Blake Renaud, CEO and founder of PicklePlay, took the opportunity and risk to leverage technology in an industry that has otherwise chosen to neglect it. It has paid off as her app has grown to 50,000 users, helping connect individuals of all experience levels. She talks about building out her team which started with folks overseas but has now found a home in the US. We hear about her experience as a female founder and the importance of continuing to believe in your pursuit despite what people will tell you. Her determination has led to partnerships with the likes of players and personalities such as Tyson McMuffin.

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Download on Android:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.pickleplay

Download on iOS:
https://apps.apple.com/us/app/id1504644136

Chapters:
01:00 Tell me about yourself and PicklePlay
03:40 Hiring a development team
09:00 Funding your idea
11:16 Being told your idea won’t work
12:50 Believing in your idea
16:08 Offering a free product
19:00 All desired features under one app
25:40 Listening to users
28:20 Being a female founder
31:39 Self-ratings, DUPR
33:06 Partnership with Tyson McGuffin
38:33 What do you look for when hiring
40:48 Competitors
43:27 Speaking to the nay-sayers
49:00 Using Reddit
53:04 What’s next?
55:50 Advice for founders
57:00 Closing  -

The PicklePlay app helps players find local pickleball courts, clubs, events and players.

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Subscribe for free on:
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/5aPtDs5VOnqpbQpF12SLZN
Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/building-pickleball/id1666931896

Get in touch via email or Instagram:
Email: [email protected]
https://instagram.com/buildingpickleball

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Beat Provided By https://freebeats.io  Produced By White Hot

Jorge Barragan, co-founder of The Picklr, started this indoor pickleball facility business as a college dropout. Hugely influenced by his immigrant parents, his business is rapidly growing with locations in Utah, Colorado, and eventually across the US and internationally. In 3 years, they’re aiming for pickleball courts in 120 locations. Listen to the full episode to hear more about their major brand partnership with Joola.

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VOLAIR DISCOUNT: Get a 10% discount by using code: LIM20 

Or use this link (discount applied at checkout): https://volair.com/?rfsn=7160391.899031&utm_source=refersion&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_campaign=7160391.899031

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Chapters: 01:06 

Intro 05:00 

Venue partnership 

06:00 Starting with paddles first 

14:06 raising series A, 120 locations 

17:10 MLP announcement  

24:30 Doing it for the community 

26:10 Beating Chicken n Pickle 

29:39 Pickleball in 10 years? 

33:14 Finding inspiration 

40:18 Picklr in 2 years 

44:44 UFC & MMA 

48:58 Playing in Austin, TX 

53:58 Advice for future founders 

01:01:40 Closing

My guest in this episode was Evan Specht, co-founder of Diadem. We talk about starting a business with your friend, his background in Aerospace Engineering and Business, building a successful tennis brand, and being a  former tennis coach of pickleball pros Christian Alshon and James  Ignatowich.

Hear more about how they were able to flourish during COVID, really finding a way to separate Diadem from any other brand in the market. And, Evan mentions a new product they’ll be releasing and it’s not a paddle.

My guest in this episode was Aubri Steele, founder of Civile. She talks about building her team which consists of people coming from big brands like Hurley and Nike, how being an educator by trade has formed her leadership approach, how her morals and outlook on life align with the brand and the story they want to tell, and founding a company when the world felt unstable. Quitting her job, finding herself after losing her father, and taking that leap.

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Chapters:

01:00 Aubri and Civile

03:15 Biggest learning curve

05:50 Building your team

08:45 Lessons from grief

11:20 Managing your team

14:46 Work life balance

18:30 Partner in life

22:48 How you built your network

32:13 Separating your idea from competition

36:50 Pros wearing the apparel

45:24 Biggest hesitation founding a business

48:12 If not this, what would you be doing

49:30 Failed projects

54:18 What can people expect next?

57:42 What’s a book that changed your life

59:30 Closing

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Civile - Our Story

Everyone agrees, 2020 was an incredibly difficult year. The part I found the most challenging was being a parent amid the divisive sentiments of our country. It felt impossible to stand firmly behind the beliefs on which I was raised. The instructions of our own parents to, “play nicely” seemed distant aspirations, at best. How could we possibly ask this of our children when the world-at-large seemed to be slipping ever so swiftly into a pattern where manners didn’t matter and rigidity of beliefs exacerbated controversy, inappropriate behavior, and a seemingly infectious absence of empathy.

This is not a political statement, this is a reflection of the human experience. As a human race, we seemed to have lost our way. As a parent, this was a heartbreaking glimpse into a future I did not want for my children.

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Subscribe for free on: 

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/5aPtDs5VOnqpbQpF12SLZN 

Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/building-pickleball/id1666931896  

Get in touch via email or Instagram:  

Email: [email protected] 

https://instagram.com/buildingpickleball?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=  

-  

Beat Provided By https://freebeats.io Produced By White Hot

I interview Ryan Cohen, co-founder of Volair Pickleball, pickleball gear brand co-founded with pro Julian Arnold. Having known Julian since high school and always finding himself generating ideas and pursuing them, it was a no-brainer that he'd eventually start a business in the pickleball space, especially after falling in love with it in 2020. He talks about how his business acumen is translating to finding opportunities in pickleball, resulting in improved management and treatment of players and developing the highest commission ambassador program.  

VOLAIR DISCOUNT: Get a 10% discount by using code: LIM20

—

0:00 Intro with Ryan Cohen 

00:27 Background 

10:54 Family business 

17:31 Transition to entrepreneurship 

22:32 Ideas that failed 

28:40 Choosing ideas 

31:36 Andiamo push button 

34:05 Prioritizing focus 

39:14 Julian Arnold signature paddle

42:00 What is missing 

48:00 Doing things differently 

55:00 Volair ambassador program  

01:01:00 Last words

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Volair is on a mission to create the best pickleball gear on the market. We’re dedicated to providing you industry-leading technology and premium quality in all our products.

We don’t settle for good enough. We're raising the bar because your equipment should support you in taking your game to the next level.

We’re built for the bold. Stand out, be different, be loud, be the wild card. Let your game do the talking, and let Volair put a (!) at the end of it. Andiamo!

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See additional content at https://www.youtube.com/@buildingpickleball

Subscribe for free on

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/5aPtDs5VOnqpbQpF12SLZN

Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/building-pickleball/id1666931896

Get in touch via email or Instagram:

Email: [email protected]

https://instagram.com/buildingpickleball?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

I interview Jonathan Clay, the founder of Kitch Pickleball, an online retail and custom apparel company.

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KitchPickleball.com launched in 2016 at the US Open Pickleball Championships as a start up apparel brand in what was then the growing sport of pickleball. Through key partnerships with other organizations within the sport, professional and amateur players we would grow the Kitch brand nationwide and help grow the sport of pickleball. Today, we stand tall as a pioneering brand in the pickleball apparel industry, and have launched brand extensions that service many facets of the sport in different ways. Our mission is to grow the sport of pickleball, one t-shirt at a time, and bring new and fresh eyes to the fastest growing sport on the planet.

-  Subscribe for free on

Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/5aPtDs5VOnqpbQpF12SLZN

Apple Podcasts - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/building-pickleball/id1666931896

-  Get in touch via Instagram: https://instagram.com/buildingpickleball

Email: [email protected]