Executive Spotlight: Who Is Richard Weissman, The Learning Experience's Chairman & CEO? (2027)

Current role and company

The Learning Experience franchises early education centers for children six and younger. It has been headquartered in Deerfield Beach, Florida, according to its 2018 press release and a 2020 Boca Raton Observer profile. In July 2025, Harvest Partners announced it had completed a majority acquisition of the company from Golden Gate Capital, which keeps a minority interest.

• CompanyThe Learning Experience, a child care and early education franchise (IFA and company releases).
• TitleCo-Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (company release, 2018; IFA profile, 2025).
• OwnershipHarvest Partners holds a majority stake as of July 2025; Weissman continues as CEO with a significant stake (Harvest release).
• FootprintMore than 430 locations in the U.S. and U.K. at the July 2025 deal announcement; the IFA profile cites more than 450 centers.

Career path

• Early work. A 2020 Boca Raton Observer profile says he grew up in Boca Raton and started in a preschool as a janitor, then learned the operations. The IFA's 2025 article adds that he mopped floors there as a teenager.
• Investment banking. After a brief stint in college he went into investment banking, then returned to the preschool business as a partner (Observer, 2020). The IFA article says he worked on Wall Street first.
• Tutor Time. The IFA says Tutor Time was acquired in 1987 and grew under his leadership as CEO, president and COO to more than 200 centers in 25 states and four countries, and that he retired from it in 1999.
• The Learning Experience. Company releases say he co-founded TLE in 2001. The IFA article instead dates the brand to 2002, with franchising starting in 2003, so sources differ on the founding year.
• 2018 and 2025 ownership changes. Golden Gate Capital acquired the company in July 2018, and Harvest Partners completed a majority acquisition in July 2025. He stayed in the top role through both.

What he is known for

• Franchising an early education brand. A 2018 company release says he pioneered the franchise model to expand TLE, and it reported double-digit annual growth over the prior 15 years.
• Growth numbers. The IFA profile credits him with a 29% compound annual growth rate since inception and says systemwide sales rose 30% during the COVID-19 pandemic. These are company-reported.
• Edutainment content. The IFA says TLE was the first early-education brand with an integrated edutainment platform of proprietary characters, aligned content and a learning app. The Observer profile names Bubbles the Elephant as the mascot among 94 curriculum characters (2020).
• Industry recognition. The IFA named him its 2024 Entrepreneur of the Year, announced in February 2025. The IFA also says TLE has ranked first among child care franchises on Entrepreneur's list and first among education franchises with Franchise Business Review.
• Philanthropy. He is a long-serving board member of Make-A-Wish Southern Florida, and the IFA says TLE and personal efforts have raised more than $10 million. The Observer also lists a board seat at PROPEL, a youth education and leadership nonprofit.

Leadership style and philosophy

In the 2020 Observer profile he says TLE's success rests on three principles: "learn, play and grow." He describes the company as serving two-income households that need full-time education and care, with enrollment open any day of the year.

On the 2025 Harvest deal, he said the company's mission "has been to positively impact the lives of children." The IFA article describes him as favoring innovation that challenges traditional educational models and building philanthropy into the curriculum, but that is the IFA's wording, not his.

Key numbers

All figures are company-reported or as stated in the cited pages, with the period shown. Counts change, so check TLE for current numbers.

• February 2018More than 300 centers operating or under development across 22 states (TLE release).
• January 2020More than 450 centers, of which 250 operating and 200 in development; about 30,000 children a day (Observer profile, quoting him).
• July 2025More than 430 locations across the U.S. and U.K. (Harvest Partners release).
• 2025 profileMore than 450 centers, three in the U.K., about 250 in development; more than 100 centers opened between 2024 and 2025 (IFA, company-reported).
• Growth29% compound annual growth since inception; 30% systemwide sales rise during COVID-19 (IFA, company-reported).

Questions people ask

Sources

• IFA: Richard Weissman, Chairman, CEO and Co-Founder, The Learning Experience · Title, growth figures, center counts, philanthropy, Tutor Time
• IFA: Entrepreneur of the Year Award Winner Richard Weissman (Feb 20, 2025) · Award, founding dates, early career
• Boca Raton Observer: Richard Weissman Leads Fast-Growing National Preschool Company (Jan 23, 2020, Men At Work special advertising section) · Career, quotes, 2020 counts; portrait that names him
• The Learning Experience press release (Feb 7, 2018) · Title, 2001 founding, 2018 center count
• Franchising.com: Golden Gate Capital Acquires The Learning Experience (Jul 2, 2018) · 2018 acquisition
• The Learning Experience: Harvest Partners Announces Acquisition (press release, Jul 1, 2025) · 2025 ownership, 430+ locations, quote

Facts were read from the linked pages on November 1, 2026. Titles and counts are as of the dates shown and may have changed. The hero photo is a portrait of Weissman alone from a Boca Raton Observer profile page whose image file name and caption name him. It is centered on a page-format card because the original is a portrait crop. This page covers public professional information only.

Top photo: Boca Raton Observer (bocaratonobserver.com profile)