Creating a sensory-rich play space for kids
Niri Azuaje is the winner of this edition’s Inspirations Entrepreneurial Award for Sensetional: Her creation of an indoor sensory playground adapted for children with special needs.
Azuaje, who is autistic, is also mother to two autistic children, one of whom is non-verbal. Her children inspired her to create the playground. “The turning point for me was when I had my son,” said Azuaje. “I always saw myself as inadequate and that I didn’t have a place in society, so when I had my children, I loved them for who they were and wanted to make room for them.”
Azuaje left her native Venezuela at the age of 29 to move to the United States. There, she was hired to run the pantry at a food bank, where she had been working as a volunteer and receiving food. She moved to Montreal with her husband who got a job in robotics.
With the help from the YMCAs of Québec and Fondation Lise Watier’s Let’s Start Up Pathway program, Azuaje put together a business plan in 2024 and began looking for a space for her idea. She liquidated her small retirement nest egg and acquired a small business loan. She rented a 2,400-square-foot space in Town of Mount Royal and set about getting just the right equipment and lighting.
“She truly is an inspiration,” said Rachel Simioni, from the Y des femmes de Montréal. “She expressed the difficulties and challenges she faces every day as a person with special needs, yet she applied her resilience and perseverance to the very end in an effort to realize her dream…”
Azuaje’s coach, Audrey Mollard, said she has all the qualities of an entrepreneur such as risk-taking, courage, perseverance and a constant search for support and help. “In a short space of time, she has brought her project to life and created a magical place for children.”
Azuaje admits to experiencing periods of doubt, thinking her project was too niche and should be shelved. But since opening its doors in December, Sensetional has been a huge success, with over 200 reservations in the last week of December alone. “It’s incredible,” she said. “This was supposed to be the soft launch.”
Asma Al-Naser read about Sensetional on a Facebook group page and brings her 4-year-old son regularly, spending a good two hours hanging out together. She likes that the number of people are limited and that there are enclosed spaces.
“There’s something very calming about the place,” she shared. “It’s not as noisy as other places, where there’s music blaring.”
There is an option to book the space for private gatherings, but Azuaje said she wants to create a community where children with special needs can come together and play without having to follow rules that may be in force elsewhere. For example, some playgrounds insist that children wear socks and/or shoes but at Sensetional, they are optional.
Parents can write to Azuaje and request whatever special accommodations their child may need, and she will do her best to make them.
The playground is divided into seven rooms, each focusing on one of the senses. Children can enjoy climbing walls, a massive ball pit and interactive games, as well as music and drawing.
“A lot of people ask me if I’m an educator, but I just created this out of my own brain,” explained Azuaje, who has a background in computer science.
She said one of the biggest challenges for her was being on the spectrum herself and having to learn how to do customer service. “I have to be mindful to smile and greet people, which doesn’t come natural[ly] to me,” she said. “And if they show up without a reservation, I don’t want the kid to be disappointed like my kids were when we showed up somewhere and couldn’t get in.”
For information: sensetional.com
Nominate your entrepreneur at info@inspirationsnews.com
