Starting Again at 57: How Alison Wynne Built Boppity Bunnies Music From the Ground Up
Starting a business is hard.
Starting again after already building a successful one can be even harder.
Alison Wynne had spent years teaching music and movement classes, growing from one session to around 18 classes a week and building relationships with families who returned with second, third and fourth children.
Then life changed.
Her husband retired, they moved back to Norfolk and Alison had to leave behind the business and community she had spent years creating.
She could have decided that chapter was over.
Instead, at 57, she started again.
Boppity Bunnies Music was born from 20 years of experience, a removal van half-full of music equipment and one persistent question:
“What if nobody comes?”
From One Class to a Thriving Business
Alison began teaching music and movement in 2006 after training with Kindermusik International.
She was fascinated by the way music supports children’s learning, confidence, communication and development from the earliest age.
Starting with one class in Surrey, she gradually built the business to around 18 weekly sessions.
The model was licensed rather than franchised, which gave Alison enough structure to get started while still allowing her to bring her own creativity into the classes.
She loved choosing activities, building relationships with families and finding new ways to help children learn through music and movement.
For Alison, it quickly became more than a job.
“It was my passion from the word go.”
Walking Away and Beginning Again
When Alison and her husband decided to return to Norfolk, she had to leave the established business behind.
That meant saying goodbye to families she had known for years, including parents who had attended with several children.
“It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done.”
But Alison still had the enthusiasm, skills and experience to continue.
She also had a lot of equipment.
Pictures from moving day showed boxes and boxes of instruments, props and class resources taking up a significant portion of the removal van.
That helped make the decision.
She was going to give it another go, this time under a brand that was completely her own.
Boppity Bunnies Music launched in South Norfolk three years ago.
The growth was gradual.
Alison had to build a reputation in an area where families did not know her, understand the local market and adapt to a marketing landscape that had changed dramatically since she first began teaching.
Learning Social Media at 57
One of the biggest challenges was social media.
Alison knew it was going to be essential for reaching new families, but it was not something she had previously relied on to the same extent.
She saw two options.
She could stop, or she could learn.
“I had to do a big catch-up on social media.”
The process was not always comfortable, and Alison is open about the fact that she is still learning.
But it became easier once she understood the message she wanted to share.
When a business owner is clear about who they are, what they offer and why it matters, content becomes much simpler.
The goal is not to be everywhere or say everything.
It is to communicate one clear experience consistently.
That work has paid off. Boppity Bunnies recently reached 1,000 Facebook followers, a milestone that felt especially significant after Alison’s early fear that no one might come.
The Venue Is Part of the Brand
Boppity Bunnies operates from a carefully chosen venue in Mulbarton, around ten minutes from Norwich.
It is set within a large residential property with views over the common, a secure garden and a calm, countryside atmosphere.
Parents often say they feel at home when they arrive.
That is exactly what Alison wanted.
The setting supports the wider brand promise: families should feel safe, relaxed, welcomed and valued from the moment they walk through the door.
The garden also creates opportunities for outdoor holiday sessions, while the nearby common means some families stay for a picnic or make a whole morning of the visit.
People travel from across the area, with some driving 40 to 45 minutes to attend.
That is a powerful reminder that families will travel when the experience feels worth it.
A venue is not only a practical place to deliver a class.
It can become part of the reason people remember, recommend and return to the business.
Finding the Right First Teacher
As Boppity Bunnies grew, Alison knew she did not want to increase her own teaching schedule beyond three days a week.
She wanted time to work on the business, improve the marketing and plan the next stage of growth.
Her first teacher, Lindsay, was already part of the Boppity Bunnies community.
She had attended classes with her eldest daughter and later returned with her son.
Through that relationship, Alison got to know her values, personality and working style.
She knew Lindsay had a background in primary teaching, but the decision was about more than qualifications.
Alison saw that she was organised, communicated well and understood the atmosphere the brand was trying to create.
The first priority was clear:
“I want people to feel comfortable.”
Every parent and child should feel seen, welcomed and valued.
Lindsay understood that immediately and has now been teaching for a year, with additional Friday sessions and a baby class planned for September.
Turning Experience Into a System
Hiring a teacher also brought a new challenge.
After teaching for 20 years, Alison held a huge amount of knowledge in her head.
She already wrote lesson plans, but those plans were written for someone who knew exactly how the class worked.
There were small details she handled automatically:
- When equipment should be put away
- How a song should be introduced
- Which tune was being used
- Why an activity supported a particular developmental area
- How to move smoothly from one part of the session to another
To train another teacher properly, all of that had to be documented.
Alison and Lindsay worked together to shape clearer lesson plans, with Lindsay giving feedback on what she needed to deliver confidently.
That work has now created a much stronger foundation for future recruitment.
The next teacher will not be starting from a blank page.
Growing Across Norfolk
Alison’s long-term ambition is to build a wider team of Boppity Bunnies teachers and reach more villages across Norfolk.
She believes many families still have limited access to high-quality music and movement classes locally.
The next stage is about making those classes available more widely without losing the warmth and personal connection that made the original venue successful.
That means finding the right teachers, choosing venues carefully and protecting the values behind the brand.
The goal is not simply to add more sessions.
It is to recreate the feeling.
Recognition After a Leap of Faith
Alison Wynne is a finalist for Emerging Business of the Year in The Class Business Awards 2026.
When her name was announced, she cried.
“It just means the world.”
The recognition reflects more than three years of business growth.
It represents the courage to leave something established, trust that her experience still had value and build again in a completely new place.
Alison describes Boppity Bunnies as a work of passion.
The business is growing, the first teacher is thriving and families are making the journey each week because they value the experience being created.
Her advice to anyone facing a new or unfamiliar stage in business is simple:
“Be brave.”
Watch the Full Interview
Alison Wynne’s story is a reminder that starting again does not mean returning to the beginning.
You bring the knowledge, mistakes, relationships and confidence from everything you have already built.
Boppity Bunnies Music combines Alison’s 20 years of experience with a fresh brand, a new community and an increasingly team-led future.
👉 Watch Alison’s full interview here.
Join us on Saturday 10 October 2026 at the National Conference Centre in Solihull for The Class Business Live and The Class Business Awards & Afterparty.
The daytime event runs from 9:00am to 3:00pm, followed by the evening Awards and Afterparty from 6:00pm to 12:30am.
Book your tickets for the Class Business Awards here.
