Kim Hodges says she can't remember there being a precise moment when lightning struck and she knew she just had to have a Pump It Up franchise.
Rather, it was kind of there rolling around in her subconscious after spending many hours at one in Scottsdale.
"We liked the brand, we always had fun there," Kim says. "I feel like it just kind of happened to us."
It's a case of "if you told me seven years ago I'd be owning a business, I'd have said you were crazy."
Actually it was a birthday party elsewhere that got her thinking and remembering visits to Pump It Up. "I told my husband (Roger), maybe we should revisit this."
"I felt like Pump It Up had personality. It was colorful, it exuded fun."
Her husband had been in real estate with Del Webb, but through the years the couple contemplated having their own business, thinking the experience would be worth it. And, maybe it would be worth it to be your own boss.
It came to fruition after they moved to Omaha with daughters Morgan, 12, Emily, 10, and Gracie, 6.
"It gives me the flexibility to take the kids to all their activities and see all their performances," Kim says. The girls are involved in music, dance and sports.
Giving back to the community is important to Kim who started a coat drive for a homeless shelter on the anniversary of the store's opening. October will mark the third anniversary, and it's gotten to the point where customers just collect coats all year and drop them off, not even waiting for a jump-for-free event.
"I feel like you need to be a community partner," Kim says.
With an eye to opening a second Pump It Up, Kim says she likes the family-friendly culture of the business, and the people she works with. "I always like being in a group that is innovating. It's an exciting time and I like the evolution process."
On a daily basis, Kim enjoys watching her staff grow and develop.
"We have a great group of kids that work for us." She says she's come to rely on college-age kids and runs casting calls where potential staff members strut their stuff and show what they've got.
"We are in the entertainment business," Kim says. "We're looking for the person who gets right in and smiles, and gets right in there playing."
Be flexible with your staff, she advises, because "the good kids are often the busy kids."
She also urges potential franchise owners to consider their reasons for picking this type of business. Know that you'll be working weekends, appreciate that it's about creating flexibility within your own family. "It's not a good fit for everyone; especially not just an investor."
The hard work is worth it, though, "when you see the kids having fun, or when the dads are sweating because they've just played so hard - that's some of the good stuff," Kim says.
"It's all about being happy. It's still a business, but at least you're in a business to make people happy."
