Today we’d like to introduce you to Latrice Galloway.
Hi Latrice , we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
My journey into childcare was definitely not planned. I grew up on the East Side of San Antonio, became a mom while I was in college, and was the first in my family to graduate from college. I earned two degrees and spent six years working for the State of Texas as a parole officer. I actually thought I was going to eventually work for the FBI, so owning a childcare center was nowhere on my radar.
I moved to the Houston area in 2005 with my son, and after my own experience looking for childcare (which I didn’t find), I started thinking that maybe I could create what I was looking for myself. In 2006, at 28 years old, I left my government job, and in 2007 I opened KidZville Learning Academy.
I had no early childhood education degree, no family background in entrepreneurship and really no idea what I was getting myself into. My first location was an old building that used to be a gym. I thought would take about $50,000 to renovate. By the time it was all said and done, I had put close to $200,000 into it which was everything I didn’t have. That building gave me a RUN for my money! Leaky roof, unexpected expenses, trying to make payroll…you name it. There were definitely times when I wondered what in the world I had gotten myself into.
But I learned the business.
I learned how to market, how to increase enrollment, how to hire and retain great people, how to lead, and eventually how to build a business that didn’t need me involved in every little thing.
In 2011, I built a 15,000-square-foot building from the ground up which is where KidZville is today. Today, that one location generates more than $2.5 million a year, and over the years we’ve served more than 5,500 children and employed more than 500 people. We’ve also been recognized on the Inc. 5000 list, which was a huge moment for me because I built all of this from ONE childcare center.
As KidZville grew, childcare owners started reaching out and asking me how I was doing certain things. That eventually grew into The Childcare Chic, where I’ve now spent years coaching and helping childcare owners learn how to grow profitable, high-quality centers without having to be the busiest employee in their own business.
From there, I created The Childcare Clique community and Clique Elite coaching program, wrote two best selling books, The Power of One and The WOW Factor in Childcare, became a sought out speaker in the childcare industry and co-host of the Let’s Talk Childcare podcast, and founded the Born To Teach Conference which is one of the largest childcare conferences. What started as conversations on Clubhouse and small gatherings has now grown into an experience that brought together more than 600 plus childcare owners, leaders and educators in Atlanta in 2026.
When I look at everything now, it really is crazy to think it all started with me taking a chance on ONE childcare center.
I became the first entrepreneur and first millionaire in my family, but what means the most to me is what I’ve been able to build because of it. I’ve created jobs, served thousands of children and families, helped other childcare owners grow their businesses, and created a life where I can actually enjoy what I’ve worked so hard for.
I can travel with my family and know KidZville is still operating at the same standard whether I’m there or not. That type of freedom was something I didn’t even know to dream about when I first started.
Now, 19 years later, I know this journey was much bigger than opening a childcare center. God gave me the vision long before He gave me the crowd. I just didn’t know at the time how far that vision would take me.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Oh, absolutely not! It has been a lot of highs, but there have been some LOW lows too.
In the beginning, one of my biggest struggles was simply not knowing what I didn’t know. I came into childcare with two degrees and a government career, but neither one taught me how to run a childcare business. I had to learn licensing, staffing, enrollment, marketing, finances, leadership and everything else while actually running the center.
Financially, there were some really tough seasons too. I’ve worried about making payroll, wondered how I was going to cover the next bill and questioned whether I had made the right decision leaving a secure career. There were times I had to make personal sacrifices just to keep the business moving.
As the business grew, the struggles just changed. At first, I was trying to survive. Then I had to learn how to lead.
For a long time, I thought being needed for everything meant I was a good owner. Parent issue, call me. Staffing problem, call me. Somebody needed something, ask Latrice. I eventually realized I had built a business that depended too much on me. If I wanted to grow, I had to learn how to build leaders, delegate and trust my team.
And then I started building something completely different outside of KidZville.
Building The Childcare Chic brand, my community and the Born To Teach Conference has not been easy either. When I started The Childcare Chic six years ago, I was literally hoping people would follow me and listen to what I had to say. I didn’t look or sound like what people were used to seeing in the childcare coaching space, and I know I was too much for some people. I had to get comfortable being myself anyway.
