Harmony Early Learning will spend $85m on nine new childcare centres

A Queensland childcare centre operator will add nine new sites to its portfolio despite critics saying the sector has reached saturation point. See where they will be built.

Gold Coast-based Harmony Early Learning will invest $85m over the next two and a half years to open nine greenfield childcare centres.

A GROWING childcare centre operator plans to almost double its footprint across South East Queensland and northern NSW.

Gold Coast-based Harmony Early Learning will invest $85m over the next two and a half years to open nine greenfield childcare centres to add to its 11 current properties.

Harmony chief executive Peter Warner said there were great opportunities for expansion despite concerns from some quarters that the sector has reached a saturation point.

Centres have also closed with providers being hit hard by the pandemic and staff shortages.

Harmony Early Learning’s flagship Hope Island childcare centre on the Gold Coast.

He said the childcare centre sector in Australia over the last decade has matured.

“Where there was an opportunity for people to feel their way into the sector there is a lot less opportunity now and you need to be experienced and strategic to know where you are going,” he said.

“Our site selection is focused on South-East Queensland and northern NSW which has the strongest population growth in Australia.

“From a business model perspective, the population is growing and there are pockets where it’s growing faster than others while there are definitely pockets that are not attractive and we have been very deliberate and strategic about that.”

Harmony was established by the founders of Bambini Early Childhood Development the Guifre family in 2016 who sold their original business to Affinity Education Group.

Harmony’s development pipeline sites are at Broadbeach Waters and Burleigh Heads on the Gold Coast and East Brisbane, Griffin, Bulimba, Thornlands, Bardon, Graceville and Yeerongpilly in Greater Brisbane.

Harmony Early Learning chief executive Peter Warner.

Mr Warner said Harmony has “development expertise” and can develop the property from scratch, work with a third-party developer, or overhaul an existing centre.

“We aim to operate brilliant childcare centres but the fact that we are also developers allows us to be more flexible and find new opportunities,” he said.

“We will own and operate and or occupy these centres depending on how the deal is structured and then generally we will move the property on to an investor.”