1851

Not many franchisors can give credit to the start of their business to losing to Michael Phelps. A competitive swimmer at the University of Michigan, ranked fifth in the world in backstroke and fourth in the U.S., Chris DeJong trained under the same coach as Phelps. For the 2008 Olympics, DeJong finished behind Phelps and missed qualifying by just four-tenths of a second..“To be perfectly honest, I’m pretty sure if I had made the team, I would have not left the sport with the hunger and desire necessary to start a business. I’m almost certain that personal disappointment fueled the next step in my career,” said DeJong. “I was able to experience swimming at every level from age group swimming to international competitions. I left the sport somewhat disappointed with my competitive swimming career and had a unique perspective on everything that was wrong with swimming, especially at the entry point.”DeJong soon moved to Chicago and partnered with John Lonergan, a Big Ten all-academic swimmer at the University of Iowa, to coach a local&nbsp;swim team in Evanston, teach lessons and run the aquatics program at North Shore Country Club in Glenview. The duo developed great contacts during this time, including Chicago Cubs co-owner Todd Ricketts&nbsp;and, through their combined swimming and teaching experience, created a curriculum focused on achieving fast results. DeJong and Lonergan opened their first standalone <a href="https://www.bigblueswimschool.com/franchising/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=backed-by-an-investment-from-level-5-capital-partners-big-blue-swim-school-prepares-to-grow-through-franchising-to-150-units-by-2020-2708477" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">swim school</a> concept in Wilmette in 2009, which grew from 600 to 2,200 families essentially overnight. They opened locations in Buffalo Grove (2015), Niles (2016), Hoffman Estates (2017), and will open a fifth location in Chicago’s North Center neighborhood in March 2019.“From a consumer standpoint, <a href="http://1851franchise.com/bigblueswimschool">Big Blue Swim School</a>’s four points of execution -- explain, demonstrate, mimic, correct -- allow&nbsp;our child engagement specialists to deliver an experience that actually helps kids learn how to swim,” said DeJong. “Our proprietary distance-based methodology ensures that we are measuring our students’ progress in the ways that actually matter and more quickly achieve better results. Parents are willing to invest in this because it’s a vital life skill, and they are able to rapidly see not only that their investment has paid off, but more importantly, that their children know how to keep themselves safe in and around water.”Level 5 Capital Partners Sees Big Blue as the Next Big BrandIn 2017,&nbsp;<a href="http://www.lfivecapital.com/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=backed-by-an-investment-from-level-5-capital-partners-big-blue-swim-school-prepares-to-grow-through-franchising-to-150-units-by-2020-2708477" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">Level 5 Capital Partners, an investment company that grew from one Core Power Yoga studio to become the third largest national yoga studio operator in less than a decade</a>, acquired a majority stake in Big Blue Swim School, and plans to grow the brand through <a href="https://www.bigblueswimschool.com/franchising/opportunity/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=backed-by-an-investment-from-level-5-capital-partners-big-blue-swim-school-prepares-to-grow-through-franchising-to-150-units-by-2020-2708477" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">franchising opportunities</a>.&nbsp;“The consumer proposition, lifetime value of each member and real estate opportunity were what drew us to Big Blue Swim School,” said Chris Kenny, Managing Partner of Level 5 Capital Partners, adding that the $20 billion swimming lessons market*, the brand’s results-oriented curriculum and the real estate in high-traffic areas made available by Amazon and other online businesses were contributing factors.&nbsp;Big Blue Swim School’s real estate footprint is generally between 10,000 to 12,000 square feet, with 13 lanes across two 91-degree pools, which allows owners to map out class times by age group and make it easy for parents of multiple children to attend classes at the same time. Because teaching positions are filled by full-time child engagement specialists that receive benefits, Big Blue Swim School has less staff turnover, which saves the franchisee time and money and makes parents and children feel more comfortable.Competitors in the swim school space typically connect new franchise owners to local real estate brokers who source Class C or Class D locations in warehouse areas, while Big Blue Swim School has a team of eight dealmakers canvassing the country to identify trade areas that fit the brand’s member profile.