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FALA Language Academy, Gladys Franco and Adriana Brinkman
FALA Language Academy teaches Spanish to all age groups in the Jacksonville, Florida community and surrounding areas with a unique approach that makes learning another language fun and easy. We offer a wide range of high-quality services to fit both your personal and business needs, including classes for children at after-school programs, summer camps, tutoring, translation, and interpreting services.
After spending multiple years in senior management roles (CEO and CFO), leading another successful language academy, and serving in corporate assignments, we decided there was a void in the marketplace for a unique program. We love helping children learn foreign languages in fun ways so they can experience/benefit from the advantages of being bilingual. Our personal goal is to make sure that “The World is one language away”.
FALA's summer camp program uniquely combines fun STEM projects with Spanish language instruction for children. Each week, a different Spanish-speaking country is covered...from culture, art, music, famous landmarks, and even cooking all done in Spanish.
The most exciting part of this business is seeing the smiling, joyful faces of the children as they quickly grow comfortable speaking a second language. Our FALA families are extremely supportive and very loyal with many providing referrals to their friends and families. One of the biggest challenges was wondering if we would ever get this business launched, but with the help of SCORE, we survived the start-up process.
Referral from the Small Business Administration.
After completing our business plan, we were able to convert those ideas into action with the help of our SCORE mentor. It's one thing to dream and write a business plan, but the real advantage that SCORE provided us was a practical implementation that brought our dream to life quickly.
We always knew we would get sound advice and guidance at every phase of our start-up. Beyond information and creative marketing ideas, we always felt the extra moral support from SCORE that you often miss as an entrepreneur. That alone gave us an extra boost of confidence to persevere toward our goals.
If you have a great idea, don't be afraid to explore the opportunities of creating a business to deliver to consumers. To reduce your risk, invest the time and energy to make sure you are solving a problem for consumers. Seek help and guidance from an experienced SCORE counselor and educate yourself with many of the local SCORE workshops that are offered.
You truly can re-purpose your corporate skills and experience into a business of your own that solves a common problem for many people. Parents and children alike love our engaging and easy approach to learning a second language.
