Start a SafeSplash Swim School Franchise in 2025

2025 Franchise 500 Rank: #365 Ranked #251 last year

Initial investment: $58K - $1.3M

Units as of 2024: 120 17% over 3 years

As a certified swimming school provider in the U.S., SafeSplash/SwimLabs/Swimtastic appreciates swimming as an integral life skill and dedicates its resources to helping young learners navigate their swimming journey safely and enjoyably.

Founded in 2005, the company began to offer franchises in 2014. Since then, it has expanded to over 110 locations across the United States. In addition to that, there are more than 40 SafeSplash franchises located internationally. By extending its swimming lessons to incorporate different stages of swimmers, SafeSplash believes it has affirmed its status in the industry and as an ideal franchising option.

Why You May Want to Start a SafeSplash Franchise

SafeSplash takes pride in serving parents and persons looking for first-class professional swimming education that focuses on all skill levels and provides a lifetime of water safety. SafeSplash educates on the joy and skills of swimming by using a technologically advanced swim instruction program.

To run a SafeSplash franchise, you do not need to be an expert swimmer, but you should have a love for children and a desire to help them learn and grow. Prior business management, while an advantage, it's not a necessity. SafeSplash is geared to guide you through all aspects of your franchise journey and wishes to equip you with the skills to confidently run the franchise.

Combined with the innovative multi-model business brand and exceptional SafeSplash team, you may develop a dedicated facility that offers the best experience to clients with growth potential.

What Might Make a SafeSplash Franchise a Good Choice?

SafeSplash has been ranked in BIZ Experiences's Franchise 500 multiple times in the past few years. This ranking is based on an evaluation of more than 150 data points in the areas of costs and fees, size, and growth, franchisee support, brand strength, and financial strength and stability.

SafeSplash provides franchisees with a unique franchising model that consists of three investment concepts: dual school, dedication, and hosted facility options. The presence of options offer you an opportunity to select a model that suits your interests and capital.

SafeSplash believes it supports franchisees with an easy onboarding process by offering a SafeSplash certified instructor for management consultations and operational success metrics. The SafeSplash back-office team facilitates the franchise model adoption.

How To Open a SafeSplash Franchise

To be part of the SafeSplash team, a franchisee must be financially ready to pay the initial investment made up of a franchise fee and other startup costs. In addition, you should prepare yourself for ongoing fees that will include advertising, royalty, and potential renewal fees. Franchisees will also need to meet the company's set net worth and liquid capital requirements.

Before making any financial commitment or signing an agreement, you must perform your due diligence and establish if this is the right opportunity for you. As part of your due diligence, you may want to speak to existing franchisees and ask the SafeSplash franchising team questions.

Once a franchisee is awarded their SafeSplash franchise, the franchishor’s back-office team will contact you and assist in location identification or offer one of its hosted location territories. After the billing, onboarding, site selection, and staffing processes are all done, you will be ready to operate under one of the most trusted swimming brands.

Company Overview

About SafeSplash Swim School

Industry	Children's Businesses
Related Categories	Swimming Lessons, Children's Fitness Programs, Children's Education/Enrichment, Sports
Founded	2005
Parent Company	Youth Enrichment Brands
Leadership	Heather Anderson, VP of Marketing
Corporate Address	1010 B St. San Rafael, CA 94901
Social	Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram

Business Overview

Franchising Since	2014 (11 years)
# of employees at HQ	250
Where seeking	This company is offering new franchises in the following US states: Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Wyoming
# of Units	120 (as of 2024)

Information for Franchisees

Here's what you need to know if you're interested in opening a SafeSplash Swim School franchise.

Financial Requirements & Ongoing Fees

Here's what you can expect to spend to start the business and what ongoing fees the franchisor charges throughout the life of the business.

Initial Franchise Fee Definition: The initial fee paid to a franchisor to join their system What you need to know: Found in Item 5 of the FDD, this may be a flat fee, or may vary based on territory size, experience, or other factors.The franchise fee is an up-front (one-time) cost that a new franchisee pays to the franchisor. This fee is usually due at the signing of the franchise agreement and covers the right to use the franchisor's trademarks, name, and related business systems.	$37,500
Initial Investment Definition: The total amount necessary to begin operation of the franchise What you need to know: The initial investment includes the franchise fee, along with other startup expenses such as real estate, equipment, supplies, business licenses, and working capital. This is outlined in a chart in Item 7 of the FDD, showing a range of possible costs from low to high.	$57,500 - $1,327,700
Net Worth Requirement Definition: The minimum net worth you must have in order to qualify to become a franchisee of this company What you need to know: Net worth is the value of a person's assets minus liabilities. Assets include cash, stocks, retirement accounts, and real estate. Liabilities include items like mortgages, car payments, and credit card debt.	$300,000 - $1,500,000
Cash Requirement Definition: The minimum liquid capital you must have available in order to qualify to become a franchisee of this company.	$60,000 - $300,000
Veteran Incentives Definition: A discount or other incentive offered to military veterans who buy a franchise with this company.	$5,000 off franchise fee
Royalty Fee Definition: A ongoing fee paid to the franchisor on a regular basis. What you need to know: Most franchisors require franchisees to pay an ongoing royalty fee, which is detailed in Item 6 of the FDD. This fee is typically a percentage of weekly or monthly gross sales, but may also be a flat weekly, monthly, or annual fee.	6%
Ad Royalty Fee Definition: An going fee paid to the franchisor on a regular basis to support advertising or marketing efforts. What you need to know: This may also be called advertising fee, marketing fee, brand fund fee, and more, but the basic purpose is the same-- to support promotion of the brand systemwide. As with the royalty fee, it is detailed in Item 6 of the FDD, and can be a percentage of weekly or monthly gross sales or a weekly, monthly, or annual fee.	2%
Term of Agreement Definition: The length of time your franchise agreement will last. What you need to know: Franchise terms are typically anywhere from 5 to 20 years in length, but are sometimes instead dependent on factors such as the term of your lease. Once your term is up, you may have the option to renew your agreement, typically for a smaller fee than the original franchise fee.	10 years
Is franchise term renewable?	Yes

Financing Options

Some franchisors offer in-house financing, while others have relationships with third-party financing sources to which they refer qualified franchisees.

Third Party Financing	SafeSplash Swim School has relationships with third-party sources which offer financing to cover the following: startup costs, equipment, inventory, accounts receivable, payroll

Training & Support Offered

Franchisors offer initial training programs and a variety of ongoing support options to help franchisees run their businesses.

On-The-Job Training	50 hours
Classroom Training	80 hours
Ongoing Support	Purchasing Co-ops Newsletter Meetings & Conventions Toll-Free Line Grand Opening Online Support Security & Safety Procedures Lease Negotiation Field Operations Site Selection Proprietary Software Franchisee Intranet Platform
Marketing Support	Co-op Advertising Ad Templates National Media Regional Advertising Social Media SEO Website Development Email Marketing Loyalty Program/App

Operations

Additional details about running this franchise.

Is absentee ownership allowed?	Yes
Can this franchise be run from home/mobile unit? Definition: The business can be run from your home and/or a vehicle, and it is not necessary to have a retail facility, office space, or warehouse.	No
Can this franchise be run part time? Definition: This business can be run by the owner on a part-time basis (less than 40 hours per week) and/or as a side business; it is not necessary for the business to be open/run full-time.	No
Are exclusive territories available? Definition: An exclusive territory is a fixed area in which you are given the right to operate and in which no other units of the same franchise may be opened. What you need to know: Territory size may be based on factors such as radius, population size, zip codes, and more. Details can be found in Item 12 of the FDD.	Yes