Some of Coward’s favourite childhood memories stem from fun-filled family visits to a special spot along the Mersey River – spearheaded by her grandparents Henry and Sheila Triffitt – to cool off on hot summer afternoons.

“I grew up along a really beautiful stretch of country road, where most of my aunties and uncles and cousins and grandparents lived,’’ the now 42-year-old explains.

“Pop’s farm was a 10-minute drive away and he would drive down the road and stop at each of my uncle’s houses, where my cousins would, one by one, jump on the back of his ute and we would head down to his farm, with a beautiful river running through it.

“We would be in our bathers, with towels draped over our shoulders. We took our positions on the back of the ute and Pop and Nan would drive us – at least 10 kids and Sandy the dog – down to the river.

Coward, who is now a mother of four, laughs as she recalls that this pilgrimage – which happened most days during summer – would not be considered at all acceptable by today’s modern safety standards.

“If we tried to do it today I’m sure there would be more than one complaint about it being totally irresponsible and dangerous,’’ she says.

“Nan and Pop would ride in the front of the ute, singing out every now and then ‘You kids alright back there?’, ‘Sit down Sandy!’, and ‘Hold on tight, it’s going to get bumpy!’

It was a time of “pure love and fun” for Coward, who remembers feeling the wind blowing through her hair on the back of the ute, as she and her cousins sang rounds of Kookaburra Sits In The Old Gum Tree as loud as their voices could go.

“When we arrived at the river, sweaty and hot, we would jump from the back of the ute and run as fast as we could to the swimming hole,’’ Coward says.

“We would all wait for the moment when Nan – dressed in her eccentric floral swimsuit – would enter the river, screaming as she bounced and splashed down the rapids. It was pure joy.’’

Coward and her cousins regularly reminisce about these treasured trips to the river, realising now just how lucky they were to get together every day with extended family members and have such a wonderful time.

Family members have said that Coward inherited the famous ‘Nan scream’ and Coward admits she also inherited her Nan’s love of colour.

“Nan was famous for her ripper sponge cakes, spectacular garden and serving grated carrot in orange jelly,’’ Coward says of Sheila, whose middle name was May.

“She was an incredibly strong, independent woman who spoke her mind and cared for others.

Nan was happy in her own skin. She never wore black. She always wore the most outlandish prints and patterns and her outfits boasted bright, bold colours – fuchsia pink, turquoise blue and the brightest of oranges.’’

And it was this love of colour and fun that provided the inspiration for Coward’s successful swimwear business, Sheila May Swim, which the sewing enthusiast launched from her home in Port Sorell three and a half years ago.

Sheila May Swim (sheilamayswim.com.au) is a playfully-marketed brand which offers a range of mix-and-match swimwear separates in bold patterns and colours, which have been designed with real bodies in mind.

When Coward first started the brand she catered for sizes 8-14 to test the market, releasing two or three collections a year.

But the business has grown enormously, particularly in the past year, with the brand now extending to a size 24, and Coward plans to release eight collections during 2024.

The brand aims to empower women to feel confident in swimwear and customers have embraced the fun, high-waisted, full-bum designs, which many consider a breath of fresh air in a market saturated with skimpy and impractical swimsuits.

Previously operating the business as a one-woman show from a converted granny flat adjoining her Tasmanian home, Coward recently opened a warehouse in Melbourne in a bid to better meet customer demand, provide much-needed storage for ever-increasing stock levels, and allow her to focus more on the creative side of the business.

Coward has increasingly cut back her work as a primary school teacher to focus on the business, although she currently works one day a week at a school as she loves teaching and isn’t ready to give it up just yet.

She describes the business as a “Covid baby” although the concept and the planning actually started well before the pandemic hit.

Coward has always enjoyed sewing and when her children – now aged 11, 15, 17 and 19 – were little, she started a small business designing sewing patterns for women’s and children’s clothing.

“I think that got me really interested in design and clothing design,’’ Coward says.

“But also in prints and colour and playing around with different fabric combinations.

“I got quite invested in following and communicating with a lot of artists in Australia and overseas who were really talented. And that, combined with my love of fabric, was a driving factor for Sheila May Swim.’’

And, she says, “Like all great business ideas, Sheila May Swim came about as a solution to a problem’’.

“I was desperate for a fun, tasteful swimsuit that I felt completely comfortable wearing,’’ Coward says.

