How to Start a Pickleball Business (2024)

When the first season of The Golden Bachelor aired in 2023, viewers quickly learned that capturing bachelor Gerry Turner’s heart meant sharing his love of pickleball. As the fastest-growing sport in the United States, it’s not surprising many of the 22 contestants had picked up a paddle before.

Invented in 1965 on Bainbridge Island, Washington, pickleball’s popularity has skyrocketed in recent years; 4.2 million Americans reported playing at least one pickleball game in 2020. By 2023, that number increased to 13.6 million. This explosive growth shows no signs of stopping. Pickleball memberships increased 15% from 2023 to 2024, and the global pickleball market could reach around $4.4 billion by 2033.

The numbers are clear: Pickleball now presents a great opportunity for entrepreneurs. Learn how to capitalize on this trend with expert tips from Varsity Pickle cofounders Karen Alexander and Adele Hazan.

5 ways to make money with pickleball

1. Coaching
2. Court rentals
3. Gear sales or rentals
4. Merchandising
5. Tournament and league hosting

Pickleball is a sport and a social activity, which gives creative entrepreneurs several ways to engage with enthusiasts. A pickleball business can help players improve their skills, find new ways to play, or express their love of the game. Here are a few ways to make money through pickleball:

1. Coaching

Already a skilled player? Try your hand at coaching other pickleball players. New players can take lessons at pickleball clubs to improve their skills, but they may also seek private instruction. Personal coaches can teach at a local court or club and often charge by the hour or lesson type—such as one-on-one or group clinics.

While certification isn’t necessary, it can make you more credible. There are several certification programs from which to choose, including those offered by the Professional Pickleball Registry (PPR) and Pickleball Coaching International (PCI). Once you’re certified, set up a website that details your services, rates, and contact information.

2. Court rentals

Pickleball facilities can rent courts to players of every level. Players typically pay an hourly fee for court reservations. Pickleball club owners are responsible for maintaining the courts and the nets but players provide their own gear.

To open up your own brick-and-mortar business, search for spaces that are zoned for private recreation facilities. Pickleball courts are typically 20 feet wide by 44 feet long, with an additional buffer, making the entire playing space 30 feet wide by 60 feet long. To accommodate multiple courts, you’ll need a space for groups to play separately, as well as space for check-ins and lockers.

If you don’t have the funds to set up your court rental business yourself, craft a solid business plan to share with investors or loan officers.

3. Gear sales or rentals

A pickleball facility can add a pro shop to sell or rent gear and generate extra revenue. Offering rentals can give new players a low-commitment way to try the game. Serious players, on the other hand, may purchase more than paddles and balls. They may also want nets, shoes, and accessories like specialty bags for transporting gear.

To start your own rental business, decide whether you need a brick-and-mortar shop or want to operate a mobile operation and deliver gear to customers. If you’re looking to sell equipment online, plan to carve out a niche for your business and set aside part of your budget for upfront marketing costs.

4. Merchandising

Athletic apparel is only one aspect of pickleball fashion; pickleball fans may want to express their love for the sport off the court as well. Consider designing everyday apparel for pickleball enthusiasts, like Varsity Pickle, the brainchild of childhood best friends Karen Alexander and Adele Hazan. They always dreamed of working together and identified a gap in the pickleball market after they started playing the sport in 2020.

“There were no pickleball apparel brands out there,” Adele says. “We were trying to be the gift that you get someone who plays pickleball. You’re not going to buy someone a new paddle most likely, but you would buy them a hat or a shirt or a sweatshirt.”

The duo combined their professional backgrounds—Adele is a designer and Karen works in marketing—and Varsity Pickle came to fruition in 2021. “Together we felt like we could create this cool brand that celebrates the joy and inclusivity of pickleball,” Adele says.

Consider these tips before getting started with your own pickleball merch business.

