How often in your life have you had to get lost on the streets of an unfamiliar city abroad? Or maybe you were asked in English how to get to such and such an address, but you didn’t know what to answer? Let's fix this unacceptable mistake once and for all and learn how to correctly ask for directions on, and also learn how to tell other people in a difficult situation.

Everyone who has ever traveled has probably tried to ask for directions in English. However, not everyone knows how to ask the way in order to be understood by foreigners as much as possible. In addition, when we are suddenly asked in English how to get somewhere, it is also not always possible to remember the right words. However, it's all about a few phrases that you just need to remember.

We give directions in English

The picture shows the main directions of movement with translation:

Go straight on until you come to a crossroads. - Go straight to the crossroads.

Turn left into Gordon Street. - Turn left onto Gordon Street.

Take the next left. - The next turn is to the left.

Take the second road on the left . - Turn left on the second road (second lane).

Turn right at the traffic lights. - Turn right at the traffic lights.

It's opposite the church. - It's opposite the church.

It's next to the bank. - It's next to the bank.

It's between the school and the shop. - It's between the school and the store.

It's at the end of the road. - It's at the end of the road.

It's on the corner of Market Street and Baker Street. - It's on the corner of Market Street and Baker Street.

It's just behind this building. - It's behind this building.

It's in front of the school. - It's in front of the school.

It's just around the corner. - It's around the corner here.

It's on the left/right. - It (is) on the left / on the right.

It's around the corner.- It's around the corner.

It is better if you take a taxi. - It's better to take a taxi.

It's 500 meters from here. - It's 500 meters from here.

Bank Street is parallel to this street. - Bank Street is parallel to this street.

Penny Street is perpendicular to this street. - Penny Street is perpendicular to this street.

It's four blocks down the street on this side of the road. - It's four blocks down this side of the street.

Turn right at the round about. - Turn right at the road roundabout.

Asking for directions: useful expressions

Use these blank phrases to ask for directions in an unfamiliar place:

I'm trying to get to the museum. - I'm trying to get into the museum (I need to find my way to the museum).

Do you know where the post office is? - Do you know where the post office is?

What's the best way to get to the train station? - What is the best way to get to the railway station?

Can you give me directions to the nearest bus stop? Can you give directions to the nearest bus stop?

How do I get to the train station? — How to get to the railway station?

Where can I find the nearest bakery? Where can I find the nearest bakery?

How can I get to the bank? - How to get to the bank?

Where is the hospital? - Where is the hospital?

Don't forget to be polite:

Exuse me, how can I go to the library? - Excuse me how to get to the library?

Exuse me, is there a supermarket near here? — Excuse me, is there a supermarket anywhere nearby?

Pardon me, I'm lost, how do I get to the library? — Sorry, I'm lost, how can I get to the library?

Could you please, tell me how to get to the computer store? — Could you tell me how to get to the computer store?

Dialogue on the topic

If the presented material seems insufficient to you, I suggest moving on to a dialogue on the topic of orientation in English. Here you will find many additional phrases about how to ask for directions or help someone by indicating the direction of travel.

Fill in the gaps in the sentences with the following words: east, bank, school, roundabout, third, church

The dialogue is quite interesting and simple, so try to translate it yourself. Moreover, you received enough hints in this lesson, so you can use them when translating.

Lenny: Excuse me, I'm trying to find a pub called the Cock & Bull. Could you point me in the right direction?

George: Ah… the Cock & Bull. I know it well. excellent pub.

Lenny: Oh, great. I'm new to the city and I'm supposed to meet a friend there, but I haven't got a clue where I am.

George: Right. Go straight ahead. Then, take the (1) _______ road on your left. That's Queen Street. Follow it until you pass a (2) ________, and then… No, hang on. That's not right.

Lenny: Oh, I can ask someone else if you're not sure.

George: No, no. I know London like the back of my hand… OK. Ignore everything I just said. From here, you want to get onto Charles Street, which is parallel to this street. Then walk (3) ______ about 500 meters until you see an old (4) _______. Turn right at the church and… Wait a minute…

Lenny: I've got a map here...

George: I don't need a map. I've lived here all my life. And the Cock & Bull isn't far. Excellent pub, by the way. They do a fantastic steak and kidney pie… Or was it steak and mushroom? Anyway. Go about four hundred meters that way and when you get to a (5)____________, hang a left. Walk for another two minutes and you'll see a (5)_________ on the opposite side of the road. The pub is just next to the bank. You can't miss it.

