Primrose Schools Builds a More Scalable Franchise Model for Future Growth
Primrose Schools is entering another phase of expansion, but the preschool franchise is putting as much attention on infrastructure as it is on opening new locations.
The company has been reshaping its leadership team, strengthening franchise-owner support and building more structured operational systems across a network that now includes more than 570 schools.
For a franchise organization of that size, growth requires more than finding new operators. It requires systems that can support first-time owners, experienced franchisees and multi-unit developers without allowing individual school performance or brand standards to slip.
That appears to be where Primrose is concentrating its efforts.
Preparing the Franchise System to Scale
Primrose entered 2026 with significant development activity.
The company announced 27 new school commitments during the first part of the year. Five represented individual schools, while two larger development agreements accounted for 11 future schools each.
Ten new locations had also opened during that period, including the brand’s first school in Louisiana.
Primrose is pursuing additional development in several major markets, including New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Detroit, Phoenix, Memphis and Southern California.
But adding schools creates another challenge: supporting them effectively after the franchise agreement is signed.
Primrose’s recent organizational changes suggest the company is building the infrastructure needed to manage that challenge.
Franchise Support Takes a Larger Role
Chief Franchise Officer Dr. Amy Jackson is playing a central role in the strategy.
Jackson previously worked closely with the educational side of Primrose, including the company’s Balanced Learning approach. Her current responsibilities place greater emphasis on franchise-owner performance, operational execution and support.
That connection between education and operations is particularly relevant in the preschool business.
A franchise owner must run a financially healthy business while also maintaining educational quality, staffing standards, regulatory compliance and strong relationships with parents.
As the system grows, Primrose is creating more structured ways to help owners handle those responsibilities.
Recent franchise-owner training at the company’s Support Center has included hands-on instruction involving school performance strategies, tools and platforms, leadership and operating practices.
Primrose has also been strengthening local marketing support so individual schools can make better use of their marketing investments and connect campaigns more closely with enrollment results.
Leadership Roles Reflect the Needs of a Larger Brand
Primrose’s executive structure is increasingly designed around specialized areas of franchise performance.
Rob Gray serves as chief financial officer, bringing experience from his earlier position as chief accounting officer and focusing on financial discipline as the system expands.
Chief Commercial Officer Greg Foglesong oversees marketing, digital strategy, analytics, public relations and consumer insights.
Pam Turner holds the combined position of chief of staff and chief information officer, helping coordinate strategic initiatives, technology and execution across several departments.
Chief Legal Officer Kristin Goran oversees legal matters along with franchise administration and human resources.
Together with Jackson, those executives give Primrose dedicated leadership across many of the functions that become more complicated as a franchise system moves from hundreds of units toward an even larger national footprint.
Multi-Unit Ownership Could Become Increasingly Important
Another part of Primrose’s strategy involves attracting operators capable of developing more than one school.
Multi-unit ownership can help franchisors expand faster because experienced owners already understand the system and can often build stronger management infrastructure across several locations.
Primrose’s development model also allows different paths into the system, including new development, acquisitions and conversions.
That flexibility may help the company attract investors with backgrounds in areas such as real estate, operations and multi-unit business management.
Existing franchisees are another important source of growth. When successful owners choose to add additional locations, it can reduce some of the uncertainty that comes with entering completely new markets with inexperienced operators.
Growth Is Becoming an Operational Question
Primrose is already a large player in early education franchising. The bigger question is how effectively the company can support its network as the number of schools continues climbing.
The current changes suggest Primrose is treating expansion as an operational challenge rather than simply a sales target.
More training, stronger local marketing systems, specialized executive leadership and additional resources for franchise owners can all help create a franchise organization capable of handling a larger footprint.
For Primrose Schools, the next chapter of growth may therefore be less about opening schools as quickly as possible and more about building the infrastructure that allows each new school to perform effectively once its doors open.
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