The conference was another huge leap of faith. Born To Teach started small, and I had a much bigger vision for it than what other people could see at the time. I’ve invested hundreds of thousands of dollars into that vision, heard the doubts about whether we could fill the rooms, and carried the pressure that comes with putting your name, money and reputation behind something that big. Today, seeing more than 600 childcare owners, leaders and educators come together reminds me why I kept going when it would have been much easier to play small.
There have been bad hires, ideas that didn’t work, money I probably shouldn’t have spent, people I trusted who disappointed me and seasons when I was simply exhausted. Entrepreneurship will humble you QUICKLY.
But every season taught me something I needed for the next one.
That’s also why I’m so passionate about helping other childcare owners. I know what it feels like to love your business and still feel overwhelmed by it. I know what it’s like to have a vision that other people can’t see yet. And I know what it feels like to look successful from the outside while you’re still figuring things out behind the scenes.
Nineteen years later, the road definitely hasn’t been smooth, but so many of the things that were the hardest for me to go through became the very things I now get to teach someone else how to overcome.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Today, my work really sits at the intersection of childcare, business, leadership and community.
First, I’m still a childcare owner. I own and operate KidZville Learning Academy, a multi-million-dollar childcare center in the Houston area. That’s important to me because I’m not teaching childcare owners from something I did 10 years ago. I’m still in it. I understand payroll, staffing, enrollment, parents, licensing, marketing and all the things that come with operating a high-quality, profitable childcare business.
As The Childcare Chic, I coach childcare owners on how to grow and scale their businesses. I specialize in helping owners increase enrollment and revenue, market their centers, build stronger teams and systems, and most importantly, learn how to lead like a CEO instead of being the person doing everything.
I’m also the founder of The Childcare Clique and Clique Elite, where we’ve built a community for childcare entrepreneurs who want support, education and access to other owners who understand this business. One thing I learned very early in entrepreneurship is that owning a childcare center can be lonely. I wanted to create the type of community I wish I had when I was figuring everything out.
Then there’s Born To Teach, which has become one of the things I’m most proud of. What started small has grown into a conference bringing together hundreds of childcare owners, leaders and educators from across the country. In 2026, more than 600 people joined us in Atlanta. Watching something that once existed only in my head become a room filled with people learning, networking, celebrating and being reminded of the importance of the work they do is something I’ll never take for granted.
I’m also an author, speaker and co-host of the Let’s Talk Childcare podcast. Through all of those platforms, my message is really the same: childcare can be both purpose AND profit. You can provide an amazing experience for children and families, take care of your employees, make an impact in your community and still build wealth from the business you’ve worked so hard to create.
I think what sets me apart is that I’ve actually built what I teach. KidZville is one location generating more than $2 million annually. I’ve been in this industry for 19 years. I’ve built teams that can operate without me being involved in every decision, and I’ve created multiple brands from what started with one childcare center.
I’m also not afraid to do things differently. When I created The Childcare Chic, I didn’t want to become another version of what I saw online. I wanted to show up as ME. I love business, I love childcare, I love fashion, I love a beautiful experience, and I believe childcare owners deserve to talk about money, wealth, freedom and building BIG businesses without feeling guilty about it.
But what I’m most proud of isn’t one revenue number, award or recognition. It’s the ripple effect.
One decision I made at 28 years old has created hundreds of jobs, served thousands of children and families, allowed me to help childcare entrepreneurs across the country, created a community where owners don’t have to build alone, and changed what’s possible for my own family.
That’s what I’m most proud of. I didn’t just build a childcare center. I built something that continues to create opportunities for other people.
How do you think about happiness?
My family makes me happy. Being able to spend time with the people I love, travel together, create memories and enjoy the life I’ve worked so hard to build means everything to me.
But I’m also genuinely happy when I’m pouring into other people. I love helping people, making people smile and knowing that somehow I made their day a little better.
That could be one of my employees growing into a leader, a childcare owner reaching a goal they didn’t think was possible, a parent at KidZville telling me how much they appreciate us, or simply walking through the center and seeing one of our children light up when they see me. Those little moments mean just as much to me as the big ones.
I think that’s why impact has always mattered so much to me. Yes, I love building businesses and I love success, but being able to use what I’ve built and what I’ve learned to open doors, create opportunities and help somebody else believe bigger for their own life…that’s the part that really makes me happy.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.thechildcarechic.com www.borntoteachcon.com
- Instagram: thechildcarechic
- Facebook: thechildcarchic
