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Meet Michelle Davis of GIGIL in Long Beach

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Michelle Davis.

Michelle, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
The concept for GIGIL was born out of my own personal experience as a self-employed, work-from-home mommy of two. I found myself needing a space that allows for social interaction for the kiddos, a workspace where I can bring them and a fitness studio experience for myself that offered supervised care during classes.

There is no place like GIGIL in the Long Beach area, and this city has been lacking an imaginative play based space for a long time. GIGIL was created with parents and families of all kinds in mind. It is my goal for GIGIL to become a place that parents want to be as much as the kids do.

You won’t find any overwhelming scenes or bright primary colors on our walls, rather you’ll find textiles, succulents and natural wood accents to bring a welcoming and calm vibe to our play space.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
As a new business owner trying to navigate my way through the rules and regulations of obtaining a business license in the City of Long Beach I ran into more than just a few challenges. After our first location was forced to close in December of 2017 due to a licensing error made by the city, I was determined to reopen and make this version the best ever.

Since GIGIL is such a unique and different type of business than anything in our city, this presented many hurdles in explaining our concept to multiple decision makers in various departments within the city. I have gotten used to explaining that GIGIL is not a daycare, nor are we a gym. But what are we? GIGIL is an indoor play space that offers mindfulness and enrichment classes for parents and kids. That is definitely not a description you’ll find in any checkbox list. The biggest challenges included finding a space with enough parking to accommodate the city’s requirements that were in a desirable location and was reasonably priced.

It took me 12 months of persistency and working closely with the City of Long Beach before I finally found our new home in the Plaza neighborhood of East Long Beach. Along with this journey, I experienced ups and downs, moments of defeat and moments of victory. In the end, it has all been worth it to be able to provide our services to the community and to see the joy we bring to so many children every day.

GIGIL – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
GIGIL is more than just an indoor playground. We offer a comfortable and inviting environment for families to come and be themselves. Where kids can be kids, diversity is embraced, and parents are never judged. We provide more than just an area to play, but also an experience where kids can work on social interaction with peers and learn from each other or through our enrichment class offerings. GIGIL also caters to the needs of parents, which is a unique characteristic all in its own.

We offer open play daily as well as mindfulness and enrichment classes for children and adults. Some of our classes include yoga for adults, kids and families, barre class, pilates, cardio classes for kids and parents, art, sensory, Spanish immersion classes, Sign Language classes, and even breakdance class. GIGIL also offers a collaborative workspace for parents where they can make use of our parent’s lounge while we watch their kiddos in the main play area. GIGIL partners with local doulas and support services to be able to offer educational workshops for new and or experienced parents.

Our play area is large enough for children to play and be entertained for hours, yet cozy enough that parents can take a break on our couches, enjoy some free coffee and still be able to have their children in plain site. Many indoor playgrounds are built on a much larger scale making it challenging for some parents to chase their kiddos around, especially if there are only one parent and more than one kiddo! We’ve created an environment where parent social interaction happens as often as the children’s social interaction does. It is great seeing parents from our local community get to know one another while sitting in our play space.

What is “success” or “successful” for you?
In my opinion, I have already succeeded. I made it through every obstacle that was thrown my way- whether from the city, insurance companies, landlords or any personal hurdles I experienced. I made it through the financial crisis of losing the investment of the first location and was able to brush myself off to get funded for a new business loan.

Success to me is not giving up on your passion. I pushed through an extremely tough situation where others would have given up. I can only hope that my story of determination will inspire another entrepreneur to keep pushing forward to pursue their passion.

Success for my business is being able to offer a place where kids are able to enrich their minds, social skills and grow from their experiences at GIGIL. It’s so rewarding to see children’s experiences unfold right in front of you- whether they’re learning something new, expanding their imaginations through art or cultivating a new friendship with their peers.

Pricing:

  • Open Play Daily Admission – $14
  • Standard Classes (yoga, pilates, cardio, art, sensory)- $23
  • Play + Grow Membership (unlimited open play)- $109
  • Learn + Grow Membership (unlimited standard classes)- $169
  • Supervised Play Membership (unlimited supervised play)- $209
  • Birthday Party (private, 2.5 hour buyout)- $470

Contact Info:

Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.

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