Conventional wisdom within the sociology of education and organizations posits that schools achieve legitimacy by conforming to institutionalized norms and mimicking the actions of successful peers. Recent work on non-elite private schools (NEPS) shows that this institutional type may serve as an exception to this logic, generally adopting what can be perceived as "illegitimate" forms and practices. We conduct a mixed-methods analysis of the promotional profiles of 204 NEPS located within Ontario, Canada. We ask: How does this unorthodox organizational population carve a space for itself within a fiercely competitive and centuries-old market? Our findings illustrate that these schools engage in niche-seeking behavior, specifically catering to changing parental preferences for a "caring consumer ethos" with more holistic forms of child development. More broadly, they employ rhetorical strategies (e.g., fostering confidence and global-mindedness) that render their efficiency beyond the scope of verification by potential consumers. We interpret these empirical findings through the lens of contemporary theorizing within organizational sociology.