Matt Giovanisci spent 30+ years in the pool and hot tub industry, from working retail to teaching millions of DIY pool owners how to care for their own water. Here's the full story.
Updated September 17, 2026If you’ve ever searched for something about your pool or hot tub, you’ve probably seen my face pop up.
I’m Matt Giovanisci, the founder of Swim University. I’ve spent 30 years helping people make sense of their pool and hot tub. But I wasn’t always a pool boy on the internet.
It started when I was 13 years old (1996). I got a summer job working at Danzi’s Janitorial and Pool Supply in New Jersey. That’s where I started learning the basics of pool care.
My job was to keep the shelves stocked with pool chemicals, mop heads, and trash bags. It was a weird combination. But it worked! That store still exists today under new ownership.
I also tested the pool water for customers who would bring in a sample. I would take it to the back room to test with a strip. I’d write down the results (the closest number I could determine with my eyes) and use a chart to figure out the correct chemical treatments.
When I was 16, I went down the road to Niagara Pools and Spas, which had just opened in the next town over. I was hired by the store manager, Alice Romano (who I credit as my pool care mentor). She told me I was the youngest person the company had ever hired and with prior pool experience.
I did the same job as before. I was stocking shelves with pool chemicals, testing water, and helping customers. And I have to admit, I got really good at it.
I was never a good student in school. But in the pool store, I was an A++ teacher’s pet! I had memorized every part number for every product. I had to. Our computer system ran in DOS (I’m old). That was the only way to ring up a customer.
I also learned how to fix pumps, filters, automatic pool cleaners, and whatever else came through the door. There was a power trip, a high, when I would answer people’s pool questions before they finished asking them. It was honestly thrilling, and still is today!
This is also when I started attending the pool shows in Atlantic City every year. Even in the years my company didn’t invite me, because walking the trade show floor was free. And it was a way to learn more about the industry.
I worked there for a few years before I was poached by a competitor in the same town. I was offered a manager role to run a small pool retail store and service department called East Coast Pools.
I have wanted to run a business my entire life. So when I got the keys to that store, I went to work. The first thing I did was revamp the accounting system (it also ran on DOS).
I only worked this job for a year. But during that year, I learned how to run a retail store and service business. I was in charge of hiring, buying merchandise, running sales, advertising, marketing, everything! And all before I turned 21.
This was where I learned the most about running a successful business. And my boss told me before I left that it was the ONLY profitable year they ever had. So I must have done something right. But I decided to go back to Niagara because it was a very stressful experience.
During this time, I was learning how to design a website for my rock band at home. And my boss at Niagara saw the work I’d done and hired me to build a website for the company.
This is where I started learning about HTML, CSS, SEO, and all the other online acronyms that’ll probably fade away soon. In fact, I learned so much that I was hired by a website design and marketing firm shortly after.
I had to commute for an hour back and forth, wearing a suit and a tie. Needless to say, I didn’t last long. Not really the suit-and-tie kinda guy. Thankfully, my boss at Niagara wanted to hire me back. But this time, I was hired as the marketing director of the entire company and worked in the corporate office.
In 2006, I started Swim University out of my parents’ basement. Just me writing articles, trying to give people straight answers. I’d work all day at the pool company doing marketing stuff, then come home and work on the site all night.
Growth was slow. But to be fair, I wasn’t putting a lot of hours toward it. It was tough working pools during my day job and coming home at night to do the SAME THING. In hindsight, I should have worked on it more.
But then my “big break” came. I was contacted by Martha Stewart Living Radio (Sirius) and asked to be a regular guest to talk about pool care at 7 am once a month. I thought this was going to bring in so much traffic. But in the end, it was just a nice credit to have. No traffic bump. I was bummed.
I kept at it, though. I kept writing articles, which is the hardest thing for me to do. I’m not a gifted English student. In fact, I dropped out of community college during my second week because my English teacher didn’t like me. She thought my writing was “too creative.” Well, how ironic that I ended up making a living as a writer. Is that the correct use of “ironic?” What do I know?
I’ll admit I’m not the strongest writer. But I loved making videos before YouTube was even a thing. I used to make home movies with my friends. So my dad bought me a computer and a video card interface where I could hook up the family camcorder to edit. Before that, I was editing on a device called a MacroSystem Casablanca.
On May 24th, 2010, I uploaded my first YouTube video. It was about backwashing a sand filter. I shot it on a digital camcorder in standard definition (SD). Just me doing a voiceover with some simple music (or “muzak”) that I had written.
This video didn’t really have an impact. So I upgraded my gear, wrote a script, “hired” my dad as a camera operator, opened my friend Nicole’s inground pool, and made this video.
I worked really hard on this video. My goal was to make a reality show-style video about pool care. And I think I succeeded. It’s a video I’m still proud of and continues to get views every year around the fall.
YouTube was the biggest turning point for Swim University. Things were starting to take off. But it took seven years before it paid enough for me to work on it full-time.
Now that I had time to focus on Swim University. My first product was The Hot Tub Handbook. Shortly after, I wrote The Pool Care Handbook (originally titled The Art of Pool Care). They were just ebooks back then. Now they’re real books!
Fast forward to today, I now have full video courses (pool care and hot tub care) and a pool care app that builds you a treatment plan from your own water test. But I’ve definitely made mistakes.
I tried selling chemicals for a couple of years, but shut it down. It didn’t feel right to teach people how to spend less on chemicals and then sell them more chemicals.
That’s when I realized I’m not here to sell you more things you don’t need. I’m here to help you finally understand your pool or hot tub. And then, hopefully, you can spend less on it in the long run.
Today, my wife and I run the whole thing with the help of three other people. We put out new videos every week, all year, all for free. If you ever do buy something from us, I have three promises for you.
Whether you’ve got green water right now, or you just want your weekends back… that’s why I do this. 30 years later, it’s been the same mission the whole time: simplifying pool and hot tub care for one person at a time.
