How Little Nest Portraits Turned a Boutique Concept into a Growing Franchise

Laura Novak Meyer always knew she wanted to turn her passion for photography into a successful career. She started out small by launching her own independent photography business at the age of 23. For the next decade, she traveled the globe shooting high-end events like weddings and family portraits for major athletes. But it wasn’t until she considered cutting back on traveling that her entrepreneurial dreams took on a much bigger form.

Around the time of the economic downturn, Meyer started thinking about settling down and having a family of her own. She knew her current lifestyle and hectic schedule wouldn’t allow it, so she decided to open up her first brick and mortar store called Little Nest Portraits.

“I realized there wasn’t a boutique photography concept that existed in any marketplace. So I decided to take my high-end model that was working for individual clients and make it accessible in a mass retail setting,” said Meyer. “Even though we first opened our doors for business in a Philadelphia shopping center during one of the country’s worst economic climates, business exploded. Because of that immediate success we opened up a second location closer to Villanova. From that point on, our entire team knew that we had created something special. So we started figuring out ways to expand.”

It was Meyer’s customers that first sparked her interest in franchising. People would come up to her and ask for a Little Nest Portraits studio to open up closer to their homes. But Meyer knew she didn’t want to have too many employees under corporate management. After spending a year really wrapping her head around the concept of franchising, she decided it was the best option.

“At first, I thought the industry was only for brands like McDonald’s. But after doing my research and figuring out what franchising would do for a brand like Little Nest Portraits, I decided it was the best option for me. It gives me the chance to grow without having to worry about managing employees all over the country,” said Meyer. “Franchising also offers an incredible business opportunity for female-focused companies—brands that provide a service geared towards women are part of the fastest growing niche in the industry. That’s definitely something I want to be a part of.”

Little Nest Portrait’s services are all specifically designed with families in mind. The brand offers a luxury, boutique photography experience for all of its customers with the goal of creating a final product that reveals who someone is, not just what they look like. Its stores are set up like a five-star hotel, with a built-in play area for kids and a relaxing refreshment area for parents.

Little Nest Portraits’ services also extend outside the studio, like interior design consultations for homes, including home visits. The brand works with its clients to help them determine the best place to hang their new family portrait, as well as the frame that perfectly matches their décor.

Backed by its unique concept, the brand is currently in the process of finalizing deals to work with several national partners that serve customers in the same space. There are a lot of brands that complement Little Nest Portraits—the majority of its business comes from maternity and infant portraits, which makes it possible for the company to team up with other brands focused on that same demographic. Those partnerships will then fuel the brands nationwide expansion efforts.

With nine locations spanning an area of the country as far West as Denver and as far South as Charlotte, the Philadelphia-based emerging franchise is now targeting major hubs across the country for development in order to grow at an accelerated rate. Meyer says that at the end of the day, it’s the people involved with Little Nest Portraits that are making those expansion goals a reality.

“I consider the people that are a part of this company to be our biggest win. We have an incredible support team that’s made up of driven individuals who have a passion for empowering other women and helping them be successful business owners,” Meyer said. “Our franchisees are also our biggest assets. I couldn’t be happier with the women who took a chance on a young brand and trusted its vision so early on in the process. They’re ultimately the reason why we’ve experienced success so far, and why we’ll continue to grow in the future.”