GRADUATES INVEST IN PERFORMING ARTS FRANCHISES

Two university leavers have swapped the jobs market for their own businesses by investing in Razzamataz Theatre Schools franchises.

Alison Beveridge (pictured), who has a first class honours degree in performance for live and recorded media, is the new owner of Razzamataz Durham.

ATTRACTED
“I always wanted to run my own business and was attracted by the prospect of running a theatre school,” Alison, 23, explains.

“I specifically wanted to go for a franchise, and in particular Razzamataz, because of the support from head office and other principals.

“As a young business owner, probably the toughest challenge I’m going to face is not being taken seriously.

“I may be young and not have a great deal of experience, but I’m fresh out of professional training and hungry for Razzamataz Durham to flourish and ignite the hearts and minds of the children and young people.”

Caroline Larcombe, also 23 and who has a drama degree, has recently opened Razzamataz Manchester South.

“I decided to run my own theatre school as I was searching for a rewarding opportunity that would allow me to fully utilise the skills I had learnt throughout my education and personal experiences,” she says.

“Since my training and experience lies in performing rather than the business side of things, I knew I would struggle to start a school from scratch and appreciated the idea of being part of an already successful company.”

She adds: “The biggest challenge for me has been the business side of things.

“But there is a lot of support from head office and the other franchisees have offered advice and recommendations based on their own experiences and this has been invaluable.”

INVESTMENT
Razzamataz is reducing its franchise fee to £7,999 from £9,995 for a limited period, plus the company will waive the management fee for the first term.