Featured Business of the month: I Wanna Be
Role Play Village where the sky’s the limit
Our search of kiddy friendly attractions in Hampshire lead us to some seriously unique and amazing spaces. Chief among them is I Wanna Be. A themed role playing village for up to six years of age based in Romsey.
We had to take a closer look. So we reached out to I Wanna Be’s owner Katie Betteridge who very kindly shared some of her valuable insights with us. We were so taken aback by what she has built in the face of some tough challenges and what I Wanna Be means to her community.
I Wanna Be was built towards the beginning of the pandemic and had to shut down for several months. The uncertainty and volatility of the pandemic did not make for good business. No matter how special it is. However Katie states that she was and is to this day supported by her customers and this pulled I Wanna Be right though some very difficult times. To understand why I Wanna Be’s customers stood by Katie (other than the fact that Katie is such a warm and generous person) we had to explore the Why of I Wanna Be.
“We’re very good at taking over as adults” states Katie and this lead me to think as a parent how many times have I tried to correct my child’s narrative? Katie structured I Wanna Be around letting kids lead their own stories around several themed areas including a fire station, a grocery store, a barbershop, and a café amongst others.
I had to do a double take on how well the space was organized allowing for a park themed open space in between the play areas. When Katie explained that this space is an area for kids to have a picnic or to interact with small animals at one of the many Feathers, Fangs, and Furries events Katie hosts I was in awe of how well the space was structured.
Not all is rosy however. There exists a set of new challenges facing businesses like I Wanna Be such as rising energy costs and the increased cost of living which makes families think twice about spending on imagination based attractions such as I Wanna Be. And this why we set up Famshire.co.uk. We want to help hidden gems like I Wanna Be get noticed and succeed so that families can recall the narratives they made together.
The experience goes beyond just play. The attention to detail which Katie gives her customers can only be described as superlative. “Two hours are sometimes not enough” and sometimes children just are not done with their play. For this Katie uses every conceivable effort to help parents reduce the potential separation anxiety from continuing play and imagination. You simply don’t see this kind of attention with franchises.
I Wanna Be has the added benefit of being open all year round. A major boon given the temperature and wet weather on our special island. I Wanna Be is a very special place on our island. So if you are looking to build some amazing memories without too much planning I Wanna Be can be found at Unit B, 16 Abbotswood Common, Romsey, SO51 0BX. The site can be reached at https://iwannabe.co.uk. We hope your little one’s can have as much fun as ours did at I Wanna Be.