We went into the very highly priced attorney's office (at the top of the most beautiful building in Norfolk with a view of the river like we'd never seen) with the intention of announcing our arrival as the latest and greatest franchise business opportunity.  Boy, did we have it wrong.  We got schooled that day - thankfully.  We learned the differences between franchising (which apparently would take between $500,000 and $1 million to START!) and licensing (sooooo much more reasonable).  Aside from the money issue (which really wasn't an issue - once we learned how much it would cost, that option was off the table!), the really important issue for us was control.  In franchising, the franchisor tells the franchisee what color to paint the walls, how and when to advertise, who to hire, and various other overbearing, controlling dictates.  We didn't want that.  We just wanted to empower women to empower girls.  Simple, right?  You'd think so, but not so much.  We've been putting this thing together for a long time - and we're just at the pinnacle of the legal drama that we hope can be dealt with in a minimal amount of time and with a minimal amount of money!  We can't possibly know how to promote classes in someone else's community better than they can.  We don't know what issues are most important in their town that their girls are having to deal with.  How could we know what timeframe was going to work best for our teachers families?  We can't - and that's why we've opted for a licensing package.  We want to empower and support not dictate and require.  It's been an incredible ride so far - and we're just ramping up.  I hope you'll choose to join us in this adventure.  It's so exciting to get in on the ground floor of what you feel in your gut will be really big one day.  Come along for the ride - can you feel it?  We're coming . . .

Can't wait --

Kathy