About Us

Providing unforgettable experiences and capturing childhood memories

WhY is spoiled rotten photography

A Good Investment?

Here are six key benefits to becoming a Spoiled Rotten Photography franchisee

1. Repeat Customers

When franchisees exceed the school expectations of quality work, convenience, and professionalism, they are rewarded with recurring business annually and semi-annually.

2. High Ticket

Spoiled Rotten Photography offers high-quality portrait products at a premium yet affordable price. Our average parent spends $96 on a portrait package.

3. High Volume

In 2024, the average franchisee generated over $279,000 in annual sales. The top third of our franchisees averaged over $558,000 in sales. A typical photographer will photograph more than 28 kids in a school session, generating over $1900 per day

4. Highly Profitable

The average Spoiled Rotten Photography franchisee generated over $279,000 in sales. The top third averaged over $558,000

5. Flexible Work Schedule and High Reurn on time

The bulk of our work happens in Spring and Fall school semesters. The rest of the time, you are slowing down, organizing, marketing, and taking time off to rest, travel, or enjoy hobbies, family, and friends.

6. Fun to Operate

The kid’s natural energy and spontaneity create opportunities to capture genuine, joyful moments, making each session a unique experience for the parents, the partner school, and the franchisee. The studio is often filled with laughter, colorful props, and imaginative setups that appeal to kids (of all ages).

Business

Trends

System-wide sales are up 80% since 2022

System-wide Sales Growth since 2022

Customer Orders are up 81% since 2022

Our revenue didn’t increase 78% because we raised prices. Our revenues increased because franchisees served more customers.

Customer Orders vs Year

Existing Franchise Sales are up 28% since 2022

Average Annual Sales vs Year

About the

The Children's Portrait Industry

The portrait photography market, which includes children's portrait photography, generated over $11 billion in 2022. Children’s photography is in demand due to key life events, such as newborn photos, first birthdays, and school portraits.

The market is expected to grow between 4%-5% into the foreseeable future. Our franchisees, however, are seeing better growth numbers. Our average franchisees’ sales increased 28% from 2022 to 2024.

Few established brands offer high-quality and high-value portrait packages. The industry largely consists of small, unsophisticated freelancers, small local studios, and only one national brand. Spoiled Rotten Photography is one of the fastest growing and most successful brands in the children’s portrait industry.

Brand Positioning

How do franchisees compete?

We offer customers a better value than our competition. Our artistry is far superior to the large, national one-size-fits-all-kids photo sessions.

Our price is more affordable than that of custom portrait photographers, who often charge $150-$500 per sitting. Because our photographers set up mobile studios at preschools, private schools, and other venues, they photograph an average of 28 children per day per photographer.

By creating more volume, we can afford to offer families a greater value than a photographer setting up only one photograph at a time. Our average package costs $96. Simply put, we offer a great product at a price families can afford, which creates happy, repeat customers.

Who are

Our Customers?

Preschool Photography

Spoiled Rotten Photography offers semi-custom sessions in the preschool environment, allowing children to feel comfortable in familiar surroundings. Elective spring and fall mini-sessions give parents different looks and unique themes, such as sessions for the holidays and adorable cap-and-gown portraits to celebrate little ones' milestones.

school Photography for K-12

Expanding our expertise beyond preschool, Spoiled Rotten Photography also caters to K-12 schools. Our services include yearbook portraits, class photos, spring portraits, and even sports and club photography.

What are

Customers saying about Spoiled Rotten Photography?

Michele D

Franklin, TN

Oh my goodness! Will Smith's team at Spoiled Rotten Photography is the BEST! I've been working with school photographers for 23 years and Spoiled Rotten has been a Godsend! Our parents are very pleased with the photos and the customer service is top notch. Our yearbook advisor is happy and our athletic director is happy. Win, win, win! They have set the bar high and no one else comes close.

Jenn Marie

Birmingham, AL

We absolutely love spoiled rotten photography! The photos exceed my expectations every time. The photographer always has a great setup, especially at Christmas. I love the photos taken of my kids together, they show the love and the sweetness that my kids (sometimes) have for each other.

Val H

Charlotte, NC

AMAZING WORK! Abbey has been photographing my son for the past 3 years for pre school picture day. The photos are always perfect, she knows how to get my son to smile or make the perfect face. She even give suggestions on outfits/colors that will look best with the background. I recommend spoiled rotten photography to everyone I know. Not to mention the quick turn around to see proofs of the photos is quick, and it's always so hard to pick just one pose. Perfection!

Brand

History

Spoiled Rotten Photography was started in Huntsville, Alabama, in 2003 by our founder and CEO, Melissa Tash. We have been in operation for over 20 years.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 20% of businesses that opened in 2003 are still in operation today.

