Interview with Mr Vijay Kumar Agarwal – CEO and Co-Founder of Makoons

Makoons is a preschool franchise that forms a part of KRS Educreations Pvt. Ltd. The company primarily caters to parents of children aged between 1-5 years, while also targeting investors who are looking for business avenues with an investment capacity of 15-20 lacs. Parental trust is the key positioning of Makoons, and it aims to create an environment that is conducive to a child’s growth and development.  A child-centric approach, cutting-edge technology, open policies, and the promise of being reachable at any time are just a few of the standout features that Makoons provides to its clients. The company faces competition from other preschool brands such as Kidzee, Euro Kids, Bachpan, Little Millennium, Footprints, and Shemrock. However, Makoons always tries to distinguish itself from these competitors through its unique offerings and focus on quality.

Whereas, Mr. Vijay Kumar Agarwal is the CEO and Co-Founder of KRS Educreations Pvt. Ltd., promoting preschool franchises under the brand name “Makoons”. He holds a BSc and an MBA and has over 25 years of corporate experience in the fields of paper, automobiles, synthetic yarn, and education, specifically experience with various start-ups.

He also has over 10 years of experience in the education industry and 15 years in corporate. Vijay Kumar Agarwal’s contribution as the organization’s CEO and the person in charge of leading the company from the front has been crucial to its expansion.

Through networking, he has received numerous honors in the field of early childhood education. He is also a senior member of several early childhood associations.
His vision for KRS Educreations Pvt. Ltd. is to make the “Makoons” brand a 500+ center franchise by 2026. KRS Educreations Pvt. Ltd. began its journey in 2015 and is now present in three countries, fifteen states, and 35 cities. It has more than one hundred centers and more than fifteen thousand alumni.

In a short span of seven years, including two years of the coronavirus period, Makoons, promoted by KRS Educreations Pvt. Ltd. has become the No. 2 brand in Delhi/NCR (based on the number of centers). Learn more about the company’s expansion and success by going through the quick interaction we had with Mr. Vijay Kumar Agarwal.

1. Can you tell us more about the founding and vision of Makoons as a preschool franchise under KRS Educreations Pvt. Ltd.?

For your consideration, KRS Educreations Pvt. Ltd. offers a preschool franchise concept. Under this, Makoons Play School, a preschool franchise, was established to bridge the Pre-School Education Gap. We at Makoons Play School believe that preschool education should be given the utmost attention because a child’s early learning years are so significant and truly shape their growing years. When their foundation is that solid, it equips them to face difficulties and problems in life. To prevent early learning from being depicted as a difficult time for children, we are concentrating on giving them holistic learning experiences. With the aid of our unique learning environment, we envision assisting each child in discovering their unique learning style. Makoons Play School provides a secure, encouraging, and engaging environment where children can thrive and achieve, with a strong focus on holistic development and a child-centric approach.

2. How does Makoons differentiate itself from other preschool brands in the market? What are the unique offerings and focus on quality that sets Makoons apart?

Makoons Play School not only focuses on academic proficiency among the kids but also on their holistic development. It equally emphasizes academic success, general personality development, and children realizing their potential through involvement in extracurricular activities. Each child has unique needs, and every child learns differently. Finding each child’s distinctive traits, style, and conduct is the main responsibility of our staff. To bring out the best in children, our competent teachers continue to use a research-based methodology. Moreover, our staff creates a space where children can stretch out, come up with new concepts, express their creativity and ideas, and discover unwavering confidence.

3. Could you elaborate on the child-centric approach, cutting-edge technology, and open policies that Makoons provides to its clients? How do these features contribute to a child’s growth and development?

Our innovative curriculum integrates music, arts, science, technology, reading, numeracy, and physical exploration. We firmly believe in the value of education and its capacity to foster the growth of intellect. We have had a significant impact on the transition from teacher-led to child-centric education. We are creating an atmosphere where kids can become active learners, make decisions, and look for experiences that will help them grow, owing to our cutting-edge methodologies. With the use of experiential learning, young children can be encouraged to develop their imaginations and express their creativity. Our staff offers an environment where children can collaborate, discover unconditional confidence, and come up with fresh ideas.

