Big Blue Swim School’s Founding Story: How Chris DeJong Created a Stand Out Concept in the Learn-to-Swim Category

Big Blue Swim School, one of the nation’s fastest-growing swim school franchises, was founded in 2009 with a mission to show kids they can do anything by unlocking their full potential in the water. The brand’s founder, Chris DeJong, is a five-time U.S. National Champion swimmer and a former American record holder, but he didn’t start out like a fish in water.

Growing up on the shores of Lake Michigan, DeJong’s mom enrolled him in swim lessons when he was five years old. DeJong still has vivid memories of the first time he entered a frigid pool with 30 other kids and an instructor who could not provide individual help. Cold and clinging to the side of the pool, DeJong was terrified of the water and felt singled out for his fear.

“Eventually, I decided to face my fears and by literally taking it one step at a time. Each day I went one step deeper into the pool,” DeJong said. “A week later, I worked my way to the bottom step, and there, my passion for being in the water was ignited. After many more lessons, I began swimming competitively at the age of eight and found great success in the water.”

DeJong went on to become a member of the U.S. National Swim Team from 2003 to 2009, winning five national titles as a middle-distance freestyler and backstroker. He was captain of the University of Michigan Men’s Swimming and Diving team, where he earned multiple All-American and All-Big Ten recognitions. DeJong worked with the same coach who trained Michael Phelps, helping him earn the No. 4 rank in the U.S. and No. 5 rank in the world for his backstroke.

DeJong had his sights set on the Olympics but missed qualifying for the team in 2004 and 2008 by three-tenths of a second. But those years of competitive swimming exposed DeJong to dozens of coaches, teaching methods, and programs, and he noted he always felt the learn-to-swim process was flawed.

“My experience swimming at every level, from age-group swimming to international competitions, gave me a unique perspective on everything that could be improved with swimming instruction, especially at the entry point,” he said. “Developing a love for the water is what builds confidence. With confidence, a child is able to become a truly successful swimmer.”

When DeJong moved to Chicago and began teaching swim lessons, he quickly discovered a new kind of passion for the sport.

“Seeing a young child make the transformation from being afraid to even look at a pool to going underwater for the first time was a big part of the motivation to start my own business,” he said.

So in 2009, DeJong took that passion a step further by opening Big Blue Swim School in the Chicago suburb of Glenview, Illinois. Over the next few years, the business quickly caught on, growing to serve thousands of families across five pools in Chicagoland.

DeJong believed there was a better way to teach kids to swim so he created a school that does just that. Big Blue has changed the way students learn to swim and changed the swim lesson experience for the entire family. As a result, it carved out a dominant role in the swim school industry.

Eight years after its first pool opening, Big Blue caught the attention of Level 5 Capital Partners, which invested to help the brand launch its national franchising strategy. Through expansion, Big Blue has plans to open 400 locations, which would address one-third of the 48 million children 12 and under in the U.S.

Now, just three years into franchising, Big Blue has signed agreements for more than 200 locations in 24 states, and is well on its way to achieving what it set out to do.

Multi-unit franchise opportunities are available for qualified candidates looking for their next big opportunity, and veterans can receive a 10 percent discount on the $80,000 franchise fee. The total investment necessary to begin operation of a new Big Blue Swim School is $2,334,223 to $3,641,998 (refer to item 7 in FDD) To learn more or inquire about Big Blue Swim School, visit https://www.bigblueswimschool.com/franchising/.