BestStart Educare

What does BestStart Educare own?
It owns and operates more than 258 early childhood centres under the BestStart, ABC, Edukids, TopKids, and Early Years brands across New Zealand.

Is BestStart Educare publicly traded?
No. It is a private company controlled by the Wright family interests and has no stock listing.

Who founded BestStart Educare?
Auckland businessman Wayne Wright built the company through acquisitions of early childhood providers starting in the 1990s, unified under the BestStart name in 2010.

Where is BestStart Educare headquartered?
The national support office is in Auckland, New Zealand.

How many brands does BestStart Educare operate?
Five main centre brands: BestStart, ABC, Edukids, TopKids, and Early Years.

Who owns BestStart Educare?
The company is privately held and controlled by the Wright family interests that consolidated the network.

How is BestStart funded?
Predominantly through Ministry of Education early childhood subsidies, including 20 Hours ECE, supplemented by parent fees.

The company grew from a consolidation program led by Auckland businessman Wayne Wright, who began acquiring early childhood centres in the 1990s through entities including Kidicorp. The 2010 merger of the Kidicorp and ABC networks created the unified BestStart group, instantly the largest ECE provider in the country.

Expansion continued through the 2010s via acquisition of independent centres and regional chains. In 2017 the Commerce Commission examined the group's acquisition activity and resulting local market positions, concluding without blocking its structure but documenting its dominance in several regions.

The pandemic brought lockdown closures and reliance on government wage subsidies before enrolments recovered. In recent years the company has invested in teacher registration support, curriculum systems, and digital tools while defending its position in a national debate over the quality of for-profit early childhood provision. It reported more than 258 operating centres as of 2025.

The 2017 Commerce Commission review of the group's acquisition pattern documented its local market dominance. The company features regularly in union and advocacy criticism of commercial ECE quality and teacher pay, and individual centres occasionally attract ERO compliance findings remediated under Ministry oversight. No network-wide sanctions are on record.