4. How does Makoons ensure a safe, nurturing, and stimulating environment for children? What measures are in place to maintain the promised level of trust and care for parents?

Makoons Play School does not take any chances with the security of kids. One of our major concerns is the protection and safety of children. Everything at Makoons Play School is welcoming to kids and safe, including the choice of furnishings and the hygienic surroundings. In addition, we’ve put CCTV cameras everywhere to watch over kids all the time for increased security. The creation of an excellent educational atmosphere for kids is Makoons Play School’s top priority. Our goal is to give our children the best possible care while fostering their mindsets through a thoughtfully designed and personalized program that is developed based on the identified interests of the children. Parents place a high priority on the quality of their children’s early education because they believe it will have a significant impact on their future. With this in mind, we make sure that their trust in us keeps growing by giving their children what is expected of us as an education provider.

5. Can you explain the kit-based revenue model that Makoons follows and how it differs from traditional royalty-based models? How does this model benefit both the franchise owners and the overall success of the business?

Makoons has been the pioneer in introducing the kit-based revenue model in the industry since its inception. Under this model, no royalty is applicable on the franchise revenue therefore makes it more business-friendly from a franchise‘s profit point of view. This unique model helped the company to attract more investors and grow faster.

6. What are the expansion plans for Makoons in the next three years? Which regions of India are being focused on, and what steps are being taken to establish Makoons as a leading name in the preschool education space?

Now Makoons has made inroads in South and Eastern markets and wants to have a fair national presence all across India with more focus on Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities. With a current presence in 16 states and 35 cities, Makoons is targeting to have a presence  with 300 + centers in 100+ cities by 2026

To achieve this, Makoons has already had a direct presence in 8 cities through its representatives for faster and more effective local services.

7. How does Makoons ensure the best quality education is provided? What steps are taken to continuously improve and enhance the learning experience for children?

Excellence and innovation in preschool education are two things we are passionate about. The Makoons Play School’s staff has more than ten years of combined expertise in creating nurseries that are suited to the unique requirements, skills, interests, and capabilities of each child. The mission of Makoons Play School is to develop tomorrow’s budding innovators. Our novel methods of teaching and learning assist our students in realizing their learning preferences while also enabling them to reach their full artistic and creative potential. Makoons Play School supports providing children with a compassionate and exciting learning environment that promotes healthy balance. Makoons Play School provides kids with various opportunities to practice self-help skills independently and gain confidence in their ability to make decisions for themselves.

8. In terms of franchise operations, what kind of support and resources does Makoons provide to its franchise owners to ensure their success? How does the franchise-owned and franchise-operated (FOFO) model contribute to better outcomes?

The Franchise and Franchise Operated ( FOFO) model is the best possible model in the industry and has a win-win situation for franchisors and franchises. Under this model, the franchisor has the time and energy to put its resources into expanding its base faster, and at the same time, the franchise has the liberty to expand his / her business without sharing profits.

Makoons has a distinct edge over its competition as it provides end-to-end support with its vast experienced team especially its admission cell which helps its franchise to increase admissions which is not the case with most of the competitive brands. That makes Makoons the most trusted and valued preschool brand among its partners.

9. As a CEO, what are your key priorities and strategies to drive the growth and success of Makoons? How do you envision Makoons’ future in the competitive preschool education market?

As a CEO, I see myself as just a part of our ever-growing team with the responsibility to lead it from the front. A robust team is a must for the growth of the company with trusted business partners and we believe in a win-win situation for all our pillars – our business partners, our employees, vendor associates, and the investors/management. With NEP 2020 likely to be implemented all across the nation in the next 4-5 years, we see a very excellent future for all branded pre-schools who believe in parent satisfaction and children’s growth.