MAELCC: The Franchised ‘Pre-School’ Brand of Cricket now in India

Cricket has been the love and passion in India rather than just a sport. Mickey Arthur Early Learning Cricket Center (MAELCC) is all set to take it a notch higher by imbibing it in a young age in children. MAELCC is sure to transform the way cricket is taught at an early age. In an Interview with Abha Garyali Peer, Sameer Akhil Kachru, Co-Founder, MAELCC shares about the brand and the role of Mickey Arthur, legendary Ex-Coach of 4 International Test Nations & Global ICC Cricket Committee Member, in starting the brand. 

Abha Garyali Peer( AGP): Please share about the Mickey Arthur Early Learning Cricket Center (MAELCC)?

Sameer Akhil Kachru (SAK): The World’s Largest Brand of ‘Pre-School of Cricket’ is here…and it’s here to stay! This is our tag line and belief ethos. If there are pre-schools for academics, music, coding, acting etc, then why not for India’s lifeline – CRICKET! Sometimes we miss the obvious investment opportunities. This is one of them. 

Early Learning in cricket is a key to long term success. Kids can learn the right skills with the help of proven International Learning techniques in Cricket from the age of 3 onwards. That’s our USP as it’s for the 3-11 year olds. However, setting in place learning modules, equipment, facilities, training faculties for this age group was tough but we did it. 

MAELCC will be ‘nursery’ for kid’s cricket and we will pass them on to the larger academies from there on. We are in the process of tying up with various cricket academies and associations. 

AGP: Mickey Arthur is a legend himself. What are your and his plans as co-promoters for the brand in India and globally?

SAK: Mickey Arthur, ICC Coach Representative up till 2020 on the ICC Cricket Committee is the co-promoter of this brand with me. We mean business and we are going to do this well in India as well as globally. The market is huge and insatiable. We hope to have thousands of franchised centers pan India in the next few years. 

Mickey has coached the likes of AB Devilliers, Babar Azam, David Warner, Wanindu Hasaranga just to name a few. He is probably one of the best cricket coaches ever in International Cricket. All his learning has been incorporated in the training modules which will be taught to all the young kids (3-11 year old) of India and eventually the world. Mickey believes that kids need to learn the right skills (based on our modules) by our MAELCC certified coaches at an early age. 

AGP: Why would potential franchisees be interested in the Mickey Arthur Early Learning Cricket Center (MAELCC)?

SAK: Franchisees have great paybacks in this business with an investment under Rs 10 lack. Also, operational costs are so low that sustenance is not an issue in the initial phase. Opening a unit can take less than 7 days if you have the space (400 sq ft onwards). Not to forget we can convert existing infra into an MAELCC unit quickly and start on. 

We aim to not only organise the current early learning cricket system, but in fact we want to formally introduce the Early Learning in Cricket industry to India.  A system that is actually run on SOP’s and on franchising. Via franchising we will grow rapidly across India in markets where no one has ever ventured. Presently, we have enquiries from Tier 3 and even smaller towns and cities since the investment is low. MAELCC will just not make a small ripple, but a large splash. I can just say not to take this space lightly. It is going to explode across Tier 1 to Tier 3 cities.  

AGP: Are you the first in the pre-school Cricket Education segment?

SAK: Yes, we are the first, but we know what’s in the offing. The Pre-School Cricket Education wave is about to come. The market has a big void which needs to be filled in. It will become a crowded market soon. Early franchisee entrants will make more money and will enjoy that initial advantages. 

AGP: Why did MAELCC choose the ‘Pre-school Cricket Education’ (3-11 yr olds) segment?

SAK: Glad you asked. There are mainly four factors, which are: 

• The most amount of money in cricket is in this age group! Parents take decisions and are experimental with spending on early learning. It’s also statistically proven that the parents of 4 to 8 year olds will pay more for security, personal time, skill development at that age. Hence, we entered this market as it is more lucrative for our franchisees and in turn for us as a brand. 
• We see close to 10,000 Early Learning Cricket Centers pan India. Even if we have 10,000 units we can only accommodate 90 students on average per unit. This is only 9 lack students playing cricket at an early age across the nation.
• There is a huge requirement to drive this business based on SOP’s, Training Modules, Certified Coaches (for which MAELCC has its certification program & cert renewal systems). 
• Since, it is for a 3-11 year olds, we can open indoors and in locations where regular academies cannot. The infra needed is completely different. 

AGP: What are driving principles of the Mickey Arthur Early Learning Cricket Center (MAELCC) brand?

SAK: SOP’s for everything. All modules are provided for training to franchisees.

• Support to aspirants is essential for us. Coaches, training & helping them learn and grow as franchisees.
• Set-Up. We actually will help set-up the entire MAELCC facility besides physically standing there. Our Projects team will make sure all equipment, interiors, hard and soft furnishings as per brand standards is delivered and put in place. We will help do dry runs prior to opening. Not to forget the initial site assessment etc is also done by us.

AGP: Why and how do you think MAELCC will revolutionise the market?

SAK: Imagine a kid going to learn cricket at the age of 3 years with programs tailored just for him. Unlike regular academies which won’t spare more than a minute on these kids. This will be possible in our Early Learning Centers present pan India. 

Moreover, Mikey Arthur, the legendary cricket coach’s coaching modules would be taught to these young students by our trained & certified professionals / coaches. 

In addition, young kids will be trained at places where there would be no summer heat, no Pollution, no Dengue, no Rains, no getting hurt while playing with elder kids, total attention as coaches in big academies work only on teenagers.  In other words there will be no extraneous factors to stop the growth of these young kids who can be trained 365 days in a year. 

AGP: How is MAELCC different from other cricket academies? 

SAK: We are the ONLY structured Global Cricket Education brand in the Early Learning Cricket Coaching segment. MAELCC as a brand is a promise to all parents that their young budding cricketers will learn the cricketing basics early, learn it well and learn it in a scientific and an organised format. Most importantly, kids must have fun and want to come back by pushing their parents for more. MAELCC is also all about creating a “FUN” & a “Gamified” environment which is scientifically run on SOP’s identified and approved by the legendary International coach, Mickey Arthur himself. 

AGP: What is the minimum amount of space required? What kind of places / locations are you looking to open an MAELCC franchise unit?

SAK: Anything above a 400 sq ft space (carpet area) allows you to open an MAELCC unit. It must be in the form of a rectangle or square in order to function as per coaching SOP’s & manuals. This is specific to an indoor space. MAELCC can be operated outdoors too, but it must have a minimum 500 sq ft setup as per MAELCC norms.

Therefore aspirants can open in basements or 2nd floors in residential complexes, operational pre-school centres, Middle & Senior Schools, Malls, Corporate offices, currently operational Creches, RWA & condominium societies, Clubs and maybe even houses (if local laws / permits allow) etc. 

AGP: Recently you have tied up with a Pre-school brand. This is a very smart move as it can be quite profitable. What are your views on this? 

SAK: Think of it like a shop-in-shop franchise module. The franchisee also gets to “double dip” in profits with operational expenses also being shared. That’s the best case scenario actually. 

AGP: Will you be opening larger Centers & taking over existing infrastructure in schools, RWA’s etc which are outdoor as well under the MAELCC Brand?

SAK: Yes. These academies / venues already exist and run woefully currently. We have been approached by many schools and academies pan India to convert their existing academies / school set ups under our brand. We are in a unique situation wherein we can convert under our brand guidelines, Systems, SOP’s & Training procedures within absolutely no time. So, the the answer is a resounding YES. You will see us doing a lot of conversions very soon too.