Raring 2 Go!

Mum of one, Sheffield-based Kerry Godling, often struggled to find activities for her four-year-old son to do in the local area, so she decided to take matters in to her own hands and set up a franchise of Raring2Go, a free definitive guide for parents and children of what to do and where to go in the local area.

 

Kerry initially came across the Raring2Go franchise after a friend introduced her to the company, and after discovering that Sheffield didn’t have one of these guides, she decided to find out more about becoming a franchisee.

 

In November 2008, Kerry attended the BiG: Make it Your Business Franchising Fair, and had a chat to a couple of BiG’s business mentors.  She then made an appointment to discuss her franchise idea in further detail with the BiG Franchising Manager - and since that initial meeting Kerry has set up Raring2Go in Sheffield.

 

Reflecting on her experiences with BiG, Kerry said: “I found it easy deciding on what I wanted to do, as being a mum; it can be really hard to find activities for your children to do in the local area – especially during the school holidays.  What was more difficult with setting up my franchise was the business element. 

 

“Meeting with BiG was the best thing that I could have ever done; they’ve been there for me every step of the way.  The team have all offered amazing support, from explaining my business contract, helping me with marketing and business plans, to attending appointments with solicitors and accountants with me.  Because of BiG, I was even able to amend the legal contract with Raring2Go, as they really helped me to understand the terminology.”

 

The guide, which is distributed in schools, nurseries and libraries, is designed to be distributed on a quarterly basis to coincide with school holidays.  Kerry has already published two magazines, which are reliant on local advertising – the most recent being printed at the beginning of July.

 

Kerry adds: “At the moment 15,000 magazines are distributed across Sheffield, which reaches about half of all children in Sheffield.  Next year, I’d like to increase this amount by a further 5,000, and with the continued help and support from BiG, I’m confident that I can reach those targets.”

 

For information about advertising with Raring2Go, please email Kerry on Sheffield@raring2go.co.uk 

 

For more information about BiG: Make it Your Business visit www.thebigwebsite.org.uk This programme is supported financially by the European Union. BiG: Make it Your Business has attracted £4.6 million investment from the European Regional Development Fund as part of Europe’s support for the region’s economic development through the Yorkshire and Humber ERDF Programme.