Lenny: Great! thank you!

George: No, hold on… That's where the pub used to be. It moved 15 years ago.

Lenny: Maybe I should ask someone else.

George: No, no, I'm your man. I practically live at the Bear & Bull.

Lenny: You mean the Cock & Bull.

George: No, the Bear & Bull.

Lenny: I'm trying to get to the Cock & Bull.

George: The Cock & Bull? No ideas! Never heard of it! Goodbye!

It is in such a funny form that dialogues can take place in our lives. Anyway, this dialogue showed us how to give directions in English in real life, as well as how to ask passers-by for directions. As you can see, passers-by can not always help, so you need to be more patient and not despair.

In the conditions of convergence of business relations between countries, an increase in the tourist flow and globalization, the study of foreign languages ​​is becoming a necessity for an increasing number of Russians. According to statistics, 46% of our compatriots do not leave the dream of learning foreign languages. At the same time, they are driven by different goals: someone would like to study in order to meet the requirements of the time (13%), 14% of Russians want to feel free when traveling abroad, 11% would ensure their career growth with the help of knowledge of a foreign language, 9% understand that such knowledge is necessary for communication, and 7-8% would like to easily read labels on foreign-made goods, information on foreign websites, understand instructions, etc. Based on these observations, we can conclude that the services of schools that teach foreign languages ​​to everyone are quite in demand.

Language schools provide a full range of services for learning not only the most popular languages, but also rare languages ​​for different levels of student preparedness. Passing the basic courses, students can move on to the next, more complex stages. At first glance, the competition in this industry is high. Nevertheless, as practice shows, a new school, with the right positioning, can quickly attract regular customers.

The amount of initial investment is 870 320 rubles.

The break-even point is reached in the fourth month of work.

The payback period is from 11 months.

2. Description of the business, product or service

Before opening a foreign language school, you need to decide whether you will issue documents to students confirming the completion of a particular course at your school. If you choose to self-teach, you will not need a license, but you will not be able to issue government-issued graduation documents to students. This option is easier in terms of registering a company and is suitable for teaching adults, for whom it is not the papers that prove education, but the real level of knowledge that are important. If you want to issue documents confirming the qualifications of graduates, you will need to obtain a license from the local department of the Ministry of Education. With this type of organization, the client, upon completion of training, can receive a certificate or certificate of additional education.

The target audience of language schools depends on the focus of your school. If you are ready to provide services to both preschool children and active pensioners, then the age of your clients will vary from 3 to 60 years. Since the services of language schools are not classified as cheap, visitors, as a rule, have an average and above average income.

Before you open an English or other language school, you should decide which languages ​​will be taught, as well as what the audience of the courses will be - adults or children. English is the most commonly used language, followed by German and French, followed by Italian and Spanish. If possible, courses in rarer languages ​​such as Chinese, Japanese, or some other exotic language should be organized. In certain cases, they are very popular and will become a feature of your project that distinguishes you from the rest.

Among the main areas of study in your school may be present:

• preparation for international testing;

• testing on TOEFL, CALE, GMAT, IELTS systems;

• express training in fluency in colloquial speech.

The average duration of a foreign language course is 4-8 months, which corresponds to 64-128 academic hours. After completing the course, students take a test and receive a document indicating that they have received a certain amount of knowledge. Recruitment in groups is carried out 2-3 times a month in English and 1-2 times a month in other languages. The main flow of students falls on evening groups (from 17:00-21:00), the lowest attendance is observed during the day, since at this time many are at work or study. Each group of students consists of 4-6 people. It is important that the number of students be even, as in the learning process you often have to work in pairs to get better results. An example of the placement of groups and the schedule of a language school on a weekday with two classes is as follows:

Time	Class A	Class B
		English
	English
		French
	English	French
	English	Spanish

Groups are expected to be recruited in the following formats:

• evening groups;
• morning groups;
• day groups;
• weekend groups.

This business is seasonal: as a rule, the flow of visitors decreases in the summer months, and resumes in September. Working hours of language schools: daily from 08:00 to 21:00, as there is a need to collect both morning and evening groups.

3. Description of the market

Language school clients can be segmented as follows:

• According to the purpose of applying to a language school:

Clients whose profession requires knowledge of the language, and career growth depends on it;

Clients who want to improve their level of knowledge of foreign languages ​​for more comfortable travel abroad;

Clients who have a need to learn additional languages ​​in order to improve their own level of education, who want to keep up with the trends of the modern world;

Clients who need to raise their level of knowledge of foreign languages ​​for admission to a university or school;

Corporate clients.

