Episode 3: Their Pool Is a Headache. That’s the Business Model.

British Swim School doesn’t build pools. Its franchisees teach inside hotels, gyms, retirement centers and schools, where the pool has become an expensive headache, and that’s how new owners open in 60 to 90 days. Ashley Gundlach went from marketing analyst to President of the 45-year-old brand. She talks about leading 200 franchisees, why the brand moved from “Survival of the Littlest” to “Every Age, Every Stage,” and learning to accept that no decision makes 300 people happy. In this conversation: 00:00 — Cold open 00:24 — From marketing analyst to president 05:06 — What makes people act: donors, members, swim parents 11:31 — Subscription lessons, new competitors, AI search 14:17 — Safe and happy; every age, every stage 20:04 — Adults who can’t swim: the first session is dry 26:34 — Teaching inside other people’s pools 33:49 — Moving fast without breaking 200 franchisees 37:57 — Healthy conflict, and “here’s another way” 42:24 — Off the Record: the do-not-use file 52:34 — What’s next, and advice to young Ashley “We aren’t successful unless they’re successful.” — Ashley Gundlach Ashley Gundlach is President of British Swim School. She started in marketing analytics at Dominion Enterprises, rose to vice president at the agency Nexus Direct, and joined British Swim School in 2019 to run marketing before moving into the top role. The Franchise Groove is an official Jakiro podcast — long-form conversations with the operators, franchisees and franchisors who actually run the units. If you know an operator who should tell their story, send them our way.