The animation industry has been witnessing a rapid growth since the past few years. It comprises of different aspects like education, multimedia/web design, entertainment and custom content development. And it is all thanks to the mainstream film industry, which increasingly uses animation and special effects. With the rising demand, there has been an increase in the need for professional expertise in this sector. In order to cater to this, a number of institutes and training schools have come up to create proficient professionals for this domain. If you aspire to be a part of this emerging industry, then franchising is the best foot forward. Majority of the key players in this sector are following the franchising mode for expansion to broaden their horizon and provide best quality training to the deserving students. The emerging animation education industry can be a golden opportunity for aspirants to enter into this sector.

Growth of animation education industry in India

According to a report by Nasscom (Nation Association of Software and Services Companies), the education segment of the animation industry is projected to grow at the rate of 40 per cent per annum till 2012. In 2008, the animation industry in India was around US $460 million, but now it is all set to grow at a compound annual rate of 27 per cent to reach US $1.16 billion by 2012. As ABRP Reddy, Founder, CG Mantra says, “My association with NASSCOM (National Association of Software and Services Companies) for the past two years as advisor to NASSCOM’s Animation and Gaming Forum gave me critical insights of the industry’s requirement and the gap that existed in the animation education system. The Rs 45,000 crore Indian entertainment Industry is absorbing animation and VFX content much faster than ever before.”

The growth in the mobile and console segment is also contributing to the growth of the sector and is expected to witness a growth of 14-15 per cent in the next two to three years. The domestic animation industry is driven by visual effects and animation education.

Key players of animation education industry

The animation education industry contributes a major share in the vast animation industry. A number of franchising players like Animaster, ANTS (Animation Training School), Arena, MAAC, AAG (Academy of Animation and Gaming), CG Mantra and many more are providing world-class training to talented students interested to pursue this specialised field. These institutes and academies are continuously growing in number by taking the franchise route and have spread their presence across the nation.

Deserving qualities to own a franchise 

If you aspire to take up a franchise in animation education business, then franchising is an ideal option for you. All an aspirant need to have is:

• S/he must be financially sound to invest an amount that ranges from Rs 15 lakh to Rs 30 lakh (it may be company-specific). Besides, the prospective franchisee must be capable enough to bear additional investment to regularly up grade the equipments and install the latest softwares.

• The location is always a main concern in franchising. A prospective franchisee must have a location with a good population, as the location plays a main role in bringing footfalls and generating profits.

• The aspirants must be able to devote ample amount of time in operating the franchise training institute and must have the vision and mission of providing quality education and should harbour the desire to grow and succeed.

• Experience in the education industry especially in the subjects of animation and gaming can be an added advantage.

If you think, you are capable enough of managing an institute and impart quality education in the animation and gaming field, then this is the right time to invest your money and become the franchisee of a well recognised brand.

Franchise offerings

The franchisors usually provide their franchisees with a team of experts that hep them in marketing the brand at the local level. They also help the franchisee in recruiting the right staff and well qualified teachers. As Reddy says, “Our team is geared up to support the business partners starting from project implementation stage to grooming them to become experts in operations. Besides functional expertise, we have chalked out plans to provide technical expertise to fill up the knowledge gaps from time to time.” The franchisors also provide their franchisees with a management team with expertise in academics. These are believed to be the essential parameters in offering value education with better employment opportunities. The growth of the animation industry to a large extent is dependent on its education domain. Therefore, be a part of the emerging sector to maximise your profits.