Sylvan Learning Opens Salt Lake City for Franchise Sales; Plans 50% Growth in New Centers in the Region by 2010

Sylvan Learning Opens Salt Lake City for Franchise Sales; Plans 50% Growth in New Centers in the Region by 2010

Existing Corporate Centers Also Available in Layton and Ogden

BALTIMORE, Aug. 20 // PRNewswire // -- Sylvan Learning, Inc., North America's most recognized provider of supplemental education, is rapidly expanding its national footprint with today's announcement that Salt Lake City, UT is now open for franchise sales. Sylvan Learning is seeking franchisees to develop four new territories in the region, as well as purchase two of its existing corporate-owned centers in Layton and Ogden.

Sylvan Learning currently operates approximately 1,100 centers worldwide in 49 states and six provinces in Canada, as well as 10 countries. With unprecedented sales growth of more than 150 percent in 2008, Sylvan Learning is now seeking franchisee candidates in Salt Lake City to be a part of a national expansion plan to increase its U.S. presence over time. Currently, there are eight Sylvan Learning centers operating in Utah. In addition to Layton and Ogden, there are centers in American Fork, Orem, Salt Lake City, Sandy, St. George and Taylorsville.

"To fuel this growth in and around Salt Lake City, Sylvan Learning is actively seeking qualified franchisees who possess an entrepreneurial spirit, have a passion for the communities they will serve, and are interested in helping children build confidence and success in school and in life," said Curt Hapward, Sylvan Learning's vice president of franchising.

Sylvan has served more than two million students since 1979. In 2008, Sylvan Learning was ranked number 57 in Franchise Times magazine's "Top 200 Systems" based on total number of units and has been ranked 24 times in Entrepreneur magazine's "Franchise 500 Ranking," the industry's premier franchise ranking. Most recently, Sylvan was named one of the "25 Top Franchises for Hispanic American ownership" by Poder Enterprise magazine, and was ranked in Bond's "Top 100 Franchises."

"In an economy where unemployment is on the rise, we are finding that the supplemental education market is surprisingly resilient, and as a result, there has been increased interest from entrepreneurs who are looking to join the Sylvan Learning family," said Hapward. "We will be looking for our new and existing franchisees to continue to satisfy a growing demand in markets like Salt Lake City for high quality, individualized supplemental education."

Earlier this year, Salt Lake City entrepreneur, Nicholas Skene, joined Sylvan Learning's growing network of franchisees. Prior to joining Sylvan, Skene was an investment manager at FirstService, a large public property management company. His desire to operate a small business began as a graduate at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School and his passion for supplemental education came from his volunteer work with Rotary International's volunteer program at Olympus Junior High, where he helped students with their reading skills. In addition, his wife, Larisse, was a student at Sylvan as a child and went on to graduate at the top of her periodontal class.

"I have come from industries where most measures of success are monetary. It has been nothing but positive to participate in the Sylvan system that really helps boost families to where they want to be academically. It is so fulfilling to be able to measure success by the amount of good this business does for our students," said Skene.

There are additional opportunities in hundreds of communities across the U.S. for prospective franchisees to purchase a territory and start their own Sylvan Learning center. In addition to Layton and Ogden, Utah, Sylvan has identified more than 35 existing corporate-owned centers in the greater areas of Dallas, Philadelphia, Chicago, Houston, Washington D.C., Milwaukee, Sacramento and Orlando that the company is interested in converting to franchised centers. In those markets, interested franchisees have the potential to generate revenue from these existing centers ranging from $200,000 to $1 million.

Sylvan franchisees benefit from a $40 million advertising and marketing program designed to drive enrollment and conversion. In addition, all franchisees experience an unparalleled training program that prepares them, with or without educational experience, with the tools they need to succeed as business owners.

About Sylvan Learning

Sylvan Learning is the leading provider of in-center, online and at home tutoring to students of all ages, grades and skill levels. With 30 years of experience and approximately 1,100 centers located throughout North America and abroad, Sylvan's proven process and personalized instructional methods have inspired more than two million students to discover the joy of learning. Sylvan's trained and certified instructors provide individual instruction in reading, writing, mathematics, study skills and test-prep for college entrance and state exams. Sylvan helps transform unique kids into uniquely inspired learners with the skills to do better in school and the confidence to do better in everything else.


SOURCE Sylvan Learning, Inc.

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