Meet Kelly the inspirational woman behind the hottest indoor playground for kids in Hamilton, Ontario! If you haven't checked out PlayVille trust me when I say you are definitely missing out. PlayVille is an indoor playground with a focus on dramatic play. There are a variety of playrooms such as a vet clinic, house, school, bake shop, grocery store & more! Children and their parents can explore PlayVille's miniature village and engage in unlimited make-believe experiences, all while learning through play.
Do you have kids? If so how many & age?
I have 2 spunky, sassy girls! Paige is almost 8 and Piper is 6.
What's one thing people probably don't know about you?
I started taking dance classes a few years ago (I never danced as a kid). I took 3 years of tap and this year is adult ballet. I’m not a great (or even that good) dance, but I have a blast taking it with my friends! My kids also dance a lot, and I am learning all about being a dance mom!
Are you a stay at home mom?
Not anymore. I am an Early Childhood Educator and I have worked in so many childcare and school settings. After having my second I stayed home with the kids for a few years until I started working casually at my kids dance studio. Now you can find me either working at PlayVille or at the dance studio!
What is your favourite thing to do for yourself?
This is a tough one…being a wife and a mother consumes so much of what I do (especially since my husband is a paramedic and works shifts). I have only been in Hamilton 5 years but I have made some amazing friends and I love when we can escape out kids to do stuff together!
What is your favourite date night activity?
My husband and I love trying new and interesting restaurants! We’ve been trying to get through a list we have of some of Hamilton’s awesome restaurants.
What's one thing you couldn't live without?
Coffee! I have cut way way down, but I need my morning coffee!
Who's your inspiration?
My parents have always been such hard working people (they owned and operated a balloon business my whole life). My mom has always been one of my best friends and my dads strength blows me away every day. He was diagnosed with cancer a year and a half ago…we’ve had ups and downs bit he always focuses on the positive!
What advice would you give your younger self
I would tell myself not too worry too much, because everything will turn out alright! And maybe not to plan so much…sometimes not having a plan is just as much fun!
What inspired you to create PlayVille?
I am an Early Childhood Educator so learning through play and dramatic play have always been so important to me. The early years are so important for learning and exploring and since I graduated from college I have always wanted to open an indoor playground. I came up with the idea for PlayVille about 5 years ago while visiting a museum with my family. Being a mom with 2 young kids and a shift working husband we just didn’t have the time to get started with an indoor playground. 5 years later we finally have made my dream come true with PlayVille!
How did you choose the name for your business?
We struggled a while with the right name, we wanted something easy for kids to say, eg “Mommy I want to go to playville” We tossed around a bunch of names (PlayVille was actually my husbands choice) and we let our children pick what they liked the best.
How do you balance having kids & running a business?
Its actually going better than what I imagined! When theres a holiday/weekend/snow day it’s a great job where I can bring my kids with me! I also have an amazing staff who are able to work and step up when its time for me to put my mom hat on!
How did you choose the names for each space at Playville?
We had a contest near the end of last year where people were able to submit their picks for the names of the centres! All of the choices were picked from the entries we received from our followers on FaceBook.
What advice can you give someone looking to start up their own business?
It is definitely not the easiest thing in the world!! There were times I wanted to toss in the towel but stick with it! Do your homework and start with a detailed business plan…its way more helpful that you could imagine!! It can be an up hill battle, but the feeling when you have your opening day is better than I could have imagined!
What sets your business apart from others alike?
There aren’t many other businesses like ours out there! Most of the other indoor playgrounds have climbing structures so the fact that we don’t really sets us apart. Kids can unplug and just be kids and use their imagination to be anything they want to be. We also have a lot for the littles to do (the under 2 crowd) and we get a lot of amazing feedback from their parents at how much fun their kids have!
What is the most challenging part of running your business?
I’ve never been “the boss” so that’s a new hat I have to wear and has probably been one of the more challenging things about opening this business. Luckily I found a pretty great staff!
Coffee or tea? Coffee!!
Neutral or colourful? Colourful
Morning or night? night!
Wine or beer? Wine, but the super sweet stuff!
Starbucks or tims? I have a nut allergy so I cant have the fun stuff at Starbucks so I just get regular coffee anyway
Online shopping or in store? Online, so much easier
Instagram or Facebook? Facebook, although I am really trying to become Instagram savvy for the business!
Text or phone call? Text! Calls are hard with kids, that always when they want you
Instagram: @playville_hamilton
Website: www.playville.ca
Facebook: PlayVille Hamilton
@Camara.Crew Stamp of Approval:
I am absolutely in love with taking Lily and Mason to PlayVille! I have wanted an indoor playground such as this in Hamilton or at least closer to Hamilton for the longest time and when I heard about PlayVille I was so excited. I am all about play, especially play that encourages children's use of imagination and dramatic play. There is so much opportunity for learning, growth and development when children are provided with the opportunities to play freely. We are avid goers to the various indoor playgrounds around Hamilton. But being a mom of 2, I find it very difficult to go to these alone with the kids now. The indoor playgrounds that are geared towards climbing, running, jumping and swinging around are difficult for me because I can't leave Mason to climb around with Lily and I cannot always see Lily in the play structure. Sometimes it is more work and more exhausting to go to those types of places then to stay home.
However, with PlayVille it is much more of a relaxed environment. No matter where I was sitting I could always easily see both Lily and Mason. They had exersaucers and baby seats that I could put Mason in so that I could move him around to the various rooms Lily was using and he was entertained as well. The space is much smaller than a typical indoor playground so I did not have to chase Lily around and could set up our stuff in one area, make myself comfortable and actually rest a little bit. Yes mamas I said it rest! Lily played so well independently that I was able to relax for a little bit. It was great watching her interact with the other kids. We do not have a lot of kids in our family Lily's age so its great to get out to places like this so Lily can have the opportunity to socialize with other kids. And I had so much fun checking out the different rooms and playing with Lily. It amazed me what I learned about Lily and we learned together just in one visit to PlayVille. We also love that Playville is located in the same plaza as my husbands gym. It is always a nice surprise when Chris stops by after his workout to play with Lily for a little bit. Sometimes I think him and I have more fun at Playville cause it helps bring out the kids in us!
Another thing that I love about Playville is that Lily has an opportunity to explore new activities that she normally wouldn't. Playville has such a wide range of activities and opportunities for play that Lily is able to develop and explore new skills and activities. Specifically, one thing that Lily has not been interested in yet is dress up and role playing. However, when we are at Playville I find that she has now started to explore this side of her. It's been fun watching her discover new toys, activities and role play opportunities and seeing how she interprets it.
One thing I highly recommend prior to visiting is that you visit their Facebook page or call. They do meet their capacity most days and that way you aren't going and being disappointed. Kelly always posts when they hit capacity on social media and they can add you to a wait list. Kelly is looking at implementing an online booking system so you can purchase a time slot to come in to guarantee your visit. You should also check out their website for more information on parties and upcoming events. Kelly hosts a lot of great special events in collaboration with other local companies such as princesses, baking events & more!
We hope to see you there sometime! If you have checked out Playville I would love to hear what your favourite rooms or parts of Playville are! Let me know in the comments below.
