THE FOUNDERS STORY
Moments of inspiration happen in the least likely places. The flash which led to the invention of Swmbrd came at a traffic light in Port Moody, British Columbia when Justin Schroenn turned to his brother Matthew and blurted out the words, “What if we invented this?”
“This” was the genesis idea for Swmbrd, the world’s first truly swimmable board. The six years which followed this “Eureka” moment would take Justin, Matthew, and their brother Gareth down a road of obsession filled with prototypes, and testing which would create an entirely new sport and new way for people to relate to the water: Swmbrd
Growing up in Durban, South Africa, a world-renowned surf capital, the brothers always had a passion for the water, particularly swimming, but moving to Canada introduced them to a new world of watersports like kayaking and stand up paddle boarding. The idea for a swimmable board combined their passion for swimming with the ability paddling sports offered to roam further in exploration and adventure.
Turning their homes into workshops and teaching themselves how to shape boards, lay fibreglass, and build wooden molds, the brothers learnt every aspect of the process.
They made and evolved over a dozen prototypes and uncountable setbacks, until they finally had a board which fulfilled their vision. With the help of some early angel investors to fund patent applications and build pre-production boards, Swmbrd at long last became real.
Swmbrd is an idea which could only have come from this cross-continental passion for water. The cold waters of the Pacific, the warm Indian Ocean currents of Durban, and the lakes and river of British Columbia were each part of the origin of this new sport which helps swimmers travel further, faster, and safer for adventure and exercise in every body of water.
Ride a Swmbrd and discover how your swimming can take flight.