• According to the requirements for conducting classes:

Students who wish to study in groups (usually 4-6 people).

• According to the age:

Pupils and students who want to learn new languages, in addition to those that are in the school curriculum or improve their knowledge of the main language;

Working people who know a foreign language requires work, or ordinary interest and passion for travel;

Pensioners who are accustomed to travel, discover something new, develop.

In percentage terms, the target audience looks like this:

Having studied your target audience, you need to decide who exactly you will provide your services to. The choice of audience determines the focus of your school, the range of languages ​​offered and the marketing policy. Another important success factor is the analysis of your competitors. As a rule, 80-100 foreign language schools have been opened in cities with a population of up to 4 million people. It is necessary to familiarize yourself with the range of languages ​​offered by competitors, with the prices for their services, and the level of qualification of the staff. After the analysis, it is important to identify the competitive advantage that will set you apart from the rest. These include a convenient location, low prices, the possibility of installment payment, the author's teaching methods, and the offer to study exotic languages.

4. Sales and Marketing

5. Production plan

Let us designate the main stages of launching a school of foreign languages.

1. Registration with government agencies

First you need to obtain an appropriate license allowing educational activities. The list of documents required to obtain a license is as follows:

• Application for a license;
• Details of documents confirming that the applicant has a license on the right of ownership or other legal basis of buildings, structures, structures, premises and territories (including equipped classrooms, objects for conducting practical classes, objects of physical culture and sports) in each of the places of educational activities, as well as copies of title documents in the event that the rights to these buildings, structures, structures, premises and territories and transactions with them are not subject to mandatory state registration;
• Signed by the head of the organization carrying out educational activities, a certificate on the material and technical support of educational activities for educational programs;
• Copies of documents confirming the availability of conditions for nutrition and health protection of students;
• Certificate of availability of educational programs developed and approved by the organization carrying out educational activities;
• Details of the sanitary and epidemiological conclusion issued in accordance with the established procedure on the compliance with the sanitary rules of buildings, structures, structures, premises, equipment and other property necessary for the implementation of educational activities;
• Details of the conclusion on the compliance of the object of protection with the mandatory requirements of fire safety in the implementation of educational activities (if the license applicant is an educational organization);
• A certificate signed by the head of the organization carrying out educational activities on the availability of special conditions for obtaining education by students with disabilities;
• A certificate signed by the head of the organization carrying out educational activities on the availability of conditions for the functioning of the electronic information and educational environment in the presence of educational programs using exclusively e-learning, distance learning technologies;
• Description of attached documents.

Since the list of documents is quite voluminous, it is possible to contact a specialized organization that will collect the documents for you, the cost of services will be 50,000 rubles. To conduct commercial activities, you can register as an individual entrepreneur, non-profit educational institution or as a legal entity. It is more expedient to register as an individual entrepreneur with a simplified taxation system (6% of income). This will save you the hassle of completing a lot of additional paperwork. A pleasant factor of this event will be that at present the license will not need to be renewed every 5 years, as it was before. Now, once you have received a license to conduct educational activities, this will be enough for you to then engage in it at least for the rest of your life.

2. Search for premises and repair

The successful location of the premises can be considered close proximity to the subway, educational institutions, shopping centers. It is desirable to have free parking and convenient transport interchange. When choosing a room, you need to pay attention to lighting, sanitary conditions, the availability of a bathroom, etc. The optimal size of the premises for a school is from 100 sq.m., this will be enough for two classes and a reception room with a receptionist. The cost of rent will be about 50,000-70,000 rubles. You may have to make cosmetic repairs and invite a designer who integrates the style of your logo into the interior of the room, lay at least 50,000 rubles for this.

3. Purchase of the necessary equipment and inventory

To open a school of foreign languages, the following equipment and inventory is required:

Name	Amount	The cost of 1 piece, rub.	Total amount, rub.
Magnetic whiteboard
Educational material
A computer
wifi router
Stationery
Microwave
Electric kettle
Wardrobe
Microwave
Total

4. Personnel search

You can search for employees (teachers, administrators, accountants) in the following ways:

1. Through specialized sites (for example, hh.ru). The advantage of this method is the ability to see the exact work experience, reviews of previous employers, qualifications, availability of certificates. However, access to applicants' resumes is paid, the cost is about 15,000 rubles;
2. Collecting information through acquaintances is the cheapest and easiest method of finding staff;
3. Posting vacancies in specialized groups on social networks - in the most popular groups, this service is paid, the method can give a good response, the audience of large groups starts from 100,000 people;
4. Monitoring of teachers of general education and private schools with a subsequent job offer.

