Meet Leah Setmire of Saplings in Simi Valley

Today we’d like to introduce you to Leah Setmire.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I was a high school English teacher prior to having my three children. I took some time off to raise my 3 little girls (Kaiya 4, Emma 3, and Paisley 3). Living in California on a single-income is hard to do, and not wanting to go back to fulltime work because that would mean fulltime daycare for my kids, I started coming up with ideas how to make an extra income while still being able to be fully responsible for my three girls. Thus, the idea of Saplings was created.

Saplings is an indoor playground designed for kids under the age of 6. The focus of our indoor playground is not physical play (typical of other play places – with bounce houses and climbing structures) – our focus is on creative, imaginative play. Developing this part of the brain that problem solves and creates is cognitively vital for a child’s growth.

Our play place allows children to use their imaginations and become doctors, vets, engineers. caretakers, farmers, and much more. We also have a fully stocked art room for painting, coloring, creating, and crafting.

Has it been a smooth road?
It was a difficult journey – finding a location that was willing to take a chance on first time business owners wasn’t the easiest thing to find.

Once we found a location, we would hire babysitters for our three kids. We would feed them dinner, do baths, read stories, and tuck them in. Then at 7:00 the babysitter would come. We would come down to the store and work until 2 or 3 in the morning – painting, decorating, assembling toys and structures, putting in the flooring, and so on. Then we went home and got up at 7:00 to start the day with our kids. It was exhausting and we did this for 2 months straight.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Saplings – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
Saplings is a children’s indoor play space designed to foster creative, pretend, and imaginative play. We have a reading nook where kids can read books, climb up into our loft and relax in chairs and couches, or hide under the loft and relax on the fluffy rug with a book. We also have seedling meadow which is a safe-zone designed for children under the age of 2 to play safely without the concern of being stepped on by the older kids.

The art room is a creative space stocked full of art supplies to inspire young artists – everything from paint easels to chalk walls to craft bins.

And of course our main floor is full of imagination stations – puppet theater, train tables, cars, dinos, race tracks, ice cream cart, kitchen, grocery store, dress up, vets office, doctors office, baby nursery, doll house, camp ground, farm house, boat and fishing, log cabin, and more!

Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
My favorite part of LA is the diversity – my least favorite part is the traffic.

Pricing:

• Only $10 per child – the cheapest play ground within 45 miles of here.
• $250 for a 3-hour private party – you can’t get a better price – anywhere!

Contact Info:

• Address: 1776 Erringer Road, Suite 100
  Simi Valley, CA 93065
• Website: www.simivalleysaplings.com
• Phone: 805-210-5372
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: simivalleysaplings
• Facebook: simivalleysaplings
• Twitter: simivalleysaplings
• Yelp: simivalleysaplings

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.