33
B C B U S I N E S S . C A
J U N E 2 0 2 5
A
AT 25, CLAUDIA SJOBERG
wanted to make swimming les-
sons better for kids.
Fresh out of her physical
education degree at the Univer-
sity of British Columbia, Sjoberg
was working as a swimming
instructor at a Vancouver pool.
There, she quickly recognized
that the existing programs
lacked the quality she believed
children deserved. "I felt the
programs could be so much
better, but I felt limited by what
I could do," she shares. "There
wasn't enough emphasis on
excellence or going the extra
mile, and customer service
wasn't a thing."
She became inspired to
develop Pedalheads, a set
of kids' swimming, biking
and soccer programs that
have fundamentally changed
how children engage in
physical education.
A competitive swimmer
and avid sports enthusiast her-
self, she'd been coaching and
teaching kids since she was 15.
Sjoberg built the Pedalheads
programming to not only
teach children how to progress
in a sport, but also to inspire
them to believe in themselves.
The program's success lies in
thorough instructor training,
a commitment to ongoing cur-
riculum refinement based on
feedback, and small-group
instruction—averaging five stu-
dents per instructor.
CLAUDIA
SJOBERG
F O U N D E R , P E DA L H E A D S
Above all, Sjoberg says,
"the children are the crux of
the business."
"We want kids to be happy,
and we want to inspire children
to believe in themselves," she
shares. "Ultimately, we're help-
ing kids build life skills, like con-
fidence and independence."
Since the company's launch
in 1986, Pedalheads has become
a multinational organization
offering programs in over 270
locations. Last year, Pedal-
heads generated $36.6 million
in revenue with over 96,000
registrations, 65 full-time staff
and 2,700 seasonal employ-
ees. It also built a second pool,
which is nearing completion, in
Port Coquitlam.
Sjoberg was raised in Dun-
can by parents who "were
involved in everything" and
who taught her the importance
of giving back to the commu-
nity. Their influence is reflected
in the company's approach to
employee care; Pedalheads
offers its instructors two paid
days annually for community
volunteer work, 80 percent
maternity and short-term dis-
ability top-ups, fertility treat-
ment coverage, RRSP matching,
educational funding and prof-
it-sharing participation. Fur-
ther, Pedalheads has awarded
more than 200 scholarships to
ensure children with geograph-
ical and economic barriers can
attend a camp.
Reflecting on her entre-
preneurial journey, Sjoberg
believes that focusing on build-
ing your business helps you to
become entrenched in your
local community and give back:
"As a founder-led business,
you can keep your connection
to the grassroots—which is
really important."–R.W.
"We want kids to be
happy, and we want to
inspire children to
believe in themselves.
Ultimately, we're helping
kids build life skills,
like confidence and
independence."