5. Marketing policy

Initially, you need to place a sign or pillar of your school. Coordination, production and installation of a sign will cost you about 50,000 rubles. The sign will not give the desired effect without additional incentives for customers, so the budget should also include the cost of printed materials (promo leaflets) and the promoter's salary (about 10,000 rubles). For complex work, it is necessary to resort to online methods for promoting your project, in this case, about 100,000 rubles should be budgeted for the creation and promotion of the site, and about 10,000 rubles for the development and creation of a group on a social network. Over time, when you develop a client base, these types of costs will decrease, the main flow of students will come to you on the advice of friends and acquaintances.

6. Organizational structure

In order for your school to function smoothly, you need to hire the following employees: teachers, administrators, cleaner, accountant.

The key personnel in your business will, of course, be teachers, because the presentation of material, the level of knowledge of students and the impression of your school as a whole depend on their professionalism and sociability. If you plan to offer students the most popular and accessible languages, then at first you can limit yourself to hiring one specialist for each language. The requirements for teachers are the presence of higher education, excellent knowledge of spoken and written languages, work experience of at least two years, knowledge of the cultural characteristics of English-speaking (and other) countries, the presence of a comprehensive and proven teaching methodology. The teacher's salary consists of a salary (15,000 rubles) and interest, depending on the number of lessons he has given.

Your school administrators will work in shifts, 2 by 2, so you need to hire two employees. Requirements for administrators are limited to communication skills, friendliness, and a high level of discipline. Their responsibilities include receiving calls and letters, registering clients for classes, forming groups, maintaining a group on social networks, providing the school with the necessary equipment (stationery, cooler, etc.). It is necessary to allocate 20,000 rubles to the budget for the salaries of administrators. for each employee.

In addition, you should be puzzled by the search for a cleaner who cleans the premises 3-4 times a week. This employee has a part-time job and a flexible work schedule. It is better to hire an accountant on a remote basis or contact an outsourcing company in order to reduce taxes and other expenses.

Also, you can not do without a director who will perform the key functions of a manager. All personnel will be subordinate to him, it is he who makes decisions on hiring employees, determines their wages, builds a marketing policy, and interacts with counterparties. The director's salary depends on the financial results of the school; in general, it consists of a salary (25,000 rubles) and a percentage (5%) of the proceeds if the planned project indicators are met.

The general payroll changes monthly due to the percentage wage system. The salary fund in the first month of the school of foreign languages ​​is presented below:

General payroll
Staff	The number of employees	Salary per 1 employee (rub.)	Total salary (rub.)
Manager (salary + bonuses)
Teacher (salary+%)
Administrator
Cleaning woman
Accountant
General fund s/n

7. Financial plan

Investments in opening a language school are as follows:

Name	Amount	The cost of 1 piece, rub.	Total amount, rub.
Magnetic whiteboard
Educational material
A computer
wifi router

It all started with my decision to create a school of foreign languages ​​for children. To say that many potential titles have been considered is an understatement. Thinking through the options, we even asked for help - we left a request on one of the Internet services that deal with naming. I remember it was exciting to see how people from different parts of the world sent in hundreds of options for the name of the school. That's just all these options either already existed, or were literally sucked out of thin air. In addition, many people generally suggested crazy ideas, absolutely not taking into account the audience of our school, as well as the basic principles of naming.

As a result, I received about five hundred offers. And they are all past. Absolutely nothing stuck. So I had to open a school with a working name - I had to start. The question of the name remained open.

School days have begun. Students began to study languages, the lessons were held according to the schedule. And it was obvious that it was impossible to delay the search for a suitable name any further - this time we turned to Fox in Sox design studio. Despite the fact that usually experts in this field are approached at the stage when the name of the project is already ready, these wonderful guys were immediately imbued with the concept of the school, and it was decided to work together to create a unique brand. Together with them, we began to think, to generate options. As a result, several excellent versions have been selected.

