A SWIMMING pool designer who built his first pool aged nine has been flooded with requests after one of his blueprints went viral.

Alex Kemsley’s company Compass Pools, in Coolham, near Horsham, made headlines with proposals for a 200m high, 360-degree rooftop pool called Infinity London, set to tower over the capital’s skyline.

Since the plans went viral, Alex has received business enquiries from the USA and South Africa.

His company specialises in customised pools and deals with six-figure orders. Previous clients have included footballers and TV stars.

Designing swimming pools has been a life-long passion for Alex. He said: “To go from building a family pool with dad at my childhood home to designing the world’s most talked about pool has been an incredible journey.

“Any nine-year-old boy would enjoy operating an earth mover to dig out a hole big enough for a pool. But I couldn’t have guessed that day that it would become my life’s work.”

Alex said moving to Coolham had helped his company take a leading position in the bespoke private pool sector.

He said: “The business was already flying, with the first quarter of this year proving a record-breaking period for us. This coincided nicely with moving to the new site in West Sussex, where we’ve built our own offices and warehouse.

“We’ve been able to streamline our operations so everything’s on the same site now. That allows us to control the entire process, from importing the shell to turning it into an installable pool and then all the digging, plumbing and electrics on site.

“We are so proud to be recognised for our high standards and it was an honour to be named Pool Retailer of the Year at the UK Pool and Spa Awards.

“We’re also among the largest home delivery companies by product size and believe a £100,000 product deserves a polished process. That’s something our high-profile customers certainly appreciate.

“We’re now planning to expand internationally, after capturing the world’s imagination with our proposals for Infinity London.”

Infinity pools are designed to make it seem like their edges blend into the surroundings, often a skyline or another body of water. The pools look as though they continue into the distance indefinitely.

Alex’s company said that a true infinity pool – also known as a negative edge pool – must be built on sloped ground to make it seem as though the pool is completely edgeless. In order to achieve this illusion, the water needs to flow over the edge into a weir or secondary pool.

The company also sells “natural pools”, which do not use chemicals to keep the water clean. Instead, they rely on ultraviolet light to kill bacteria. The pools mimic a river or stream and incorporate a specially designed reed bed to act as a natural filter.

Compass Pools said it has enjoyed consistent double-digit growth in Britain since it pioneered the sale of European-manufactured pool shells into the UK market. It said this success has allowed the business to employ 20 people and bring the whole operation in-house, from custom-building to installation and plumbing.

Alex has been named the youngest president of British Swimming Pool Federation, which promotes quality and safety, and his company was named Pool Retailer of the Year at the UK Pool and Spa Awards.

He said uncertainty around Brexit has had no impact on the high-end business, with demand continuing to rise after a record-breaking start to the year.