A school that teaches people how to be a mermaid could soon be flopping into Toronto pools.
AquaMermaid, which launched in Montreal in early January, aims to combine fitness with a common childhood fantasy: being a mermaid.
The school’s founder, Marielle Chartier Hénault, told CTV Toronto that she’s looking into expanding the school into Toronto by the end of the summer. She hasn’t picked out any spots yet but she is actively searching.
As for her school in Montreal, she said that a lot of her students jump at the chance to don a tail.
“I have a lot of kids who love mermaids,” she said in a phone interview. “They’re amazed at how they can transform themselves.”
Participants wear a realistic mermaid tail, with a plastic monofin at the end of a tight spandex skirt. This restricts the movement of their legs and creates a unique workout once they’re underwater. One of the main elements students learn is proper synchronized swimming.
Her client-base ranges from children older than seven years old all the way to adults. She said that most of her older students join because they’re looking for something new to do.
Chartier Hénault got the idea for the school after she did an underwater photo shoot while wearing a mermaid tail. “Once I put the tail on, I felt like, ‘Oh, I’m really a mermaid. That’s a dream come true.’”
A little after that, she heard about a mermaid school in Germany and decided to open up her own in Montreal.
“It’s more than just a swimming school,” she said. “For me, it was really a dream.”
Chartier Hénault said people can pre-book a spot at her Toronto school online.
