Pop-up play sessions in rented halls

Parents and caregivers of babies and toddlers who pay per session, and families who book a private party.

Per-child or per-family session fees, party packages, and occasional bookings by daycares or community groups. Your main costs are hall hire and equipment.

• Organizing and setting up quickly
• Comfortable with children and parents
• Social media and local promotion
• Reliable and safety-minded

• Commercial general liability insurance, which halls often require you to show before booking
• Check your municipality for any home-based or general business licence requirements
• Parents should stay on site. Check your province's child care licensing rules if you ever care for children without them
• Equipment safety, cleaning between sessions and storage and transport space for your kit
• Hall availability and prices can change. Winter is often busiest, but bad weather can cut attendance
• Serving snacks may need a permit from your local public health unit. In Quebec, check French-language requirements for marketing

Estimates suggest startup costs are typically around $3,000 to $15,000, depending on how much play and sensory equipment you buy and how you store and transport it. Monthly revenue is estimated at about $800 to $4,500, depending on sessions and parties booked.

Check that you can get commercial general liability insurance, which halls often require before booking. Also check your municipality's business licence requirements, your province's child care licensing rules if you ever care for children without parents present, and whether serving snacks needs a local public health permit.

Estimates suggest a minimum of about 8 hours a week, depending on how many weekly sessions, holiday events and private parties you run. Setting up, cleaning equipment between sessions, transporting your kit and promoting your sessions locally all add to that time.