THE BUSINESS
Championship Culture Coach opened in River Falls, Wisconsin, in 2023. The business helps coaches and teams achieve more wins and helps athletes improve their statistics. Becky offers an innovative minute-by-minute team culture observation of elements such as verbal leadership, accountability, body language, and more.
She focuses on Champion’s Edge Confidence Clinics which include snap back plans for failure recovery. The three-hour clinics so far have taken place in five different states, covering four different sports. Jackie Strensrud manages the operations and works as a graphic designer and web developer for the business. “I am so thankful for the talents and friendship Jackie brings to the business!” Becky said.
THE GROWTH
In 2025, Championship Culture Coach grew by 59% in sales and, as of April 2026, they are already up 37% in sales. Becky’s expertise has led to features on Beyond the Scoreboard, a basketball-focused podcast with approximately 40,000 followers; Clearing the Bases, a baseball-focused podcast; and several other broadcasts. The business has supported the Saint Paul Saints baseball team, the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay women’s soccer team, the University of Wisconsin-Stout men’s basketball team, University of Illinois Gymnastics, Long Island University, Winona State University, and many other local and club teams. Becky said, “Natalie Walsh, the former head gymnastics coach at University of Illinois, was really a helpful mentor as we partnered on the Champion’s Edge Confidence Clinics.”
Becky has discovered Gen Z athletes like to be led in different ways than previous teams, so when she worked with the UW-Green Bay soccer team, the coach came up with two core values and the team created two core values. The team ultimately took ownership of the goals and improved their winning percentage by 23% the following season.
THE ASSISTANCE
Becky spoke about the Entrepreneurial Training Program (ETP) offered by the Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and led by Marin Valentine, a consultant at the SBDC at UW-River Falls. She said, “ETP was awesome, really valuable! Marin helped us to think outside the box, research our target market, and come up with a business plan. Hearing different experts present small business topics was a valuable part of ETP.”
Hear what the ETP course was like for this small business owner.
“I am also grateful for the perspective of Katherine Fossler, the center director at the SBDC at UW-River Falls. She has owned her own business and is a valuable mentor. She is able to answer my questions as someone who is less emotionally tied to my business.”
Katherine Fossler said, “Becky is one of those clients that listens closely to what we have to say. You can tell she is open to hearing new ideas and approaches that may help. I think the key to her success is her willingness to learn, grow, and pivot.”
As a co-working member with her business located in the St. Croix Valley Business Innovation Center, Becky also works with Sheri Marnell who leads quarterly meetings with the members. Other meetings offered through the SBDC include informational sessions on small business topics such as marketing, website search engine optimization (SEO), and accounting.
Accomplishments with SBDC at UW-River Falls
- Business Plan
- Growth strategy
- Financials
THE OBSTACLES
Championship Culture Coach was recently awarded two grants through Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) and a Small Business Development Grant (SBDG) grant through St Croix Economic Development Corporation. “We are very grateful we were awarded grant funding as it will help us develop a customer relationship management (CRM) system we really need. Getting automations and systems up and running is another obstacle we are currently facing and hoping to soon overcome,” Becky said.
The small business found the need to pivot their target market a little on their journey. They began with a focus on culture coaching for college teams. Recently, since colleges have been allowed to award university dollars to athletes for “name, image, likeness” – known as NIL – the amount of money available to spend on things like culture coaching is limited. Becky said, “We found a need to pivot to one-on-one mental coaching a bit more.”
She continued, “We have developed some great partnerships with RaiderStreaming, which offers live high school streaming services; League 94, a girls hockey league in Hudson; and Blizzard Baseball. We also work with River Falls Gymnastics Club, Hudson High School gymnastics, and local baseball teams. We’ve done mental performance coaching one-on-one with cycling, football, swim, gymnastics, and tennis athletes.”
THE ADVICE
Becky offered the following words of advice to those striving to become entrepreneurs: “Follow your passion, your calling, your dream. Limit time with naysayers. Have healthy boundaries. When you step into entrepreneurship not everyone will understand your vision, and that’s okay. Spend time with people whose words and actions are supportive of you. This has been a game changer for me personally and professionally.”
Listen to Becky describe encouraging words for other business owners.
THE GRATITUDE
“I love serving coaches, teams, and athletes! I enjoy seeing that light bulb go off when they feel the team’s synergy or grasp a mental performance tool that is a game changer for them. I love inspiring coaches, teams, and athletes to think and act BIG!” Becky said. She offers many thanks to those who have supported and continue to mentor her along her journey.
- Jeremy Beaulieu: Her husband who offers constant, calm support.
Mentors and Fellow Entrepreneurs:
- Krista and William Humphries: Cousins and owners of Dave’s Hot Chicken locations in the Twin Cities
- Jennifer Ernster: Friend and owner of The 310 Event Center
- Suzie Heideman: Friend, teacher, and Tennis Coach of the Year
- Carrie Botsford: Friend and President of The Dawson Academy
View story videos linked below:
- Listen to Becky describe encouraging words for other business owners.
- Hear what the ETP course was like for this small business owner.
Published April 2026