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Cosmetology School Plans to Open Campus in Champaign

Posted on: Saturday, 3 June 2006, 09:00 CDT

By Don Dodson, The News-Gazette, Champaign-Urbana, Ill.

Jun. 1--CHAMPAIGN -- A Minneapolis-based cosmetology school plans to open a new campus in Champaign this fall.

Regency Beauty Institute plans to open the school at 615 W. Town Center Blvd. near the intersection with Moreland Boulevard, said Kim Radetzki, the company's vice president of marketing.

"We have actively been recruiting students for several months," Radetzki said, noting that Champaign is one of nine new locations opening between June and September.

A company news release said Regency has grown from two campuses in 2002 to 17 in six states this year.

"We are working to build a national network of campuses and placement relationships so that our graduates are recognized and sought after throughout the United States," said Hayes Batson, Regency's president and chief executive officer.

To finance the expansion plan, the company has raised more than $20 million from two private equity groups, Prairie Capital and LLR Partners.

Champaign-Urbana was selected because "it's a strong retail area and a good demographic match," Radetzki said. The community is already served by two beauty schools Concept College of Cosmetology and Mr. John's School of Cosmetology, Esthetics and Nails.

Regency also is expanding elsewhere in Illinois. It already has campuses in the Aurora-Naperville and Darien-Downers Grove areas and plans to add a Peoria campus June 19 and a Fairview Heights campus in August.

Jennelle Paglino will be campus director for both the Peoria and Champaign locations, Radetzki said. But the locations won't be franchises.

"We strongly believe in managing everything ourselves," Radetzki said. "All our campuses are company-owned. The educational experience from campus to campus is extremely consistent. ... We focus a lot on professional development and confidence building."

Radetzki said students typically complete training in nine to 12 months. Typical charges including registration, lab fees and tuition total about $14,000 for Illinois students, she said.

"Federal financial aid is available, and the majority of students take advantage of grants and loans," she added.

Regency Beauty Institute campuses are typically about 6,000 square feet, and the company usually spends between $500,000 and $750,000 to open one, Radetzki said. Students are generally between 17 and 24 years old, she added.

Besides the new campuses in Illinois, Regency is planning to open locations in Duluth, Minn.; Greenwood, Ind.; Olathe, Kan.; and St. Peters, Independence and Mehlville, Mo.

Batson, who has a background in investment banking and consulting, bought Regency from his father-in-law in 2002, Radetzki said. He aims to "redefine how education is delivered and focus on all technical means," she said.

Radetzki said the company's campuses try to "emulate premier salons," she said, claiming the company spends more dollars per square foot on buildout than other beauty schools.

According to the company's Web site, Regency has had several names throughout the years. Originally called Myndall Cain Beauty School, it became Maxim's Beauty Academy in the 1950s. In the late 1980s, the school moved from Minneapolis to Blaine, Minn., and changed its name to Regency Beauty Academy. It adopted the Regency Beauty Institute name in 2003 after its acquisition by Batson.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The News-Gazette, Champaign-Urbana, Ill.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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Source: The News-Gazette

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