The preschool launch plan
Every step from deciding to opening, in the order it happens, shaped to your situation, with your own numbers beside it. About 51 steps in 8 phases, 25 of them specific to a preschool. Free to read; ticking steps off and putting in your own numbers come with membership.
The plan51 steps
- 01Not started0/6Fold
Decide with the numbersa week or two
Before a dollar is spent. Most expensive mistakes happen here, and this phase costs nothing.
A preschool earns recurring monthly tuition, classroom by classroom, over a school-year calendar.
Typical for one unit is $700,000 to $1,200,000 a year; the owner keeps 22 to 30% of it before paying themselves. If that band does not cover what you need, that is the signal to pause and look again.
~50% survive 5 years. Roughly half of all new U.S. employer businesses are still operating after five years.
Twelve questions about your money, time, experience and temperament, scored. Then the 5 questions this business asks of its owner, about the hours and the work. Answer both before you spend a dollar.
Rule of thumb: buy an established preschool with a clean license, a full enrollment, and a waitlist when you want recurring cash flow and lower risk; build from an empty site when you have the... Answer it in your situation above and the plan reshapes.
Customers, prices, rent, staff pay, what it costs to open. We filled in typical numbers; change what you know and everything on this page follows.
- 02Not started0/5Open
Plan the moneya week
What it costs to open, where the money comes from, and the cushion that keeps you alive until the business pays for itself.
Opening a licensed preschool is a real build: most of the money goes into turning a building into classrooms the state will license, the playground and the furniture, before the first family enrolls.
The itemized cost to open9 lines
- Interior build-out to licensing code: $30,000 to $389,000The biggest swing: a former school or center needs paint and flooring, while an office or retail shell needs child-height toilets, sinks and exits (a full...
- Outdoor playground (structures, surfacing, fencing): $15,300 to $123,400
- Classroom furniture, cots, curriculum & office: $41,800 to $160,000About $6k to $20k per classroom for furniture and learning centers, plus about $3,800 per room for a published curriculum
- Kitchen & laundry equipment: $4,800 to $26,000
- Secure entry, cameras, tablets & office tech: $4,700 to $18,700
- Signage & opening supplies: $5,000 to $24,000
- Architect, permits, license & staff checks: $14,100 to $79,100
- Insurance, deposits, legal & enrollment marketing: $20,000 to $68,000Includes a lease deposit of one to two months of rent
- Initial working capital: $65,000 to $250,000Payroll, rent and the first summer gap while enrollment fills.
Costs start on day one; customers take months. Map the first twelve months of cash so the business does not run out of money while it is getting going.
The business has to earn your pay like any other bill. Set it in your numbers and watch the month it move.
How deals in this business are financed5 lines
- SBA 7(a) loan (Up to $5M · up to 10 yr (25 with real estate) · 75-85% government-guaranteed)The usual loan for building out or buying a preschool: it funds construction, furniture, the playground and working capital.
- SBA 504 loan (Up to 25 yr · real estate & long-life equipment)For owners buying or building the school's building.
- Equipment financing (Secured by the equipment · 3-7 yr)Finance the playground, furniture and kitchen separately, secured by the equipment, to keep cash for payroll and the first summer.
- Seller financing (Often 5-20% of price · 3-7 yr)Common when buying a preschool: the seller carries a note for part of the price, which keeps them invested in handing over families, teachers and the director smoothly.
- State pre-K and quality funding (Varies by state · tied to licensing and quality standards)Many states pay private programs for public pre-K seats or fund quality and expansion grants with child care dollars.
Most new shops pair an with 10 to 20% of your own cash. Know the monthly payment before you look at a single space.
Before you shop. A lender tells you what they would fund, what they need from you (credit, your cash in, a plan with numbers), and a pre-qualification letter makes a landlord or a seller take you seriously.
- 03Not started0/4Open
Set up the companya day or two
A day of paperwork, and it has to come before the space: a lease, a loan application and every permit are in the company’s name.
Your state’s business name search, the trademark register, and the domain, before the name is on a sign, a van, or a lease.
A , an , and the S-corporation election each change what you keep and what you are exposed to. Compare them with the numbers, confirm with a CPA and an attorney, then file with your state.
After:The is free from the IRS in minutes once the company exists. The bank account needs both. Keep business money separate from day one.
After:Pick the accounting software and connect the bank account now, so every cost of opening is captured and the numbers you later are real.
