From a first center in Sherbrooke to a network of five locations across Quebec, O-Volt has come a long way since 2018.
Behind this entrepreneurial adventure is Karine Bibeau, co-founder of the company—a woman for whom the joy of getting moving, family, and human connection have always been at the heart of the project.
An idea born from a very real need
Before becoming a network of active indoor amusement centers, O-Volt started out as a family project.
At the time, Karine Bibeau and her partner wanted to take their professional lives in a new direction. Already involved in the climbing world, he was considering opening a bouldering gym in Sherbrooke, where the family wanted to settle.
Karine, for her part, saw another possibility.
As a mom of two boys and a dedicated athlete, she knew the challenge of balancing training, work, and family responsibilities. Why not create a place where parents could be active with their kids, instead of constantly having to choose between the two?
That’s how trampolines and play structures were added to enrich the original concept.
“My motivation was to have a place where parents and kids could get moving, train, and enjoy an active family session.”
The idea was simple: offer an indoor space where people of all ages could be active, have fun, and connect. A bright, welcoming place, with different activities and a café area that encourages people to meet up.
A vision that, eight years later, is still at the heart of O-Volt.
One Christmas, six containers, and a lot of unknowns
When Karine thinks back to the early days, one image comes to mind in particular.
It was Christmas Eve. The first of six containers filled with equipment had just arrived. The foreign installers who were supposed to support the team hadn’t received their work visas.
In the still-empty space, Karine, her partner, and her in-laws tried to make sense of plans written in a language they didn’t understand. Meanwhile, their two boys were riding around on scooters.
The project had suddenly become very real.
Karine remembers her in-laws’ questioning looks. She, too, wondered what they had gotten themselves into. Her partner, on the other hand, seemed genuinely excited by the scale of the challenge.
“Wow! It’s like I just bought myself a several-thousand-dollar puzzle for Christmas!”
Now they had to put that puzzle together. And fast.
The weeks that followed were intense. Everything had to be built—from the facilities to day-to-day operations, including hiring and IT systems.
Then, a week before March break, O-Volt Sherbrooke opened its doors.
The response exceeded all expectations.
“We weren’t ready for that many customers, but families were ready to come and have fun!”
The days ended with smiling customers and a team wondering how they were going to manage such a crowd.
Karine laughs about it today. It was, as she puts it, a good problem to have.
A business built as a team
The first months of O-Volt were also a true family adventure.
After leaving the Montreal suburbs, Karine and her partner temporarily moved in with her in-laws. Family and friends rallied to lend a hand.
Some slept on the couch. Others programmed the POS system on the kitchen island while Karine made the kids’ lunches.
Workdays could stretch to 15 hours, seven days a week.
But beyond the long hours, what Karine remembers most is the solidarity around the project.
That human side quickly became part of the company culture. From day one, a team of young employees played an active role in setting up the center, showing great adaptability and a lot of pride.
Even today, Karine places special importance on the role employees play in the visitor experience.
She likes to remind them that O-Volt isn’t just selling access to facilities.
The experience is also built in every interaction with customers.
“At O-Volt, you’re the one who creates the customer’s fun. […] You make the difference. You represent us. Bring your own style!”
A philosophy that explains why the welcome, guidance, and quality of service matter just as much as the activities themselves.
Growing, yes. But not at any cost.
After Sherbrooke, O-Volt continued to grow with the opening of a second center in Blainville. Then came franchising, with Trois-Rivières as the first franchise.
Today, the network has five locations in Quebec, with LaSalle and Québec City joining the adventure.
For Karine, that growth is a huge source of pride. But it also comes with its share of responsibility.
She even jokingly describes herself as the “brand guardian.”
Her role includes coordinating marketing and operations, supporting franchisees, and making sure the O-Volt experience stays consistent from one location to the next.
Safety, cleanliness, and the quality of supervision are at the top of her priorities.
Over the years, Karine and her team have developed monitoring protocols, training, inspection procedures, and classes that help kids learn to move more safely.
The goal isn’t to limit the fun—quite the opposite. It’s about creating the right conditions so kids can explore, learn, and challenge themselves with the right level of guidance.
And despite the opportunities to expand, Karine prefers to move forward carefully.
“We prioritize slow growth. […] It’s important to us to properly establish a new location before moving on to another project.”
She also knows that in entrepreneurship, surprises are part of everyday life. So it’s better to keep some room to maneuver than to multiply projects at the expense of quality.
Among the four partners, she also admits she’s often the one who hits the brakes!
Getting moving for fun, without performance pressure
For Karine, physical activity has always been part of everyday life.
But she wants to make an important distinction: getting moving shouldn’t necessarily mean performing.
She feels we sometimes put too much emphasis on competition and athletic results from a very young age.
Kids also need to run, jump, climb, try, fall, start again, and discover what they can do at their own pace.
“Sports aren’t just about competition!”
That’s the freedom she wants to bring back in the O-Volt experience.
A child can come simply to have fun—without pressure, without having to deliver results, and without needing to excel in a specific discipline.
Active indoor amusement centers also offer a great solution for families looking for indoor physical activities, especially when the weather makes outdoor activities harder.
For Karine, what matters most is helping young people develop a love of getting moving.
And when she’s out on the play areas cheering kids on, she reconnects with what motivated her to start the business.
“When I see their red cheeks, their smiles, their messy hair—it’s pure happiness.”
A pride that goes beyond five locations
In eight years, O-Volt has grown, but its impact isn’t limited to the number of centers opened.
From the very beginning, the project also helped create two other small businesses, including in software development and the construction of climbing walls.
The company has also collaborated with university students on different projects—an experience Karine especially enjoys.
She loves working with young people who show up with fresh ideas, ambition, and a desire to learn.
She also sees that next generation within O-Volt centers.
Some kids who used to come as customers became employees a few years later. For many, it’s their first experience in the workforce.
And there’s another kind of next generation that moves her even more.
Recently, her oldest son opened his own O-Volt location with his business partner.
After the family sacrifices, the long days, and all the uncertainty of the early years, seeing her son choose this entrepreneurial adventure in turn means a lot to her.
“Having entrepreneur parents isn’t always easy: it inspires you… or it doesn’t!”
In her case, the story now continues with a new generation.
What’s next?
With two new locations opened in the past year, Karine would rather savor how far they’ve come for now than rush into the next step.
She watches, takes a step back, and thinks about what these new developments will make possible to improve.
Other cities could eventually welcome O-Volt, but there’s no rush.
Outside of work, she continues to find her balance in nature, practicing different sports through the seasons with her family and Nelson, her Rhodesian Ridgeback.
And when she’s asked what still motivates her today, after all these years, her answer comes down to one word: the next generation.
That may be what best sums up Karine Bibeau’s journey.
Of course, there’s O-Volt’s growth, its five locations, and all the work needed to build a strong Quebec-based company.
But above all, there are the people who helped shape this story: loved ones who lent a hand, employees who grew with the company, franchisees who keep the adventure going, and families who come back year after year.
And in the middle of it all, there’s still the same desire as on day one: to see people get moving and have fun together.
Her invitation to families who haven’t discovered O-Volt yet?
“Go for it! O-Volt is for everyone, at every level!”