Former export VP opens Tutor Doctor franchise in Edison
Home News Tribune. By LALITA ALOOR AMUTHAN • STAFF WRITER • June 4, 2010
EDISON — Three years ago, Snehal Patel was looking for a tutor to help his older daughter with her seventh-grade mathematics courses.
He couldn't find the right person.
"That was my pain point," Patel said.
The futile search triggered an idea to start a business related to education, he said.
Research on several franchises led him to Tutor Doctor, which provides affordable one-on-one supplementary education to students and adults through in-home tutoring.
Patel said franchising is a good way to start for new entrepreneurs.
"You have the operational set up ... the franchise owner has already identified the needs and wants of society," he said.
He does warn that it is important to be diligent in choosing the right franchise system that works for individual entrepreneurs.
"I chose Tutor Doctor because that is what I want to do," he said.
A textile engineer with an MBA in global management, Patel worked as vice president of operations for an import company prior to opening his Tutor Doctor franchise in November.
He said Tutor Doctor is different from other tutoring services in that it offers personalized services at the student's home.
"We try to find out the missing building blocks in a student's academic growth and work to fix that," he said. "What an educated parent can do for a child, we do it for them."
Patel said he has 25 students enrolled for the tutoring service and 25 tutors who work on a contract basis.
He noted that the business location is the home of the student, which eliminates the need for a physical center to hold classes.
Patel hires tutors by advertising in newspapers and on the Internet. All hired tutors are experts in the subject knowledge, he said.
Marketing through word of mouth, referrals and Internet campaigns helps get the students, he said.
"There are so many people who have not been successful in improving their grades with traditional help," he said.
Patel's franchise mainly services Central Jersey students, ranging in age from 6 to 106 years old.
Besides school curriculum, Tutor Doctor provides tutoring service in technology, competitive exams and even learning the piano.
Older clients include those who are seeking reemployment and want to update themselves on technology, Patel said.
AT A GLANCE
TUTOR DOCTOR
Telephone number: 908-866-1433
Web site: www.TutorDoctorNJ.com |