And although among them there were definitely successful names in terms of marketing, everyone fell in love with the simple and sonorous Enot. And that's how it came about. At first, they came up with the phrase English note - an English note. To make it more concise, we shortened it - E.note. And when we read it aloud and it sounded, it dawned on us - ROCCOON! Here is the etymology.

Later, we began to understand more and more clearly how accurately we hit the target. No wonder the Raccoon has sunk into our hearts so much, because this is a suitable and very capacious name for the school. Perhaps the main idea is that for us the raccoon is essentially a reflection of the child. What associations does this animal usually evoke? Of course, this is an open, kind, but at the same time a cunning animal - just like our students, yes, perhaps, like all children. Therefore, it is he who is the best suited for the role of our symbol.

What is he, our raccoon from the school of foreign languages? This is a humanized character who can walk on his hind legs and even wears a backpack with textbooks and notebooks - the same as the guys. He likes to dress stylishly and can quite wag his beautiful striped tail. Our guy has a smile on his face, and a cool fashionable cap on his head. His image is made in the classic style of British universities, we just removed the excessive stiffness. And now we have a cool hero who looks so much like our students. They are modern, active, smart and very cute. Purposeful and inspiring. Passionate about learning new things. And, of course, they love all sorts of sweets.

At the same time, without such a quality as cunning, a raccoon would not be a raccoon. He has enough imagination and ingenuity to get out of any difficult situation. He is enterprising, sometimes a little mischievous, playful, mischievous and plays pranks - again, you can recognize any child in these qualities.

If you look closely at our coat of arms, you will notice oak leaves, which also fit into the concept of symbolism not by chance and very harmoniously. The fact is that this powerful tree, oak, in itself is associated with strength, wisdom, solidity and longevity. And we will strive to ensure that the life of our school is long and bright, and that students grow and develop, becoming wiser and more mature personalities.

Speaking about competitors and the market of educational services in general, we can safely say that in Russia it is oversaturated with supply and is highly competitive. You can find a service provider for every taste, in every price range.

At the same time, the market is promising and dynamically developing even in times of crisis. After all, the need to learn a foreign language is recognized by both optimists and pessimists. The former believe that everything will stabilize and do not want to change the usual rhythm of life (fitness, cafes, foreign language courses), while the latter are thinking of leaving the country (and urgently begin to improve their language).

Therefore, it is profitable to open a foreign language school, especially when you consider that investments at the start are minimal. But because of the high competition, it will not be superfluous to study the market. However, this is not necessary in all cases.

We did not cut the market, because at the time of opening we simply did not have the necessary experience. And, to be honest, we didn't need it, because we already had requests from potential clients.

We have exactly the case when demand gave rise to supply: we knew for sure that we would have a certain number of students. In a word, it has nothing to do with those cases when a company enters the market with some kind of product, not knowing whether it will be in demand at all.

In addition, we were already acting teachers, and to say that we opened a business from scratch is not entirely true. We had few skills directly related to running a business, but we had an idea of ​​how to organize the educational process, by the time we opened our own client base and teaching experience in a private school.

It was the latter that helped us at the very beginning. We watched how the director of this school conducts business, how contracts are concluded, corporate training takes place, we noticed mistakes that we would not like to repeat. We can say that the only competitor we have studied is the school where we ourselves worked.

Also, at the start, you need to decide which audience to work with. Today, foreign languages ​​in private schools are studied by people of all ages, starting from the age of 3. So you can work with kids, preschoolers, schoolchildren, students, working people and pensioners. Each category needs its own training program, and not just one. It is impossible to teach a first-grader and a graduate preparing for the Unified State Examination according to the same template. And it’s almost impossible to cover all segments of the population at the start, so it’s better to start working with a category with which you already have experience of interacting.

Personal experience

We started working with adults, and so far I have never worked with children in my life. Because I just don’t know the right approach to them, I can only observe it from the side as a mother. Therefore, we launched the "children's sector" in our schools much later, when I saw the effect of education on my child and invited a specialist to head the corresponding direction in our school.

If you want to start a business with something you don't know how, it's important to hire a good specialist. Moreover, you need to try out his method on yourself as a client, wait for the results. Because you can't convince people that your product is good without ever trying it. At the start, you need to do what you can, what you are ready for. Only this will ensure high quality of services.

This also applies to the choice of languages ​​that will be taught in your school. If, for example, you are thinking of launching a Spanish course without knowing about it and the advising market, nothing will come of it. You will not even be able to hire good specialists, as they are extremely reluctant to go to unknown schools.