“Competitors in the space are primarily focused on getting a good deal on rent, and are finding spaces in warehouse districts that are outside of the daily commute for parents. We are taking the opposite approach by using data on our current customers from Lesson Buddy, along with&nbsp;Esite Analytics, including&nbsp;demographics, psychographics, traffic patterns and more, to narrow down the options to the top three sites to present to franchise owners,” said Kenny. “We are literally knocking on doors of properties that fit our profile, even if there’s a current tenant, to make sure we have the very best location. As an experience-based business that drives a lot of traffic to shopping centers, Big Blue Swim School is very attractive to landlords. The right real estate is pivotal to our success from a consumer standpoint, and our turnkey, hands-on approach to sourcing real estate and managing the process from lease negotiation through the construction makes it very easy for franchisees to open locations.”The investment range for a Big Blue Swim School is $1,767,500 to $3,646,000. The brand is looking for <a href="https://www.bigblueswimschool.com/franchising/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=backed-by-an-investment-from-level-5-capital-partners-big-blue-swim-school-prepares-to-grow-through-franchising-to-150-units-by-2020-2708477" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">swim school franchise</a> owners to develop in Florida, Texas, Southern California, Denver, Charlotte, Northern New Jersey, Georgia and Washington, D.C., with plans to open45 new locations by end of 2019, and up to 150 by the end of 2020.&nbsp;Big Blue Swim School will support new <a href="https://www.bigblueswimschool.com/franchising/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=backed-by-an-investment-from-level-5-capital-partners-big-blue-swim-school-prepares-to-grow-through-franchising-to-150-units-by-2020-2708477" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">education franchise</a> owners in a number of other ways, like lead generation through a corporate call center, and marketing through the required franchisee marketing fund, to help franchisees save money on labor and ensure that they are able to focus on running their day-to-day operations.&nbsp;“Swim schools stack up financially against other top tier franchises but offer a much more rewarding <a href="https://www.bigblueswimschool.com/franchising/opportunity/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=backed-by-an-investment-from-level-5-capital-partners-big-blue-swim-school-prepares-to-grow-through-franchising-to-150-units-by-2020-2708477" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">franchise opportunity</a>, and have a longer lifetime customer value,” said Scott Thompson, Chief Development Officer at Big Blue and Level 5 Capital Partners. “We have&nbsp;a strong Item 19, but beyond that, we are attracting people who want to make a difference in their communities and be a part of life’s big moments for families. When you're part of the community, helping children learn to swim and giving parents peace of mind, it gives you a real sense of pride. .You're not just investing in a business, you're investing in a lifestyle and a community, and franchising gives us the opportunity to do that on a larger scale.”A key brand differentiator that will help the team achieve the expected growth is the brand’s proprietary software developed by Chief Technology Officer Casey Morford. Lesson Buddy leverages membership, sales data and operational insights to make business recommendations, including when and where to have class times to maximize return, as well as monitoring the chemical makeup of the pool itself.&nbsp;“Lesson Buddy is a tool that systematizes the operations for our <a href="https://www.bigblueswimschool.com/franchising/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=backed-by-an-investment-from-level-5-capital-partners-big-blue-swim-school-prepares-to-grow-through-franchising-to-150-units-by-2020-2708477" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">fitness franchise</a> owners and gives the franchisor access to data across the entire system,” said Kenny. “If a location has an issue with its pool, the equipment functions with smart technology that’s connected to our software, so we are able to deploy facilities managers to the site to take care of any issues. Plus, the parents love being able to easily schedule lessons and view their children’s progress on the app, which also relieves the franchisee of having to hire an employee to manage class scheduling for members.”With a best-in-class product, strong brand leadership, a growth model and proprietary technology, the brand is set to add 50 locations in 2019 on the way to meeting its vision of 150 units by 2020.“We are not treating this business like a normal franchise brand,” said Kenny. “With our network of interested multi-unit franchisees, the consumer value proposition and the <a href="https://www.bigblueswimschool.com/franchising/opportunity/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=backed-by-an-investment-from-level-5-capital-partners-big-blue-swim-school-prepares-to-grow-through-franchising-to-150-units-by-2020-2708477" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">franchise business opportunity</a>, we anticipate seeing immediate and long-term growth for Big Blue Swim School.”&nbsp;ABOUT BIG BLUE SWIM SCHOOLBig Blue Swim School was founded in 2009 by competitive swimmers Chris DeJong and John Lonergan. The first location opened in Wilmette, followed by Niles, Buffalo Grove and Hoffman Estates. In 2017, Level 5 Capital Partners acquired a majority stake in the brand, and is rolling out an aggressive strategy to grow through franchising to 150 locations by 2020. Big Blue Swim School’s real estate footprint, proprietary technology Lesson Buddy, coupled with its practice of employing full-time child engagement specialists that teach based on a proprietary distance-based swimming methodology sets Big Blue up for long-term success.&nbsp;*World Aquatic Health Conference

