Private equity firm First National Realty Partners own PickleRage, which started franchising last year and is scheduled to open its first three corporate locations soon in Florida, Michigan and Maryland.
With new pickleball concepts entering the market and competing for space in America’s fastest growing participation sport, an emerging brand is counting on private equity backing and its real estate expertise to win the long game.
Private equity firm First National Realty Partners own PickleRage, which started franchising last year and is scheduled to open its first three corporate locations soon in Florida, Michigan and Maryland. The firm specializes in commercial estate investments. The Red Bank, New Jersey-based firm has over $2 billion in assets under management.
“Having First National Realty behind us gives us a distinct advantage because, as you know, a lot of it in this space is getting good real estate deals and finding the best locations in a tight market,” said Eric O’Connor, vice president of franchise development at PickleRage.
Eric O’Connor, vice president of franchise development at PickleRage
The brand is one of the many players in what is quickly become a crowded space. Other brands that are vying for market share include Ace Pickleball Club, Crush Yard, Dill Dinkers, Pickleball Kingdom, PKL, The Pickle Pad and The Pickler. Along with PickleRage, they started franchising in 2023.
The eight pickleball brands are busy making development deals, according to FranData. The Picklr has sold 276 units and Dill Dinkers, Pickleball Kingdom, Pickleball Kingdom and Ace have each sold over 100 units, according to the report released in June.
Although PickleRage has sold just three franchise locations thus far—two to Robyn Hesling and her husband Keith Goodrich in Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo, Michigan, and one to Jonathan Keith and Mark Howard in Mobile, Alabama—O’Connor said the brand is pleased with its development progress.
The company is on track to open six to eight locations this year and O’Connor said he hopes to have 50 clubs open next year. PickleRage’s early development efforst are focused in Michigan, Florida, Texas and the Carolinas. O’Connor said the company’s goal is to have 500 clubs open in five years, which he admitted “sounds very aggressive,” but insisted is doable considering the sport’s growing popularity and demand for indoor court time.
He also pointed to the company’s affiliation with a commercial real estate investment firm that has deep pockets and is committed to growing the brand.
O’Connor said First National Realty co-founders Chris Palermo and Anthony Grosso are serving as co-owners of PickleRage and the brand named First National Chief Revenue Officer Fred Battisti Jr. vice president of real estate and construction earlier this year.
“We’re being very careful in vetting our franchise partners who have to demonstrate business acumen, leadership skills and the ability to connect and do the marketing necessary to sign members in their communities,” O’Connor said. “They also have to have a net worth of over $2 million.”
The investment range to open a PickleRage club is $827,800 to $1.8 million, according to the company’s website. O’Connor said the majority of startup costs go toward constructing the club’s 25,000- to 30,000-square-foot facilities that include 10 to 12 indoor courts, a pro shop and what he described as a “quick grab-and-go food and beverage” area with tables and chairs that will sell smoothies, sandwiches and salads.
He said it will be up to the operators to decide to serve alcohol at their locations.
The investment range to open a PickleRage club is $827,800 to $1.8 million, according to the company’s website.
Unlike other pickleball brands that are offering full-service restaurants and family entertainment areas with other games at their facilities, O’Connor said PickleRage is designed exclusively for pickleball players of all levels. Members pay a $20 initiation fee and $60 a month to play on courts constructed with CushionX, the same surface used by professionals in the U.S. Open Pickleball Championships.
Locations will offer clinics and organized leagues and tournaments to “maximize all available revenue streams,” said O’Connor.
“There are some competitors that kind of approach it from a destination strategy with rock climbing walls, concert facilities, and pickleball seems almost like a secondary type of thing,” he said. “What we do and how we differentiate ourselves is being a real estate owner and developer. That’s our expertise, along with the automation technology we’ve incorporated into the system that makes court reservation, scheduling and overall operations much easier for operators by maximizing efficiencies and revenue per square foot.”