STEVESTON KIDS®

Number of employees: Four.  Time in business: 18 months

What is your business? I operate an indoor playground for children. It's a toddler-friendly place, but there are also activities for kids up to age 12. We have a bouncy castle, jungle gym, separate areas for babies and toddlers, scooters, air hockey and ping pong. We also host birthday parties. We're also in the middle of renovating so we can offer daycare, full-time and part-time, as well as drop-in daycare on weekends so parents can do their shopping.

How did you get into this business? I was at home with my own kids and I found there wasn't really anywhere to take them. Somewhere for toddlers to go and play, just to get out of the house. I needed to do something -- I had too much time on my hands at home with the kids. I spent more than a year researching, making a business plan and finding equipment. In August 2006 I opened the play centre in a 5,000- square-foot open warehouse.

What is unique about your business? I think we are the most toddler-friendly play centre. You can sit in the cafe and see over the wall to watch your kids play, and babies can crawl around on the mats safely. And there are no stairs. My business is owned, designed and operated

by me -- a mom who knows the importance of safety, variety and cleanliness.

What do you like most about your work? I love everything about it, even the stress. I built everything myself and I take a lot of pride in it. And I get to bring my boys to work with me. They are five and three now and they call themselves the supervisors. They have so many friends it's not even

funny.

What is your biggest challenge? Balancing home and work. It's hard to stop working and go home, and sometimes it's hard to leave home and go to work.

Future plans? I have hired three licensed childcare workers and we're just waiting now for the city to approve the daycare. Once it's running, I'm going to enroll in an early childhood education program, and I'm also looking at maybe franchising the play centres. I'd like to have KidZone Playcentres in towns where they don't have anything like this, maybe in the North or on Vancouver Island. But I have to see how the daycare goes first.

© The Vancouver Province 2008