Backed by an Investment from Level 5 Capital Partners, Big Blue Swim School Prepares to Grow Through Franchising to 150 Units by 2020

1851 Franchise

Big Blue Swim School’s consumer proposition, proprietary technology and real estate opportunity primes the brand to become the national swim school leader


This brand page has been paid for by 1851. Content within this page that is paid will showcase a Sponsored icon. This means the brand has engaged 1851 FRANCHISE to write the content. Content without the Sponsored Icon is aggregated media placements the brand earned. Questions can be sent to editorial@1851franchise.com

backed-by-an-investment-from-level-5-capital-partners-big-blue-swim-school-prepares-to-grow-through-franchising-to-150-units-by-2020

Children's Lighthouse

Children’s Lighthouse Ramps Up Growth in First Half of 2025 With Strategic Expansions, Franchise Signings, and New Headquarters

childrens-lighthouse-ramps-up-growth-in-first-half-of-2025-with-strategic-expansions-franchise-signings-and-new-headquarters

Right at Home

Right at Home® Named a 2025 Top Franchise Brand for Multi-Unit Owners by Entrepreneur Magazine

right-at-home-named-a-2025-top-franchise-brand-for-multi-unit-owners-by-entrepreneur-magazine

Dog Training Elite

Dog Training Elite -Tips-to-Ease-Dog Anxiety-for-4th of July- July-2025

Dog Training Elite Shares Tips To Ease Dog Anxiety for 4th of July

tips-to-ease-dog-anxiety-fireworks-4th-of-july

Melting Pot

Photo of interior of Melting Pot restaurant

Lexington Herald Leader: This Restaurant Chain Eyes a Return to Lexington After 10 Years

melting-pot-return-to-lexington

Keke's Breakfast Cafe

Keke's Breakfast Cafe - John and Kimberly Ehrhard - 1851 Franchise

Empowering Leadership, One Pancake at a Time: How John and Kimberly Ehrhard Are Building a Franchise Legacy with Keke’s Breakfast Cafe

john-kimberly-ehrhard-kekes-franchise

Buying a Franchise Masterclass

 Franchise Opportunities

Get Support Buying a Franchise

How to Buy a Franchise White Paper

How to Buy a Franchise

How to Sell Franchises

How to Grow a Franchise

Find a Franchise Supplier

1851 Franchise Opportunities

Franchisor News

Franchisor Power Rankings

FranCamp Mastermind Summit

Franchise Development Website Builder

Franchise Resources

What ALEC-Laffer's Report Means for Franchising

Website Awards

Power Rankings

About 1851

Advertise on 1851

Contact 1851 Editorial

Terms of Use

1851 Login

GROWTH CLUB LOGIN

facebook

instagram

twitter

linkedin

youtube

Drone Delivery Takes Flight in QSR: The Future of Franchise Operations?

drone-delivery-takes-flight-in-qsr-the-future-of-franchise-operations

Chick-fil-A Tops Customer Satisfaction Rankings for 11th Year as Challenger Brands Gain Ground

chick-fil-a-tops-customer-satisfaction-rankings-for-11th-year-as-challenger-brands-gain-ground

Technomic Releases Annual Ranking of the Top 15 Fast-Food Chains in the U.S.

technomic-releases-annual-ranking-of-the-top-15-fast-food-chains-in-the-us

Rising Jobless Claims Could Signal Challenges — and Opportunities — for Franchising

rising-jobless-claims-affect-franchising

Hardee’s Lawsuit Highlights the Risk of Going Off-Model in Franchising

hardees-franchise-lawsuit-paradigm-investment-group

How Vishal Juneja Turned a Family Tradition Into a Paris Baguette Franchise

How Vishal Juneja Turned a Family Tradition Into a Paris Baguette Franchise Built on Heart and Community

paris-baguette-franchise-rockaway-new-jersey-vishal-junjea

Franchisee spotlight graphic with photo of Raj Pingili and Paris Baguette logo

How a Family Vacation Inspired Raj Pingili to Bring Paris Baguette to Towson, Maryland

how-a-family-vacation-inspired-raj-pingili-to-bring-paris-baguette-to-towson-maryland

Franchisee spotlight graphic with photo of Juan & Whitney Fernandez & family, BIGGBY COFFEE logo

From Chiropractic to Coffee: These BIGGBY® COFFEE Franchisees Are Brewing Something New in Troy, Ohio 

biggby-coffee-franchise-coming-to-troy-ohio

Franchisee spotlight graphic with photo of Sean Phelan & Caring Transitions logo

From Tech to Transitions: Why This Caring Transitions Franchisee Left the Corporate World To Help Families Navigate Life’s Hardest Moves

Backed by an Investment from Level 5 Capital Partners, Big Blue Swim School Prepares to Grow Through Franchising to 150 Units by 2020

MORE STORIES LIKE THIS