Key Takeaways from Bright Years Academy Founder April Lukasik at the 2026 International Franchise Expo (IFE)

How do you take a business built to solve a real problem and turn it into a franchise brand that can successfully grow into new communities?

That question was at the heart of the conversation when Bright Years Academy Founder & President April Lukasik took the stage at the 2026 International Franchise Expo (IFE) in New York City. April joined Kim Coe of Small Town Play Café for Female Leaders in Franchising: Building Brands That Scale, a conversation led by Dawn Abbamondi of SMB Franchise Advisors about what it takes to build a strong business, prepare for franchising, find the right growth partners, and scale without losing sight of the mission behind the brand.

It’s a subject April knows firsthand.

What began in 1996 as one mother’s determination to create the kind of early childhood education experience she wanted for her own children has grown into 11 company-owned Bright Years Academy locations and, 30 years later, a franchise opportunity designed to bring that experience to communities beyond Connecticut.

Founder & President April and Executive Vice President (as well as April’s daughter and first BYA student!) Sydney Pugliares also spent time connecting with aspiring entrepreneurs and prospective franchise owners at the Bright Years Academy booth throughout IFE, sharing more about the brand, its history, and where it is headed next.

Here are seven of the biggest lessons from April’s journey from founder to franchisor and what they can mean for entrepreneurs considering franchise ownership.

1. Great Businesses Start by Solving Real Problems

Bright Years Academy began because April saw a need firsthand.

As a new mother in 1996, she struggled to find the kind of early childhood education and child care experience she wanted for her own children. Instead of accepting what was available, she set out to create something better.

That original challenge ultimately became the foundation for a business that has served families for three decades.

For entrepreneurs evaluating franchise opportunities, the lesson is an important one: strong businesses often succeed because they address a genuine and ongoing need. High-quality child care and early education are essential services for working families and communities, giving the right operators an opportunity to build a business around something people truly need.

2. Passion Starts a Business. Purpose Helps Sustain It.

Entrepreneurship requires more than enthusiasm for an idea. Long-term growth requires a clear understanding of why the business exists in the first place.

For Bright Years Academy, that purpose has remained remarkably consistent even as the organization has grown: provide children with a strong foundation for life while supporting the families who depend on high-quality early education.

One question has guided every decision along the way: Would this be good enough for my own child?

That standard has influenced everything from the Bright Years Curriculum to center environments, operating procedures, technology, and the support systems behind the business.

For prospective franchise owners, a strong mission provides something equally valuable. It creates a framework for making decisions as the business grows and evolves.

3. You Don’t Have to Know Everything on Day One

Every entrepreneur brings an existing set of skills to a new venture. Building a successful business also requires being willing to develop new ones.

April’s professional experience provided valuable knowledge when she opened the first Bright Years Academy, but becoming a franchise founder introduced entirely new challenges. Each stage of growth required learning, adapting, solving problems, and strengthening the business.

That experience has particular relevance for entrepreneurs considering a child care franchise opportunity.

Bright Years franchise owners are not required to come from an early childhood education background. The model is designed for business-minded operators who can provide leadership and oversight while an experienced center Director manages day-to-day operations. Franchisees also receive structured training across operations, management, marketing, curriculum execution, technology, and other areas of the business.

You bring your entrepreneurial experience. Bright Years provides the framework.

4. Franchising Wasn’t the Starting Point. It Was the Next Chapter.

Bright Years Academy wasn’t created with franchising as the end goal.

For decades, the focus was on operating exceptional centers, serving families, refining the curriculum, strengthening systems, investing in people, and learning what it takes to operate successfully in early childhood education.

Only after 30 years of real operating experience did franchising become the logical next step. That distinction matters for entrepreneurs considering franchise opportunities.

A franchise system is only as strong as the business behind it. Bright Years enters franchising with a model developed through decades of hands-on experience across 11 company-owned centers. The systems franchisees receive weren’t created solely for a franchise concept. They were developed, refined, and used in actual operating locations.

5. Growth Should Never Come at the Expense of Quality

Growing from one location to a network of early childhood education centers required discipline. Each new Bright Years location presented an opportunity to learn what could be standardized, what needed to be improved, and where additional systems and support could create greater consistency.

But growth has never meant lowering the standard.

Instead, expansion has helped Bright Years strengthen its processes, refine operations, invest in technology, develop its proprietary curriculum, and establish the leadership structure needed to support multiple locations.

Those lessons now form part of the franchise systems and support available to Bright Years franchise owners.

For an entrepreneur entering a new industry, that experience can make an important difference. Rather than building every process independently, franchisees step into an established framework while remaining responsible for leading and growing their own business.

6. Building a Legacy Is Even More Meaningful When It’s Shared

When the first Bright Years Academy opened, creating a multigenerational family business wasn’t necessarily the plan.

Thirty years later, the next generation has joined the organization, bringing new perspectives and expertise while preserving the principles on which the company was built.

Today, Bright Years combines decades of early childhood education and operational experience with modern approaches to technology, marketing, growth, and franchise development.

Now, franchising creates an opportunity to share that legacy even further.

Bright Years franchise owners can build something meaningful of their own while bringing a proven early childhood education model to their local communities. A successful center can support working families, create local jobs, provide children with high-quality early education, and establish a business an owner can continue growing for years to come.

As the Bright Years network expands, each franchise owner becomes part of a larger story while building a legacy of their own.

6. Scaling With the Right Partners Matters

Growth isn’t simply about getting bigger. It’s about finding the right people to grow with.

That has been one of the most important lessons as Bright Years Academy has moved into franchising. The goal isn’t to award as many territories as possible. It’s to build relationships with franchise owners who share the organization’s commitment to quality, leadership, community impact, and long-term success.

The strongest franchise relationships are built on aligned values, open communication, mutual trust, and a shared vision for where the brand can go.

For Bright Years, this is especially important at the beginning of its franchise journey. The entrepreneurs joining the system today have the opportunity to grow alongside a franchise backed by 30 years of operating experience while helping bring an established early childhood education model to new families and communities.

Finding the right franchise opportunity matters. Finding the right franchise partner does, too.

Could Bright Years Academy Be Your Next Chapter?

The journey from one center in 1996 to a growing early childhood education franchise wasn’t built around a single breakthrough. It was shaped by three decades of solving problems, refining systems, listening, learning, and staying focused on a clear purpose.

Today, those lessons have become the foundation for the next generation of Bright Years Academy owners.

If you’re an entrepreneur, existing business owner, or investor looking for a child care or early childhood education franchise opportunity that combines established operating experience with the opportunity to make a meaningful impact in your community, Bright Years Academy offers a chance to build your own business without starting from scratch.

Explore the path to franchise ownership and discover what building your next chapter with Bright Years could look like.