It is best to start with one direction, work it out well and “run it in”, and only after that open new directions: launch courses in other languages, expand audience coverage. Something new at the school of foreign languages ​​should be launched regularly. Trying to sell the same thing for 10 years is very dangerous. Periodically, the market sags in each segment. The same English sometimes goes by the wayside, other languages ​​periodically become more popular, and in turn.

But the palette needs to be expanded gradually, starting from everything at once - the same as spraying. This is exactly the problem of many schools that declare many languages, but cannot gather groups, and as a result, dissatisfied clients, without waiting for the start of classes either in a month or two, leave. At the same time, they do not just take their money, they leave a negative impression, they no longer return to this school.

Investment size

Step-by-step instruction

In order to survive in a competitive environment and not dump prices, it is necessary to pay the greatest attention to the quality of the services provided. Therefore, after you have studied the business from the inside and collected the necessary amount of investment, you need to think over the issue with the curriculum in detail. First of all, it will depend on what audience you plan to work with at the start. For example, it is better to teach languages ​​to very young children through creativity: music, dancing, modeling, etc.

With adults, this is somewhat easier, but they also pursue different goals when they come to a foreign language school: someone wants to emigrate, someone needs a language for work, someone for travel. Accordingly, it is desirable to give different programs for different purposes.

When opening our school, we wrote several programs: business English, conversational English, financial, legal English, English for tourists, etc. We have taught all this before, so the programs were working and tested on people.

We currently have about 65 programs taught at our school, including very narrow areas such as interview preparation. All of them are written by professionals. And there is simply no other method than to involve a specialist in writing a program. For example, we now have a methodologist who has a higher pedagogical education and three years of experience in her specialty.

Another way is not to write your own program, but to use modern international class textbooks - textbooks from publishers such as Macmillan, Longman, Cambridge, etc. They offer their programs, which you can simply download on the Internet and follow the step-by-step instructions provided.

The teacher can also create a program on his own. But for this you need to conduct a lot of classes, describe them, writing down the dates, results, textbooks used. Only then will it be a truly normal training program.

Personal experience​​​​​​​

It was with the help of our teachers that we launched the teaching of German, French and Italian. Almost all teachers in our school have MSLU education, they all know at least two languages. When we had already formed the staff of our teachers, each of them spoke one more language. At this stage, it was easy to launch a second foreign language, because we were confident in the professionalism of our employees.

In general, the teacher is a key figure in this business. This is exactly the person who will "keep" your client. If you make a mistake with the teacher, the client will not stay with you with all the investments, beautiful offices, chic sales managers.

If the founder of the school himself has a specialized education, “boils” in this environment, then it will be much easier for him to recruit staff, simply because he can involve his classmates in the work.

Otherwise, you can search for teachers in standard ways, for example, through sites with announcements. It is also worth "monitoring" students and graduates of local universities. For example, I constantly interact with Moscow State Linguistic University, I know all the forums, I am present on all the sites where students sit, and I often write to them directly, asking if they want to apply after graduation to our staff.

Do not be afraid to hire young professionals. From the age of 21-22 you can work, while demonstrating all the talents and a high level of language proficiency - C1.

Sometimes applicants come to us, but after the interview, we advise them to start studying at our school at the Intermediate-Upper-Intermediate level, as they make a lot of mistakes in speech. This can often be found in the Moscow market.

Personal experience

By experience, we found out that a sign is important for a school. Initially, we thought that today people are looking for information, including about courses, on the Internet, which means that signs are not needed. But it turned out that when we rented an office with a front sign, 30% of clients came to us just passing by.

At the stage of brand formation, do not forget about PR: publications, free events, prize draws from partners. Try to find interesting partners and exchange audiences. It is very useful.

Even with the most competent promotion strategy, clients will not engage with you if it is inconvenient in time. At the start, my partner and I worked from 7 am to 10 pm ourselves, we looked at what time people were most active. Having studied the peaks in demand and having recruited a staff of professionals, we set the working day from 10:30 to 19:30. At the same time, the largest influx occurs in the evening: after work, people come to meetings, testing, demo lessons.

In addition, for the convenience of the client, they have to work on weekends, which was a big problem at first. Therefore, we have developed a duty regime. Now we have a person who works on Saturdays, but does not work on Mondays, and on Sunday one of the training coordinators is always on duty. It turns out that the employee is on duty once a month on Sunday and gets time off any day he wants. Thus, the office is almost always open, so the client can come at any time.

