Q&A With Craig Murray, Chief Development Officer at Lightbridge Academy
How would you describe Lightbridge Academy’s current development strategy? What’s guiding your decisions about where and how fast to grow?
Our development strategy is focused on sustainable, responsible growth. We’re expanding into strong markets with the right demographics, while being very selective with real estate. Partnering with the right franchisees is key, whether single-unit or multi-unit, it’s about alignment with our core values and commitment to operational excellence. Overall, it’s about building a strong long-term foundation for growth with healthy, successful centers, not just more centers.
Additionally, over the last few years, the commitment of the Board and our CEO, Gigi Schweikert, to scale the business is evident as we meet the continued demand for educational child care. Bringing on additional resources has helped attract quality franchisees into our system, driven performance and historical projections for center openings, while continuing to focus on delivering the high quality early education programs children and families expect to receive from Lightbridge Academy. Our foundation is built by our people, and they are supported by well proven systems and processes.
What emerging trends are shaping how franchise brands are approaching development as we head into Q4 and 2026?
Franchise development today is shifting toward quality over quantity. Brands are leaning into data-driven site selection, flexible real estate models, and stronger unit economics. We’re also seeing a move toward more sophisticated multi-unit operators, creative financing in a higher-rate environment, and a greater emphasis on community impact and values. The trend is fewer but stronger units, built for long-term success.
What’s changing in the way brands are evaluating markets and territories for future expansion?
When we evaluate territories, it’s not just about availability, it’s about alignment. At Lightbridge Academy, we look for strong family demographics, income levels, and childcare demand, but also real estate quality and long-term scalability. The best territories aren’t just good for one center, they can support multi-unit growth. Across franchising, brands are getting more data-driven, balancing demographics, competition, and cultural fit to protect both franchisee success and brand equity.
At Lightbridge Academy, how do you balance attracting new owners with supporting the scalability of existing franchisees?
At Lightbridge Academy, we’ve learned that growth can be achieved in many different ways. It isn’t just about adding new franchisees, it’s equally about helping our existing owners scale successfully. The balance comes from staying disciplined in partner selection while building infrastructure that supports both first-time and multi-unit operators.
Attracting New Owners: We continue to welcome qualified new franchisees who align with our core values and Circle of Care philosophy, bring strong financial resources, and have a passion for serving families. This broadens our reach and introduces new energy and perspectives into the system.
Supporting Scalability of Existing Franchisees: At the same time, we’ve built systems to help current owners grow, from data-driven territory planning and site selection to operational support and financing guidance. Multi-unit franchisees know they can replicate success with our support behind them.
Protecting the Balance: The key is not favoring one over the other. We are deliberate in ensuring new owners have access to strong territories while still protecting room for proven operators to expand. In many cases, markets are large enough to accommodate both, and our role is to map out growth responsibly.
This balanced approach strengthens the brand, bringing in new partners who believe in our mission while also giving experienced franchisees the confidence and opportunity to scale with us.
How do you build a development strategy that balances innovation, operational capacity, and long-term sustainability?
Our development strategy is about balance. We innovate to meet the changing needs of families, but we do it in a way our operational infrastructure can fully support. And every decision is filtered through long-term sustainability, disciplined site selection, strong unit economics, and healthy franchisees. It’s not about growing the fastest, it’s about growing the strongest for long term success.
If you had to predict one development trend that will define the next 18 months, what would it be — and why?
The defining development trend over the next 18 months is quality over quantity. Rising construction costs, higher interest rates, and tighter banking and capital markets are making disciplined growth essential. At Lightbridge, we’re focused on well-capitalized franchisees, data-driven site selection, and sustainable markets. The brands that thrive will be those that grow ethically, strategically, with healthy, profitable units and strong franchisee support.
