You may be the proud parent of a toddler or about to be confronted with someone else’s toddlers this holiday season. Who do you turn to for parenting advice? An “expert”, such as Dr Benjamin Spock or Gina Ford (the authors of two of the 20th century’s best-selling baby books)? A nursery teacher? Or your peer group on social media?
Until a decade ago, the answer was often “an expert”. (At least, it was in my experience: when my own daughters were infants, I slavishly read Ford’s The Contented Little Baby Book and nervously asked nannies, doctors and nurses for advice.) No longer: a subtle shift in toddler care seems to be under way. And this not only has implications for harried parents, grandparents and anyone else involved in childcare, it also carries a much wider message about consumer culture and how we interpret our political economy today.
This shift is captured well by the story of Primrose Schools, a chain of American pre-school nurseries founded in Atlanta in 1982. Through a franchise model, the company has expanded across the US with 400-odd outlets, producing $780m of revenue in 2018. In 2008, it was acquired by Roark Capital, a private equity group.