It goes without saying that long before the opening, it is necessary to take care of finding a suitable room for the school and its design. And there are a number of rules here too.

The school of foreign languages ​​must be located in a place with good traffic. We took it as an axiom for ourselves that the distance from the metro is no more than 6 minutes. The allowable indicator for Moscow is up to 10 minutes from the metro.

In other cities, it is also worth focusing on public transport stops. One way or another, people should be able to calmly walk to you, and not ride on the crossbars. It is highly desirable that the school has its own parking, but in the city center this may be a problem.

It seems to many novice entrepreneurs that the office must be located in the center. Perhaps there is some truth in this. For example, our central office is always packed to order. But when choosing a room "more central", it is important to consider one point:

In the center of competitors on every corner

In addition, rental rates in the central regions are quite high and can vary significantly. For example, you can rent a Class A office paying the appropriate price for it, while a competitor literally across the street rents a Class B office that is almost as good in quality, but its price is much lower.

The cost of rent ultimately affects the cost of the course for your students. Therefore, you need to adequately assess the average check, the budget of your client. Even those students for whom money is not a problem do not want to overpay just for a building. Before you go broke on the entourage, consider whether your customers will pay for it.

At the same time, according to the principle “the cheaper, the better”, you should not choose an office either. Too budget options may not be entirely “clean” from a legal point of view.

It is advisable to resolve the issue with the premises together with a lawyer, so that he checks the contract and the building for “cleanliness”. Sometimes everything looks perfect, but after a couple of months it turns out that the building belongs to other people, and you can be kicked out the same day. This will seriously damage your reputation.

There are no strict requirements for the purpose and condition of the premises, for repairs in it. It is advisable to avoid the open space format. The walls must be built initially so that you do not have to divide the room yourself. Otherwise, sound insulation will suffer, and hence the quality of classes.

The number of classes will depend on the workload of the school. At the initial stage, 4-5 rooms are enough (the total area is about 60-80 sq.m, taking into account the entrance and administrative areas). More than that doesn't make sense as the classes will be empty. This often does not make the best impression on customers. It is better to eventually move to a larger premises in the same territorial block. It is undesirable to move to another area, since many clients are residents of neighboring houses, who are often not ready to attend their favorite school after it has moved.

In the case of registration of a NOU (non-state educational institution), a number of additional requirements for the premises appear: the presence of a separate bathroom, the presence of a separate entrance, the ceiling height is from 2.6 m, a source of natural light in each classroom, etc. It is also important to get opinions from firefighters and SES. They will be required to obtain a license to conduct educational activities.

The documents

Organizing a business in Russia, it must first of all be registered with the tax authorities. And for this, it is imperative to decide on the organizational and legal form of ownership of your future business: to work as an LLC, NOI or as an individual entrepreneur?

The IP form is, of course, good for beginners. It allows you to provide services to clients on a paid basis, rent premises, hire staff, but you will not be able to issue certificates to your graduates, and your activity from the point of view of the law will be only advisory, not educational. Corporate clients will not be available to you. And officially you will be considered only a specialist in foreign languages, and not their teacher.

In order for your school to become a full-fledged educational institution according to the laws in force today in Russia, you should register a NOU (non-state educational institution) or a commercial organization with the form of an LLC (limited liability company).

This will allow you to obtain a license to carry out educational activities. Such a document is drawn up at the territorial education authority, and in order to receive it, you need to provide a certain set of documents (the full list is specified in the authority itself). This is usually documentation related to the premises, the qualifications of teachers, the quality of teaching methods and plans, etc.

At the end of 2013, Russia adopted amendments to the federal law on education that private schools with any legal form have the opportunity to obtain a license to carry out educational activities. This is great news! But, unfortunately, the process of obtaining a license has not become easier, and the requirements for a licensee in the face of a small private school are still too high.

To obtain a license for educational activities, it is best to use the help of specialized law firms. But do not confuse obtaining a license with its illegal "purchase". This will inevitably lead to repeated checks and the identification of counterfeit.

A weighty argument in favor of obtaining a license is the opportunity for your clients to return their personal income tax (personal income tax - a direct federal tax in Russia) from the amount paid for education (and this is 13%). This is a significant competitive advantage.

About what you need to get a license

Typically, a license requires:

Copies of constituent documents certified by a notary;

Copies of documents certified by a notary, which confirm that you have a room for work;