Why WD SWIM?
WD Swim School plans to grow the brand through franchising to 20 facility by 2030. WD Swim School’s distance-based curriculum, coupled with the available real estate in high-traffic areas, make it a standout franchise opportunity in the $3 billion swimming lessons segment.
Swimming is a valuable life skill that can only be taught by people, so the demand for skilled instructors will always be present.
The swimming industry is worth $3 billion in Canada, making it a lucrative market with plenty of potential for growth.
Swimming is a popular activity for children, with year-round swim memberships growing by 52% from 2000 to 2017, Investing in a swimming school franchise not only has the potential for financial success, but also contributes to the health and well-being of children in your community.
Swimming is a popular activity for children, with year-round swim memberships growing by 52% from 2000 to 2017, Investing in a swimming school franchise not only has the potential for financial success, but also contributes to the health and well-being of children in your community.
With the growing emphasis on health and fitness, there is a strong demand for swimming lessons among adults as well, expanding the potential market beyond just children.
Other brands in the space leverage existing pools, or have dedicated swim lessons but poor real estate and difficulty finding and retaining talent. This opens up an opportunity for WD Swim School to emerge as a national player.
Evolution of The Swim School
1980s: Rec Center Or Community Center
- Freezing cold water
- Busy shared facility with lots of noise and distractions
- Limited class availability and inadequate teacher training
- No online system for scheduling or tracking progress
- No fun for kids!
1990-2000: Third-Party Facilities
- Limited kid-friendly and parent amenities
- Deep pool only with cold water and strong chlorine smell
- Shared facility and adult locker rooms
- Limited class availability
- Scheduling by email or phone
Dedicated Facilities 2.0
- 5,000-9,000 sq. ft. facilities in B real estate locations
- Not maintained to match customer expectations
- One pool only (smaller learn-to-swim size)
- Can’t accommodate multiple kids at one time
- No full-time instructors
- Limited technology to track progress and manage lessons
Next Level: WD Swim School 3.0
- 7,000-14,000 sq. ft. facilities with salt water pool
- Appealing A-to-A real estate locations
- Water is 32 degrees, air temperature is 33+ degrees
- Noise-controlled viewing room with Wi-Fi
- Full-time, fully benefitted instructors
- Lessons for multiple age groups during the same 30-minute window
- School APP to track progress and manage lessons by mobile
Fun Fact 101
Swimming is the most popular water-related activity among tweens despite nearly one in five new Canadian tweens reporting they are unable to swim
Advantage
WD Swim School’s strong unit economics stacks up against other Franchise opportunities, and the brand’s real estate footprint allows for multiple classes to happen simultaneously to drive higher revenue than competitors in the space. WD Swim School’s proprietary technology and distance-based curriculum sets franchisees up for long-term growth.
WHY THIS SWIM SCHOOL FRANCHISE
- Great financials that stack up against other franchise segments
- Recession-resistant since its founding during the 2012 recession
- IclassPRO™ proprietary technology that operationalizes the business and provides a tool that parents love using
- Results that drive business growth through referrals
- Mission-driven business focused on an essential life skill
- The swim school industry is primed for a national player to emerge
- Unlike other brands, employees are full-time and receive competitive benefits, resulting in low turnover and higher customer satisfaction
PLANNING AND SITE ACQUISITION
- Strategic Market Planning
- Market Validation
- Site Selection (LOI and Work Letter Negotiation)
- REC Package
DESIGN
- Layouts (Test Fits/ Schematics)
- Signage Management
- Elevations and Renderings (If applicable)
- Architect and Engineer Management
- Construction Drawing (CD) Management (Cost for CDs is billed and paid separately to Architect)
- Permit Management
CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT
- Surveying (Site Investigation Reports)
- Preliminary Pricing
- Bidding
- Ongoing Construction Project Management
- Pay Application Management (Cost for construction is billed and paid separately)
- Construction Inspection
- Change Order Management
- Management of Tenant Allowance acquisition
- Weekly Reporting
- Certificate of Occupancy
- Punchlist
- Close-out package with lien waivers
- Post Opening Management (12-month warranty)
PROPRIETARY MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE
CUSTOMER-FACING MOBILE APP
Families can schedule and reschedule lessons for their whole family with the touch of a button and track their swimmers’ progress all in one place.
CUSTOMER MANAGEMENT AND DATABASE
Track and manage families and swimmers with ease, add new swimmers and update billing.
CAPACITY PLANNING
Create class schedules that maximize the amount of students and the variety of class levels in the pool at the same time, which optimizes revenue potential.
SCHEDULE MANAGEMENT
Optimize capacity utilization. Manage and track the team’s daily schedule in a convenient dashboard.
CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT (CRM)
CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT (CRM)
DAILY TASK LIST
Keep the team on track with ease.
REPORTING
Comprehensive tools to help managers maximize profitability.
SUPPORT FOR FRANCHISEES
EVERY STEP OF THE WAY
STRONG STARTS
- You will be assigned a Launch Support Specialist that will partner with you in successfully launching your location
- Site selection and lease negotiation
- Full pool design & construction management
- Franchisor will handle all online and local lead generation for your new pool using our proprietary New Pool Opening (NPO) system; NPO support occurs four months prior to your grand opening through four months after your grand opening
ONGOING OPERATIONAL SUPPORT
- Monthly support calls to track business progress
- On-site training & continuing education
- Financial support, including KPI management, benchmarking & unit economic coaching
- Licensing compliance
- IT support & training
- Technology development support
- Annual in-market visits
- Hands-off, AI-driven facilities management
ONGOING MARKETING SUPPORT
- Strategy & execution of fully integrated, 360-degree local poo; marketing playbook
- National & local community marketing implementation & PR support
- Digital marketing strategy & ongoing optimization
- Social Media & Content Marketing Management
- Blogger partnership management
- In-pool marketing creative development including wall mural, progress ribbons & stickers, promotional flyers & so much more
GENERATE LEADS
Plan, source and deploy lead generation campaigns that drive customer awareness and interest ahead of your opening
INCENTIVIZE LEADS
Offer limited-time offers to eligible leads to develop your customer pipeline
FULFILL
Schedule lessons for your new customers and continue offering pre-opening deals to drive customer acquisition
LAUNCH PROCESS OVERVIEW
Before Opening
NEW POOL OPENING
We handle strategy and execution of your pre-opening marketing plan so you can focus on building the right team and culture. The six months prior to opening are critical for driving memberships for your location.
Available Market
TARGET MARKETS
Oakville
Mississauga
Oshawa
Vancouver
Ottawa
Calgary
Any Other City
Cost & ROI
Below is a breakdown of the total investment required to build and open a WD Swim School, along with the FDD’s Item 19, and a roadmap of the application process to help you navigate the path to child education franchise ownership.
MUTUAL EVALUATION PROCESS
