20 Years Later, School of Rock is Still Rockin'

The School of Rock mission reads, “We are a growing passionate community dedicated to enriching lives through performance-based music education.” Although the mission is new, the concept has been around for two decades. In 1998 a musician named Paul Green began a music school where he quickly learned that students practicing in groups, rather than as individuals, were more successful in learning their instrument—this revolutionary idea is what has carried School of Rock since the beginning. Now, 20 years later, the music-education company is poised to have one of its most successful years yet.

Now with over 200 units open in nine—soon to be 10 countries—Elliot Baldini, the Senior Vice President of Marketing, knows the popularity of the brand did not come by chance. “The curriculum works so well because children are inspired to play an instrument when they see their idols on stage. It also works because when students practice as a band, there is a lot of encouragement from bandmates to learn your part so you can succeed as a group.”

But this strong focus on curriculum isn’t the only thing that has aided in the company’s continued success. In an effort to meet the demand for their services, School of Rock began to franchise in 2005. The franchise system was almost an immediate success—franchisees were thrilled to have the opportunity to inspire students in their community with this unique twist on music education. As franchises began to open up across the world, the company knew their franchisee support system had to continuously evolve in order to meet the demand of new franchisees.

CEO Rob Price understands this need and is focused on assessing current systems to identify ways he can enhance the franchisee experience. “We are putting together a pool of technological resources to create something that connects franchisees and creates an environment in which problems can be solved jointly between individual owner and corporate headquarters.”

This type of fluid communication will enable franchises to have continued success for years to come, and that’s exactly Price’s goal. ”We are asking our franchisees to make enormous investment and risk for a 10-year commitment. We need to have strong systems in place and be confident that those systems are going to continue to grow and be stronger. So, as we are looking to build a 100-year brand -- we are looking to partner with franchisees thinking of it as a 100-year brand.”

Baldini knows in order to keep the franchise going in this upward trajectory, it’s important to set their franchisees up for success. “We are very focused on making this a great return for our owners, not just financially, but by enriching their lives as well. We’re putting the right support tools in place so we can help them realize both their financial and personal goals.”

Over the past 20 years, hundreds and thousands of students have been inspired by the School of Rock curriculum and community. With an intention of opening between 75 and 100 units in the next three years and a plan to develop a minimum three new international markets, Price is ready to take on the future and continue to provide exceptional music education across the globe.  

“For me, success is waking up each day and feeling a drive to make an impact. It’s almost a gravitational pull coming from a deeply inspiring mission. Then being able to go to sleep feeling like you have made some progress along the way.” That is what School of Rock does for its franchisees each and every day.