• Start small: “We started this as a side hustle and we could never have started it without Shopify,” Adele says. “It gave us the ability to test out the idea first in a small-scale way and see if it resonated.”
• Lean into social media: As a small team, Varsity Pickle relied on social media and influencer marketing to get the word out. They noticed big returns after mentions on a few popular podcasts. “When it took off, we then realized, ‘OK, we want to go bigger,’” Adele says.
• Expand thoughtfully: After the initial success, Adele and Karen expanded the product line with custom items and athletic gear. In addition to general merchandise, the pair designs gear for local clubs and recreation leagues.
• Network constantly: Playing pickleball and networking with the community helped Varsity Pickle grow. For aspiring pickleball entrepreneurs, Karen advises, “I would just say try it and get out there again. People who play want to talk about it and really love it and get into it. So there’s no shortage of community in pickleball wherever you are in the country.”

5. Tournament and league hosting

You can start a pickleball club and host tournaments or run a league and charge a fee to enter. Facilities can charge for court time or create a membership model for league participants. During the event, you can offer food and beverage services and sell gear to generate additional income. A tournament has the added benefit of introducing your club to players who might return to book court time.

If you’re looking to start a tournament or league, you’ll want to have a website that can support account logins, newsletter signups, and payment processing. A basic Shopify merchant account can support these objectives, and the Shopify App Store offers hundreds of plug-ins to further customize your online community.

How to start your pickleball business

1. Identify a pain point
2. Find your target customers
3. Consider your strengths
4. Create a business plan
5. Market your business

Consider these steps to start developing your own pickleball business:

1. Identify a pain point

Seek out issues or problems customers in your target market face and create a solution. For example, Karen and Adele developed their line of Varsity Pickle products to address a lack of fun merchandise for pickleball lovers. They realized pickleball fans likely already owned equipment, so they created an apparel and accessories line that people could gift to the pickleball lovers in their lives.

To identify a pain point, ask yourself:

• What product opportunities exist, or what products do I wish I could buy?
• What services are lacking in my area?
• Does a solution already exist but not at the right price?
• Is there an easier way to solve this problem?
• Who’s being left out by the current offerings?

Using these questions as your guide, identify a gap in the market that you can help fill.

2. Find your target customers

Local pickleball businesses can help determine your target audience. For example, if facilities in your area focus on experienced players, consider starting pickleball clinics for beginner players or offering a more casual environment where someone can try out the sport. Other details to look for in your target market include:

• Demographics. Look at your target market’s average age, gender, income, marital status, education level, etc.
• Size. How many people can you expect to serve with your product or service?
• Behavior. Where does your target audience spend their time? How do they use social media? Do they attend in-person events?

Taken together, all of these details will help inform your marketing strategy and brand voice.

3. Consider your strengths

Evaluate your professional strengths and take stock of your assets. This will help you identify valuable services you can offer to potential customers. For example, if you own a tennis club, you can add pickleball courts and expand your services. If you have a background as a graphic designer, you can design pickleball apparel.

In addition to considering your strengths, perform a complete SWOT analysis to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. This will give you a well-rounded picture of areas for growth and the challenges you can expect to face.

4. Create a business plan

Write a detailed business plan to guide your decisions as you start and grow your pickleball enterprise. Your business plan should include your:

• Mission statement. Your mission statement will outline the purpose of your business and high-level goals.
• Core partners. Include information about your background and the experience of others involved.
• Pricing structure. How do you plan on charging for your products or services and what profit margins do you stand to make from your pricing strategies?
• Market research. Collect the market research insights that informed your approach, including what you learned from your competitive analysis.
• Startup costs. How much will it cost to get your business off the ground?

Having a clear roadmap can help you make informed decisions and have a clear pitch for interested investors.

5. Market your business

Develop a marketing plan to spread the word about your new business. Common promotional techniques include social media marketing and email marketing. You can also consider partnering with local pickleball organizations or offering discounts to attract new customers and build connections in the community.

Some key marketing metrics to keep in mind as you grow your business:

• Marketing return on investment (ROI)
• Customer acquisition cost (CAC)
• Cost per click
• Social media engagement, reach, and sales
• Email subscribers
• Direct website traffic

Use analytics tools like Google Analytics and Shopify Analytics to keep track of which tactics are working and which could be phased out.