Life As A Business Owner

Nicole Martin, Business Owner of Core Aquatics

What are you doing now you have graduated from the University of Lincoln?

I have always wanted to become a business owner. Completing my business and management degree combined with my broader University and leisure industry experiences confirmed this aspiration. I obtained relevant knowledge, skills and confidence to pursue and achieve opening a successful swim school.

Before starting my own business, I carried out detailed financial analysis incorporating break even and different operating models to ensure that my business idea was viable and had the potential for a healthy profit. The research has proved accurate and has provided a fantastic framework for goal setting and knowing exactly the numbers required to start to generate a profit set against differing operating permutations. Financial scenarios helped to shape my operating model and ensured that my business is run efficiently.

I set up my own swimming school, Core Aquatics, immediately following degree completion and I have now been trading for 7 years. I identified a gap in the swimming lesson market through for the delivery of small group tuition combined with a strong focus upon delivering outstanding customer service. We are the only provider in the Midlands that is Autism Swim Approved. We work with the Australian Charity to teach swimmers with other abilities to swim. We frequently receive referrals from other swim schools, medical services and we have developed an excellent reputation in this regard. The feedback from the way Core Aquatics deliver lessons has been highly praised by clients evidenced through over 100+ 5* Facebook reviews and strong word of mouth referrals.

To date I have had twelve years’ experience in the leisure industry. I have since qualified as an STA Aquatic and Life Saving Tutor, RLSS Trainer Assessor and Internal Quality Assurance (Level 4). These enable me to train and assess lifeguards and swimming teachers. My teaching experience includes having worked for various swimming lesson service providers, which have all shaped and contributed to my knowledge and understanding, together with a focus upon wider business networking activities. I have always really enjoyed the diversity and challenges associated with the leisure industry and the wider world of business.

My business has gone from strength to strength and have not only weathered recent global challenges, but my business has actively thrived. I currently have over 60 team members (teachers, lifeguards and admin support) and 3 venues with children and adults accessing lessons. I have a particular interest in other abilities and this has shaped my business.

I have won and been nominated for a number of awards:

2023 Outstanding Female Disability Awareness Champion (Nominated, pending Sept 23)

2023 The Trevor Meakin Achievement Shield

2022 Winner – Outstanding Senior Female Executive

2022 Finalist Outstanding Woman in Education (Women’s Awards)

2021 Semi finalist Niche business awards, best customer service and also best business growth

2020 Finalist Niche business awards ‘Rising Star’ 2020

Marketing and the use of social media has been an important factor in the development of Core Aquatics with a strong profile and regular postings across a variety of platforms together with a professional website.

What advice would you give current students in their search for a career?

Try to obtain a job, placement, volunteering, graduate scheme in an area in which you are interested and are possibly considering as a career option. This provides you with ‘taster’ experience and something to offer any potential future employer and something to talk about at interview! It also ensures that your perceptions of what you think a job to be, match up with the reality of the role. Be open to all opportunities – it is better to have given something a go and ‘fail’, rather than thinking ‘what if/if only…?’. You can learn as much from ‘failure’ as success and ultimately ‘failure’ can be a learning step to success!

Continue to be open to learning and listen to others who have experience and knowledge. Employers will not expect you to be experts overnight, but they do want to see your potential, commitment and willingness to the area of work you seeking. They will want to shape you in ‘their’ ways!

Know yourself and be able to relate your own skills and knowledge to the company that you are seeking employment with – be clear what you can offer them. If you can’t make this link, then you can’t sell yourself to a potential employer. Try to appear confident even if you have nerves (which are only natural). Research the company to which you are applying. Interview the interviewer as much as they are interviewing you through asking questions and demonstrate to the interviewer that you have done your research. Think about your answers, you do not need to jump straight into answering the question. Particularly in group interviews, consider what others are saying rather than always answering first – it is the quality of answer not speed of response. Be clear on your own goals and what you want to achieve over the next few years as this view is often sought at interview, so be prepared. Sell yourself positively and just be yourself. If you aren’t right for the job, then the job isn’t right for you. Finally, smile, look the interviewer in the eye and if appropriate, offer a firm (but not too firm), handshake and if you would like the job – tell him/her that the interview has confirmed that you’d love the job! This leaves a lasting and strong impression on the interviewer.

If you are going to start up your own business, research is everything! Be as confident as you can that there is a demand for your product/service and do the numbers to determine if you have the potential of a viable business. Work out what you need to do to make a profit and realistically how long this may take. Think about how you are going to afford to ‘live’ whilst you are developing your business. Is a blend of employment whilst developing your business a realistic option? Then if you have the answers to the above – take courage and go for it!