Becoming a qualified SUP instructor should be a prerequisite to setting up your business – knowledge and experience are key to providing a safe environment for people to successfully learn to SUP. Once your paddling is up to a good standard you can choose a provider that best suits your aims. In the UK, the newly appointed joint national governing body for SUP, Paddle UK (previously British Canoeing) now offer SUP-specific paddlesport instructor courses. Although not an official NGB, BSUPA are a very well-respected SUP-specific association who have trained paddleboard instructors in the UK since the very early days of the sport in 2007. Alternatively, the international ASI are also widely recognised.

Yes, definitely!

It’s vital that you have appropriate insurance for your activities. Whilst there are a huge variety of options available in the wider insurance world, it’s worth finding specific watersports insurers who can provide a level of cover that’s specific to your needs (such as tuition, hire, expeditions etc). At the very least you’ll need public liability insurance, probably also employer’s liability and professional indemnity, plus you might want personal accident cover and/or to insure your kit against theft, loss or damage.

In most parts of the UK you can’t just rock up to any body of water and start delivering lessons: you have to get the relevant permissions first. You’ll need permission from the landowners where you’re going to set-up and launch from, plus appropriate licences from whatever authority manages the waterway itself (for example, the Broads Authority in Norfolk). At the coast, you can often use beaches freely – although might still need permits from the local authority to operate a business there. Properly research and check on these permissions before settling on your operating area. Obviously, safety is of prime concern too – and wherever your venue, you will need to write full risk assessments etc.

Once you’ve got the structure of the business in place, it’s time to promote it.

Many a school has launched via social media alone – but sooner or later, you will need to build a website. These forms of digital media will influence your customers’ impression of your brand, so it’s important to portray the correct image as well as working as an important sales tool.
Take time to research the best online booking software: using a third-party system is often the most efficient way to take bookings, and could make a huge difference to gaining and losing new customers. It’s also worth investing time in your site’s SEO to ensure it’s being found by the right people. Building content on the site around your subject area and optimising for specific search terms will help generate clicks.

Once you are set up as an official Red School we will provide you with access to use of our logos as well as any of our imagery provided in our media folder.

If you contact us we will happily email you all of the details you need to set up a trade account, including information on how many boards you need.

Don’t worry – just get in contact, we can talk you through the options and even look at coming out and visiting you. (We love any excuse to get out on the water!) In the meantime, check out the flowchart on our How To Choose page.