franchisees through development, operations and long-term growth. The brand combines data-driven site selection, personalized operational coaching and one of the industry's strongest support ratios to help owners maximize both impact and financial performance.
For Rodgers, however, the business has never been just about enrollment numbers or expansion. "It's really a people business," he said. “There is a lot of responsibility that comes with it, but you can look at that as a challenge or an opportunity. There are a lot of kids, a lot of parents. You are impacting a lot of people. If you look at it that way, that is the best message to be passed along. If you look at this as a spreadsheet, you are missing the point.”
To find out more information on costs to buy this franchise, please visit: https://1851franchise.com/buildingkidzschool.
Sign up for the 1851 Franchise newsletter to get our biggest stories before everyone else
By signing up, you agree to our user agreement (including class action waiver and arbitration provisions), and acknowledge our privacy policy.
No related articles found
