Leading Provider of Dedicated Indoor Pickleball Satisfies Demand for Sport Coast to Coast; Drives Aggressive Growth Strategy with Regional Developer Model
Born on the East Coast, Dill Dinkers Pickleball has quickly risen to prominence in the indoor pickleball industry with continuous praise for its fun, welcoming and pickleball player friendly environment. As a sport and recreation industry trailblazer, Dill Dinkers has captured the hearts of pickleball players from across the country, regardless of skill level, through its vision to spread the joy of pickleball to all.
Today, Dill Dinkers proudly announces the official launch of its groundbreaking franchise expansion initiative. With no hesitation, the brand hit the ground running, signing five regional developers for 65 locations in San Antonio, Charlotte, Washington D.C., South Carolina, and Connecticut with over a hundred qualified applicants in the pipeline from across the country including in Canada and Mexico. The exciting development underscores a top-tier leadership team, focus on speed to market, and the undeniable demand for early entry into a premier indoor pickleball franchise concept. “The demand for indoor pickleball facilities is driving demand for a world-class business model like Dill Dinkers”, say Chief Development Officer Dr. Ben Litalien, “a concept developed by avid pickleball players for the burgeoning cadre of pickleball players across the country”.
As the fastest-growing sport in the country for three years running, Dill Dinkers is at the forefront of the pickleball phenomenon with its dedicated indoor facilities that allow players to enjoy year-round play. Since opening the first location in November of 2022 in Columbia, Maryland, the company has opened three corporate locations in Maryland in less than a year with another set to open in Manassas, Virginia in early 2024. The brand expects to have its first franchised location open in early 2024 in San Antonio, Texas, and expects to open 30 locations in 2024.
Dill Dinkers Pickleball Clubs will operate in 15,000 square feet or more of indoor space, to provide space for at least six courts to 12 courts. The primary focus is on ensuring the functionality of the facilities by administering safety during play to achieve a seamless player experience. To accomplish this, each facility will have a dedicated Director of Pickleball responsible for providing training, instruction, and organizing tournaments, leagues, and special events.
“We started Dill Dinkers because of our unwavering passion for the sport and the community it has provided us,” said Richards, alongside his wife Denise, Co-Founder, and COO. “It was crucial for us to ensure both owner-operators and investors could succeed, and we’ve developed an innovative approach to achieve this by offering a variety of growth paths. We are thrilled to officially launch our franchise program with the vision to spread the joy of pickleball across the country.”
Besides the individual Dill Dinkers Pickleball Club franchise offer, the company offers territories for development featuring nine revenue streams, a robust operating system, a proprietary reporting and management platform that is mobile-enabled, an intensive training system, and a turnkey marketing program for grand opening and membership development. Delivering a high-quality, professional experience, the brand boasts its national partnership with JOOLA, a leading manufacturer of paddle sports, equipping each facility with top-notch nets, paddles, and other high-quality products. Owner-operators can also take advantage of the brand’s partnership with Strategic Factory, an industry-leading single-point provider for all marketing and branding needs, ensuring uniformity and consistency across all of its facilities.
“The world has gone crazy for pickleball, and the demand for an indoor experience is overwhelming,” said Dr. Litalien. “Dill Dinkers has perfected its model to deliver an unbeatable environment—it’s climate-controlled, structured play at an affordable price. Being able to extend the success of the Dill Dinkers brand into a world-class franchise offering is a great opportunity. So many franchise concepts that come to market are simply ‘cookie cutter’ replicas of other franchises. It was essential to develop a franchise strategy befitting the great concept Will and Denise created. The response by our initial five regional developers is truly humbling, and we look forward to supporting their growth.”
For more information about Dill Dinkers, visit www.dilldinkers.com. Connect on the brand’s social pages by visitinghttps://www.linkedin.com/company/dill-dinkers and/or https://www.facebook.com/dilldinkers/.
About Dill Dinkers Pickleball
Dill Dinkers Pickleball is the leading provider of dedicated indoor pickleball facilities in the country. The Dill Dinkers brand is known for its fun, friendly, and welcoming environment where players of all ages and skill levels can play, socialize, and improve their skills. Each facility offers dedicated indoor courts separated with fences, top-tier court surfaces, event space, a ball machine, and a state-of-the-art reservation system powered by Court Reserve. Dill Dinkers offers court reservations for members and visitors, as well as clinics, private and semi-private lessons, leagues, business advertising, and court rental for private events.
About Dill Dinkers Franchising
While the company offers single-club franchises, the focus of its expansion efforts is with Regional Developers who acquire a territory of 1M or more in population, open a flagship location within that territory, then develop it the territory with additional units they own or with independent franchisees. Regional Developers are compensated for attracting franchisees and providing support locally to all Dill Dinker locations within their territory.
For more information about Dill Dinkers franchise program, visit: www.dilldinkers.com/franchising.