British Swim School Operator Adds Complementary Brand

Over the past few years, Nora Farhat has carved out a successful business as a franchisee with both Mathnasium and British Swim School. Now she’s opened her first Pool Scouts franchise, a pool cleaning service. Both British Swim School and Pool Scouts are part of Buzz Franchise Brands.

Farhat is a savvy operator who is always looking for opportunities. She saw the need for quality pool cleaning services in her market and she and her husband, Neil, jumped at the opportunity to open a Pool Scouts franchise in Detroit.

“After a few years, I was looking to expand my portfolio. I look at things I use myself and try to align it with a brand that provides the service at a high level of quality,” said Farhat. “We own our own pools as well, so we were seeing a struggle and a cycle of very few players and an unprofessional level of service. People need to be able to rely on the service and prices.”

Farhat became a British Swim School franchisee after moving back to the U.S. from Abu Dhabi several years ago. Even though she didn’t have any experience in the pool business, her background in operations helped make the transition to franchise ownership a successful one. Her British Swim School location is up 70% year-over-year compared to 2021.

“I’m a real big believer in owners being hands-on and that every business can work if you’re willing to roll up your sleeves and ask yourself the hard questions,” Farhat said. “I knew I could

take on a new project. I’m strong enough of an operator that I knew I could execute it. We are doing really well with British Swim School, and I hope to emulate that with Pool Scouts. Our goal is to provide a high-quality service. That’s always number one, and money is secondary because it naturally follows.”