- 04Not started0/5Open
Find and secure the spaceone to three months
A preschool draws from a tight radius of young families.
What decides it for this business: density of young families, income & dual-earner mix, under-supplied for seats, licensable facility & outdoor space, access to qualified teachers.
One call to the planning desk with the address: is this use allowed there, and what will it take (, permits, fire sign-off)? A space that needs a change of use can add months.
Rent, free months for the , who pays for what, the and the renewals, subject to financing and permits. The lender needs this letter or a draft lease to take your application.
After: ,, renewal options, increase caps, what the landlord adds on top of rent, and what happens if you have to leave. For a location business the lease is part of the purchase price.
After:at minimum; property, workers’ compensation and the rest as the business needs. The landlord asks for a certificate at signing and the lender at closing.
- 05Not started0/2Open
Get the loanfour to eight weeks
Four to eight weeks with an SBA lender, longer if the file is incomplete. Everything else waits on this, so send a complete file.
Your plan with numbers (download it as a PDF from this page), the company’s papers, the or draft lease, the and equipment quotes, your personal financial statement, and proof of the cash you put in.
After:The lender approves against the ; you sign the lease once approved; the loan closes against the signed lease and the insurance certificate. Ask for the to match the or longer.
After:
- 06Not started0/12Open
Permits and the build-outone to three months
Preschools are licensed by each state, usually as childcare centers, and the license sets how many children you may enroll from the square footage of your rooms and yard and the teachers you keep at ratio.
Bind the policies you had quoted before a contractor, a vehicle or a customer is in play. Keep the certificates; the landlord, the lender and the city will ask.
After:Permits for the , closed out by inspection, and a for an educational use.
After:Most cities approve exterior signs separately; signs take weeks to make. Order early.
Entity filing, local business license, federal , state withholding and unemployment accounts, and once you hire.
With your state, before the first taxable sale. Usually free and online; check your state.
Application, floor plan review and a pre-licensing inspection.
Confirmation that a school or childcare use is allowed at the address; many zones require a conditional or special use permit and a hearing.
Fingerprint-based criminal checks plus state child abuse and sex offender registry checks for every staff member, cleared before they work with children.
A director and lead teachers who meet the state's education rules (often a credential such as a CDA or a degree in early childhood), with pediatric first aid, CPR and ...
USDA CACFP enrollment to be reimbursed for meals, a provider agreement to accept childcare subsidy, and a state pre-K contract where your state funds seats in private programs.
Exits, alarms, extinguishers and the fire drill plan, inspected before the license is issued and again each year.
After:Permits for the , closed out by inspection, and a for an educational use.
After:
- 07Not started0/12Open
Set up to runduring the build
During the build, so the business runs from day one: the systems, the prices, the people and the routine.
Enrollment, waitlists, ratio-aware staffing, billing, and tuition collection are the operational core of an enrollment business.
Daily reports, photos, digital sign-in/out, and messaging build the trust and word-of-mouth that drive your waitlist.
Recurring autopay and clear billing cut bad debt and smooth the cash flow that the school-year calendar already stresses.
Teacher pay and ratio-driven scheduling get complex; you need this the moment you staff rooms.
Per-room and per-month visibility and clean books are essential for managing , the summer gap, and financing growth.
, a specialized childcare policy, and workers' comp are non-negotiable for a business caring for young children.
See the price the the business needs implies, then check it against what the market pays.
Entity filing, local business license, federal , state withholding and unemployment accounts, and once you hire.
After:Wages are the start: , insurance, training time and the hours you stop billing. Owners usually post the jobs a month out and hire two to four weeks before opening so training happens before the doors open.
Daily: Open and staff every room to ratio, run the curriculum and the... Weekly: Review enrollment, the waitlist, and any vacancies, check staffing... Monthly: Track against licensed capacity, tuition vs market,...
Opening, closing, the sale, the complaint, the cash. One page each. This is the manual a franchise would have sold you.
Free, and it is how most people will find you. Address, hours, photos and the menu or price list, live before opening day; then the sign, the soft opening and the first regulars.
- 08Not started0/5Open
Open and measurethe first ninety days
You own it. Now run it on the numbers.
Friends, neighbors and a short menu or list. Find the problems while the room is forgiving.
Enter the real numbers and see every cost line against the for this business.
Empty licensed seats; The summer gap; Teacher turnover and ratios.
Growth consumes cash before it produces it. Find the rate your own cash funds before you push.
A full, licensed preschool is a sellable asset.