Franchise reaches 200-school milestone, honors Alex Tyler with inaugural Franchisee of the Year Award
TROY, Mich., Nov. 5, 2025 /PRNewswire/ – Goldfish Swim School Franchising, LLC, the leading swim school franchise brand, celebrated standout achievements at its 2025 Owners’ Celebration in Colorado, honoring owners and schools while bringing together the franchise community.
This year’s event debuted the Franchisee of the Year award, presented to Alex Tyler for opening three schools in the last year. Tyler opened the 200th location for the brand in Sherwood, Oregon, while maintaining strong metrics across his other schools.
Goldfish Swim School co-founder and CEO Chris McCuiston and President Andrew McCuiston presented awards to franchisees who embody the brand’s core values: creating a Golden Experience, delivering exceptional customer service, treating people with integrity and trust, exceeding expectations and celebrating wins.
Award recipients included:
School of the Year Award:Goldfish Swim School – Shoreline set the standard for operational excellence and community impact. Owned and operated by Chamberlain Ownership Group, the school has retained more than 90% of enrollment each month over the last year, serving an average of 1,980 children per month.
Rookie of the Year Award:Goldfish Swim School – Chesapeake, owned and operated by Driscoll Developments LLC, had a standout first year, enrolling nearly 900 students before its August 2025 opening.
Franchisee of the Year Award: This new award was established to recognize strong metrics and multi-unit operator achievements. The first recipient is franchisee Alex Tyler, who owns and operates six swim schools in Illinois, Oregon and Washington.
Splash & Dash Award: Franchisees David and MaryAnn Driscoll ofGoldfish Swim School – Chesapeakewere recognized as the franchisees who achieved the fastest lease signing following their franchise agreement.
Five additional schools were recognized as Core Value Award winners in August at the brand’s School Leadership Summit:
“Celebrating 200-plus schools and honoring our top-performing franchisees reminds us why we do this work — to make a difference in the lives of families and communities,” said Chris McCuiston. “These award winners represent the best of Goldfish Swim School, embodying our values and delivering exceptional experiences that keep families coming back.”
A leader in children’s swim education, Goldfish Swim School was recently named Best Franchise Development Website for brands with an investment of $1 million-plus by the Franchise Update STAR Awards. The company ranked No. 97 at the 2025 Inc. Regionals – Midwest.
For more information on Goldfish Swim School and its franchising opportunities, please visit https://www.goldfishswimschool.com/franchise-opportunities or call 248-801-1850.
About Goldfish Swim School
Founded in 2006 by husband-and-wife team Chris and Jenny McCuiston, Troy, Michigan-based Goldfish Swim School provides swim lessons and water safety instruction to infants and children aged 4 months to 12 years. Classes are led by specially trained instructors in a safe, child-friendly environment using a research-based philosophy called The Science of SwimPlay®. Since opening its first franchised location in 2009, the brand has grown to more than 200 schools in over 40 states and Canada, with an additional 150-plus in development. Goldfish is ranked No. 75 overall in Entrepreneur’s 2025 Franchise 500® and has been recognized as the No. 1 swimming lessons franchise for nine consecutive years, was named to Franchise Times’ Top Brand to Buy in 2024 and is rated as a Top Franchise by Franchise Business Review for 2025.
Media Contact: Rachel Tabacnic
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SOURCE Goldfish Swim School
