Today we’d like to introduce you to Ben Simms.
Ben, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
We moved our family from Chicago to the Atlanta area in July 2013. I had a background in higher education and wanted to take my school experience to educating kids through rock n roll. My wife, Chris, and I decided to pursue our entrepreneurial dreams together and opened our School of Rock – Johns Creek in August 2014. Like all startups there were many stressful times but they were offset by the adrenaline rush we had watching the kids play their first live show just a few months after we opened. We were amazed how quickly they learned the music and bonded together from the rehearsals.
School of Rock is a different type of music school by teaching in a performance environment where students not only get one on one lessons but also rehearse songs with other kids their own age. We teach vocals, guitar, keys, bass, and drums but do so in a group rehearsal setting preparing for a performance show at real rock venues three times per year. We also quickly noticed that we weren’t just teaching music but also life skills. The students gain confidence, learn teamwork, listening skills, and make friends along the way. It’s perfect for the many kids who may have tried sports or other activities but haven’t found their passion. Instead of playing video games by themselves all day they can come to our music studio, learn an instrument quickly, and make friends. In the past three years, we have grown to support our community with local gigs for non-profit events and have completed 9 seasons. We were recently voted “best music lessons” in North Atlanta by Appen Media.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Of course, it hasn’t been smooth. Like many, if not all startups, we have been humbled along the way. Since we are not musicians and approached this from an educational and business point of view we had to quickly learn how to train our instructors the School of Rock way. The student population growth has been steady but we certainly compete with other extracurricular activities such as sports. Fortunately, we have a wonderful staff who are very talented and passionate about their craft. We are proud of and protective of our culture. Both Chris and I work full time in addition to this business so we are counting on our staff to run the day to day operations. However, life happens and sometimes talented staff move away or leave for good reasons but are difficult to replace and then ramp up their training. Those times of vacancy or training new staff was stressful. Then of course as a married couple, we are still learning how and when to put our business partner hat on and when not to discuss work. We’ve established some rules such as a 24 hour “no School of Rock” conversation from 6pm on Saturdays to 6 pm on Sundays. It’s delicate having a work life balance with your life and business partner.
School of Rock – Johns Creek – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
We are a performance based rock n roll music school. We only teach rock via vocals, guitar, drums, keys, and bass. We do so in a group performance setting, not just one on one lessons. We feel this is the fastest way to learn music because having to perform with others means you need to practice to hold your song parts. So there is a subtle peer pressure to keep up. Plus, our students learn how to play songs right away which makes learning fun. We do teach music fundamentals along the way.
We are extremely proud of and protective of our culture. We have four core values that is the determining factor for all decisions from hiring to customer interaction. They are communication, collaboration, community, and passion. We embody all four core values in everything we do. Meanwhile, we are trying to keep rock alive by inspiring people to rock on stage and in life.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Watching the kids grow and gain confidence is extremely rewarding. We hear from parents all the time how School of Rock changed their kids for the better. Many kids come to us not having found their “thing” yet. Rock music becomes their thing and all of a sudden, they are walking taller, smiling more, performing on stage, doing better in school, and making friends. We love hearing these stories and hear them frequently. Watching the kids get out of their comfort zone during our live concerts is enormously rewarding.
Contact Info:
- Address: 10900 Medlock Bridge Rd
Suite 107
Johns Creek, GA 30097 - Website: www.johnscreek.schoolofrock.com
- Phone: 678-580-1882
- Email: johnscreek@schoolofrock.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/schoolofrockjohnscreek/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SchoolofRockJohnsCreek/
- Twitter: @SORJC
Getting in touch: VoyageATL 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.
