MUMBO Owner Profile: Meet Casey Enders

Unleashed Brands loves to feature first-person interviews with some of our most successful multi-unit and multi-brand (MUMBO) franchisees. We took their answers and put them in a testimonial format, so you can learn more about how each of these franchisees found the perfect youth enrichment brand to fulfill their business ownership dreams.

One such example is Casey Enders who, along with her husband, own and operate multiple Little Gym locations and one Snapology franchise in the nation’s bustling Beltway Corridor in northern Virginia. Below, in her own words, Casey shares the backstory of their personal entrepreneurial journey and explains the “why” behind their decision to become multi-unit, multi-brand owners with Unleashed Brands.

Background

“I was born and raised in Virginia and studied politics at the University of Virginia (UVA). After graduating, I joined McKinsey & Company, a business consulting firm, as an advisor on for profit and nonprofit companies. It was a full-on role with travel every week, but I did meet my husband there, so that was a plus. I later became a political policy director and ran a nonprofit for a couple of years, but I discovered I sort of missed the business world. After my first daughter was born, I went back into management consulting with my own firm. The only thing I found lacking was my desire to broaden my operational experience, which just so happened to coincide with an opportunity to buy a non-franchised children’s business. The deal fell through at the last moment, leaving both my husband and I feeling more disappointed than we expected – so we got more proactive about it. Now raising two young children, we reached out to Unleashed Brands and discovered an existing Little Gym franchise for sale in the D.C. area. We were already familiar with the concept because we took our daughter there in the past. We purchased our first Little Gym location from the previous owners in February 2023.”

On Choosing an Entrepreneurial Future

“Growing up, I never saw myself as very entrepreneurial. I was raised in a 9-to-5 culture where finding and keeping a good job and a steady paycheck were the ultimate goals. But my views gradually changed over time, for many reasons. After we had kids and lost out on the initial ownership opportunity, I began to see the value in having more freedom and flexibility, not to mention the legacy business ownership would offer our family in the future. Pursuing franchise ownership now feels like it was our destiny.”

What Attracted You to the Snapology and The Little Gym Opportunities?

“There were a couple of leading factors involved. That both The Little Gym and Snapology are family-oriented businesses really spoke to me. I’ve worked with kids and young adults all my life in one capacity or another and after having our children, that desire only got stronger. Of course, there were lots of business opportunities to consider, but these two just had a happy, healthy vibe for us – a place where it would feel good to get up and go to work every day. That was the opposite of my own experience in Corporate America, so that ended up being the missing piece of the puzzle, so to speak. It really feels possible to build a lasting legacy as multi-unit owners of these youth enrichment brands.”

Tell Us About Getting Started With Snapology and The Little Gym

“When we first got our Little Gym location organized, thankfully the existing gym director – who was an absolute rock star – agreed to stay on. That made the transition so much easier because we were all still so new at this. As for Snapology, we signed our agreements and began training in June 2023 but didn’t begin offering classes until January of this year. I co-own this business with my sister which has been an absolute joy, and there was a six-to-nine month workup involved where it was just fun to figure things out together and make slow and steady progress. Yes, it was challenging, but in a good way. We’ve just sold our 10^th class and we’ve been so fortunate to have a network of very capable, collaborative Snapology owners in our network. We got connected early on with one of the best in the business and their help has been invaluable in helping us get to where we are today. The Snapology community has been a real gift to us as new owners.”

Why Do You Think You Were a Fit for Both of These Franchise Opportunities?

“Like I said, it just goes back to my history in working with kids and young adults–and having my own children made these brands a better fit than before. With Snapology in particular, my sister and I were fortunate enough to attend a STEM school that’s located in our Snapology territory when we were in high school. My sister ended up with a degree in computer science and, like me, wanted to bring this same knowledge to our community. We wanted this type of learning to be an opportunity for all, not just a select few. As for The Little Gym, I’m a former high school and college cheerleader, so I know how much movement and flexibility are important to development in children and young adults. Couple that with the stellar reputation that The Little Gym and Snapology enjoy at the community level, and we knew we were with a winning concept. They have such an excellent brand reputation at the local level. That’s why we were customers long before we were owners.”

What Have These Business Opportunity Afforded You That You Might Not Have Otherwise?

“Oh gosh, I’d have to say on the positive side that the freedom and flexibility business ownership offers is simply unmatched. I can be home with our kids. My husband, who used to travel up to four days a week, no longer has that hectic schedule. For someone who really wanted to be present when raising children, this opportunity is simply irreplaceable. I think it can be difficult to express the difference if you’ve never experienced entrepreneurship before. You take these positives and add to it the fact that Unleashed Brands eliminates so much of the risk in owning a business of your own. You’ve got the blueprint, you’ve got the plan, you’ve got the training, and you’ve got the ongoing support – not just from corporate, but the entire network of like-minded franchisees in the system.”

What Does the Future Hold for You?

“Because we’ve had such a good experience, we’re already in expansion mode. We’re operating our first two locations of the Little Gym and will be launching a third one later this year. In fact, we just signed a new area agreement so that we can open an additional three locations for a total of six by the end of 2026. With Snapology, we still have the one location, but will look to expand once we’ve scaled the business properly. Both of these businesses are such community minded opportunities. We’re laying the groundwork for creating a family enterprise that we can one day get all of our family involved and make it a legacy opportunity.”

A Little More About Us…

As the parent company, Unleashed Brands was founded to curate and grow the most innovative and profitable business opportunities that help kids learn, play and grow. Over the last 10 years, the team at Unleashed Brands has built a proven platform and know-how for scaling businesses that focus on serving families. All have become first-in-category brands by providing fun, engaging, and inspiring experiences that help kids with their No. 1 development goal – to become who they were destined to be.

To speak with one of our franchise experts and learn more about our children’s business opportunities, simply fill out this form and an Unleashed Brands representative will be in touch shortly.