“Something that I could happily wear chasing my kids around at the beach but didn’t feel too frumpy wearing. Every swimsuit I tried on was too high cut, too low cut, too skimpy, too uncomfortable, too restricting, too revealing.

“Of course I would end up buying something to ‘get me through’ until I found something better but that moment never arrived! After much frustration, I decided to do something about it and embarked on the year-long journey creating the perfect-fit swimsuit.’’

Coward works with a team of pattern technicians based in Melbourne to bring her designs to life and collaborates with artists to create bold prints for her designs.

She is proud that her business is Australian owned and designed and while her products are manufactured overseas, Coward says she invested a lot of effort into finding “a beautiful, small factory in China” which is family-owned, offers good pay, working conditions and hours for staff, and produces high-quality garments.

She enjoys the collaborative process of working with artists to create fun and unique designs, making a conscious effort to keep her customers guessing.

“My aim each time is just to surprise people,’’ Coward says.

“Just to bring a bit of wow factor. I do sell black swimmers and they are a good seller, but I encourage people to mix and match. The whole story behind the brand is mix and match swimwear to spark joy.’’

Sheila May Swim sizing is on the generous side with a variety of different tops and bottoms in bold patterns and plain colours, as Coward wants women to move with ease, feel comfortable, and choose a style and fabric combination that perfectly suits their body shape and unique personality.

And it’s clear Coward is doing something right.

Sheila May Swim has almost 18,500 followers on Instagram and she has been flooded with reviews from women who have new-found body confidence.

“I’m hearing from women who haven’t worn bathers in 15 years,’’ she says.

“And now they’re in the water for the first time and they’re having the best time and they don’t want to get out. That’s the best, when you get that sort of feedback.

“I spent years being discontent with my swimmers. All I wanted was a swimsuit that made me feel good. I remember I’d have board shorts over the top, and a T-shirt.

“Whether you are spending your time at the beach, pool, a fancy resort or in your own backyard … you need to feel comfortable in what you are wearing and you shouldn’t have to cover up because you can’t find a good-fit swimsuit.

“It’s nice to be able to put something on that you’re excited to wear and feel good wearing as well. And just forget about what you’re wearing and have fun and enjoy the moment.’’

Another key to Coward’s success is the fact she uses real people – rather than professional models – to promote her swimwear.

The women featured in her professionally-shot Instagram and website images are typically friends, family members or school mums, with no modelling experience and with bodies of all shapes and sizes.

“I don’t use actual models,” Coward explains.

“I want to make sure when women hop on the website they see a body that might look like theirs and they can see a body they relate to.’’

She also sends bathers for free to women across Australia, in exchange for an honest video try-on to be shared on social media, so other followers can see how different pieces look on different body shapes and sizes.

“Women really love that, when they can find a person that looks like them,’’ Coward says.

She admits many of her first-time models were a bit reluctant in the early days of the business, but now she has a long list of people willing to show off her creations.

Sheila May Swim images aren’t photoshopped – “if they’ve got a bruise, it will stay there, if they’ve got cellulite you are going to see it,’’ Coward says of her models.

Many of her promotional images are taken in Tasmania, mostly at Hawley Beach, with “brave and resilient’’ women who are willing to embrace the cooler weather to showcase the brand.

However, Coward did recently travel to Queensland’s Sunshine Coast for a photo shoot for her newest collection, as she felt it was simply too cold and frosty to expect her Tassie models to take to the water in the middle of winter.

Coward’s grandmother died about 10 years ago, so Sheila May has no idea that a thriving swimwear business has been named in her honour.

“Sometimes when I’m choosing prints, I think ‘Nan would have loved this one’ or ‘that’s just perfectly Nan’,’’ Coward says.

“She was my inspiration for this brand which is all about loving colour and embracing fun.’’ And Coward says it has been great to see customers responding so positively to Sheila May Swim.

“The business has grown enormously in the past 12 months and I’ve had lots of beautiful feedback from customers,’’ she says.

Coward can still recall the joy of those long summer afternoons by the river with her Nan and hopes that, through her lively and inclusive swimwear line, other families will enjoy making similar lifelong memories.

“We would arrive home feeling refreshed and tired from swimming and all of that fresh air,’’ Coward recalls of her time by the water as a child.

“I can still hear Nan and Pop call their goodbyes as we jumped off the ute and headed inside.

“I didn’t realise how special that was. It’s something I want my brand to be able to encourage other mothers and grandmothers to do with their families.’’•