Shred Sisters unleashes pride for women in sport industry
Although it’s possible to enjoy mountain biking trails at a leisurely pace, Shred Sisters offers a higher octane experience, teaching you how to jump, pump and corner those trails in a safe environment.
Based in Golden, Shred Sisters’ programs are designed by women for women, providing the opportunity to develop new biking skills in an empowering community. After receiving free, one-on-one business consulting and assessment services from the Trust’s Basin Business Advisors (BBA) program, Owner Audrey Duval has been focusing on expansion and task delegation.
Since participating in the program, the business has grown to employ 27 certified coaches (compared to 22 in 2021), with courses ranging from beginner to advanced across eight regions in BC and Alberta (up from six in 2021). By hiring a social media specialist and, most recently, an administrative assistant to support her thriving business, Duval can now focus on what she loves most: coaching.
“Teaching is my favourite thing to do,” says Duval. “But when I got injured last year, I was only able to teach two programs. When I was back on the trails interacting with people, it reminded me why I started this business.”
While Duval was grateful she was able to do back-end work while injured, the experience reconfirmed her priorities. With the tools and confidence gained through the BBA program, she’s dropping into the next stage of her business: seeking financial support to upgrade her team’s credentials and make her programs more accessible.
“The dream is to find grants to subsidise coaching certification costs, as well as additional training for our current coaches, which is expensive,” she explains. “I’d also love more sponsorships like the one we had through Banded Peak Brewing, who donated to a scholarship fund this spring. We were able to offer free programs to 10 women across our locations, so that was really cool!”
With a robust Instagram following, strong word-of-mouth referrals and return clients, Duval is happy with where her business stands and is grateful for everything she learned in the BBA program. But what’s next? This winter, she plans to pursue corporate speaking engagements to promote being a female entrepreneur in the sport industry.
“It’s important for me to bring more exposure to women who want to push themselves as instructors, gain more confidence in their abilities and develop their skills in the industry,” she adds. “My overall goal is to keep growing Shred Sisters naturally while expanding our online platform.”