Tash, a former U.S. Army Officer, worked as an industrial engineer at Teledyne, working on the International Space Station Project. In her spare time, she studied photography and enjoyed taking portraits of her kids. Word got out about the quality of her work, and her reputation grew around Huntsville. She was invited to take portraits at a preschool, which became a smashing success, artistically and financially.

Tash saw the opportunity and applied her engineering skills to create replicable processes and systems. She also used technology to improve the customer experience.

Tash opened the first Spoiled Rotten Photography studio in Huntsville, Alabama, in 2003. It is still in business today and generated over $867,000 in sales in 2024 (see FDD for more details).

Meet the

Leadership Team

Aside from CEO and Founder Melissa Tash, our team includes the following leaders:

Jamie Tash

Franchisee Support

Responsibilities: Accounting, payroll and monthly filing/reporting, royalties and materials debits, legal (FDD updates and contracts), shipping and receiving, technology oversight and troubleshooting, SEO and website updates, and email.

He also leads training for customer service, business set-up, HR, and accounting.

Jamie has a Master’s degree in Environmental Health (Health and Safety).

Elizabeth Bailey

Director of Franchise Owner Success

Elizabeth joined Spoiled Rotten Photography as our second owner. She sold her business and relocated to a new city, later joining our corporate team to help other owners replicate her success.

Responsibilities: She helps owners with customer acquisition and sales, social media, marketing, advertising campaign management, seasonal set promotional video, franchise owner support, and quality control.

Scott Wehrenberg

Software Development

Spoiled Rotten Photography intelligently uses technology to streamline our business and improve our customer experience.

Scott continues to develop and enhance our proprietary CRM software, which includes an on-line sales cart, reporting, email, and text marketing features.

Our Corporate

Values

Spoiled Rotten Photography is a values-based company.

We only do business with franchise candidates who share and respect these values:

Respect others
Be joyful
Make a positive impact
Be generous
Exceed expectations
Do what is right

Initial

Training

Spoiled Rotten Photography offers a comprehensive initial training and pre-launch support program to equip new franchisees for success.

The pre-launch timeline spans approximately 60-90 days, starting with signing the franchise agreements. During this period, franchise owners engage in pre-training, which consists of self-paced online modules and interactive video conferences. This pre-training phase typically lasts about a month, ensuring owners are well-prepared for the following hands-on training experience.

During this time, franchisees also work on business setup, which includes obtaining the necessary licenses, forming a business entity, opening bank accounts, and establishing vendor accounts. This parallel process helps streamline operations and readiness for launch.

Following pre-training, franchisees participate in an intensive in-person training program at the Corporate Headquarters in Huntsville, AL. This immersive experience covers essential operational and marketing strategies, equipping owners with the skills to effectively manage their photography business.

After completing the training, franchisees are prepared to launch their business and typically photograph their first school within two months, ensuring a swift and confident launch into the market.

Continuing education

and Ongoing Support

Weekly Growth Meetings: New franchise owners and any owner requesting extra support participate in weekly "growth" meetings led by our support team. These sessions focus on new client acquisition and operational challenges that arise.
Monthly Franchise System Meetings: To foster collaboration and sharing of best practices, we host monthly Zoom meetings for our entire franchise system.
One-on-One Calls: Franchise owners have the opportunity for individualized support through one-on-one calls.
Annual Conference: Our conference is a crucial opportunity for franchisees to connect, learn, build relationships, and share common experiences.
Peer-to-Peer Support: We recognize the collective genius of our franchisee community, which is why we provide constant access for franchisees to network and share best practices.
Emergency Assistance: We offer an Instant Messenger solution for urgent matters, enabling franchise owners to “dial 911” and seek immediate help and guidance from other franchises and brand leadership.
Ongoing Training Tools: We utilize an online learning management system (LMS) to ensure franchise owners have access to essential resources and training materials whenever needed.
Mobile Studio Set Designs: We design new photo sets every spring and fall to complement fashion trends and home decorating styles. These set designs are easy to set up and break down and make for wonderful new children’s portraits.

We Create

Beautiful Portraits

We are not your typical ‘sit, smile, shoot, and move-on’ school photographers – we are true portrait artists respected for creating beautiful portraits.

You’ll receive praise from school directors and parents who truly appreciate and admire your craft! How? Because you’ll be trained by award-winning photographers who stay one step ahead of the trends. Check out our newest set design for 2025 Spring mini-sessions:

we have (very) happy

Franchise Owners

FBR measures franchisee satisfaction and other metrics comparing franchise brands across investment levels and industries. FBR surveyed our franchise owners and ranked us in the top 5% of all franchise systems. Download the Full Report here.