Photo: Unsplash | jha900
Why is Walmart Taking up Pickleball?
Walmart has partnered with racquet sports booking platform Break the Love to invite customers and associates to play pickleball, an emerging sport described as a combination of badminton, ping-pong and tennis.
Under the program, 125,000 reservations to book playtime at pickleball venues nationwide will be free to Walmart customers and associates. Walmart+ members earn first access at peak reservation times, co-branded swag and meet and greets with pro pickleballers. There’s also a shopping link at www.breakthelove.com/x/walmart.
“We are always looking for ways to create meaningful experiences that encourage our customers to interact with Walmart in new ways,” Casey Schlaybaugh, VP, brand marketing and strategy for Walmart U.S., said in a press release.
The sport has been around since the mid-1960s but has ranked as the fastest-growing sport for the last three years, according to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association. Participation jumped 85.7 percent in 2022 to 8.9 million participants in the U.S. Tennis had 23.6 million.
Easier to learn than tennis, with less court space to cover at a slower speed, the sport’s approachable nature attracts a diverse group of younger and older participants. Also driving appeal is low startup costs and the average game lasting only about 20 minutes.
The sport has stoked controversy as pickleball often takes over tennis court space. Many towns seek to restrict play or block the development of new pickleball courts because of the noise from pickleball paddles. Its emergence as a spectator sport, however, is further elevating awareness with the arrival of thousands of pickleball tournaments, two professional tours and one professional league.
Walmart appears to be the first mass chain to launch a pickleball initiative, but Fila, Nike and K-Swiss are among heritage activewear labels targeting the sport.
A recent New York Times article noted that many designers are coming out with pickleball lines with the informality of the sport leading to more playful fashion takes than tennis.
“You are just playing with paddles and a plastic ball — pickleball is never going to have the sophistication, I think, of a sport like tennis,” the fashion designer Norma Kamali told the Times. “But people actually like that.”
Discussion Questions
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: What do you think of Walmart’s “Break the Love” partnership and the overall retail opportunity around the sport of pickleball? What role will spectator viewing play in the sport’s growth and its prospects at retail?
Poll
Loading …BrainTrust
Nikki Baird
VP of Strategy, Aptos
Melissa Minkow
Director, Retail Strategy, CI&T
Walmart+ is a premium subscription service so of course it makes sense to continually seek to add value to the membership, and this is definitely a hot and growing pastime. Whether it will last almost doesn’t matter — as long as Walmart keeps refreshing the value of its offering, the company should hopefully stay on top of whatever is next.
On the subject of pickleball specifically, as a venue in Denver recently ran up against violating neighborhood noise ordinances — it’s that loud — I would say either the paddles need to change or the sport has already jumped the shark and it doesn’t know it yet. If you can violate 80db noise level ordinances a block away, I’m not sure I want to sign up to stand on a court and be exposed to that directly! I like my hearing…
Pickleball is the fastest growing sport in the U.S. and appeals to all ages. As a sports apparel and/or equipment retailer, there is a tremendous revenue opportunity today with pickleball enthusiasts and it will continue to grow as more people gravitate to this sport. The “Break the Love” partnership is a smart way for Walmart to increase awareness for its pickleball products. The website is very small scale today, with limited connection to pickleball facilities for reservation. However with the increased funding by Walmart, they probably have the capability to make it a nationwide network of pickleball clubs.
Pickleball is the hottest participatory sport around at the moment. And its demographics align well with Walmart’s core customers. This is not the country club set taking over the tennis courts at the park near you. These are everyday folks of all ages who have found a way to get out, socialize and exercise with friends with a low financial barrier of entry. Good for Walmart. I think this will be a win.
Pickleball appeals to all generations and continues to grow in participation. I’m curious what the profit margins will look like here after all the investment, but it is worth at least having considerable assortment to support the popular pastime.
Subscription services must always be adding new features to remain relevant. Walmart should absolutely get behind pickleball, which is growing exponentially in popularity. And whoever can create noise-canceling pickleball will make a fortune.
The noise issue with pickleball is legit, but that’s not Walmart’s issue. Rather I see them striking while the iron is hot, and capitalizing on a trend. And the requirement to upload a picture of a Walmart receipt to access free court time is brilliant!
Can you say, super hot sporting trend? It’s no wonder Walmart is investing and providing opportunities for its Walmart+ customers. Using another sport analogy, this is a layup for Walmart. Pickleball is completely in their audience sweet spot. The sport appeals to people of younger and older ages. It’s not fashion intensive. The ball and paddles are inexpensive, court time is free or low-dollar entry, the game is easy on the body, and a game is finished in less than 30 minutes. Other than the noise, what’s not to like about it?
Pickleball is definitely a thing, and Walmart is smart to increase the exposure of the sport with “Break the Love.” I see this being a huge deal (equipment, apparel, social media awareness, other attachment opportunities, etc.) as the sport continues to grow.
Part of the appeal of pickleball is the low cost of court time. The higher the real cost of a “free” item the more attractive the offer. With pickleball the cost is so low that the offer loses a great deal of its appeal. I have no doubt that Walmart+ members will get and use the reservation but I doubt that members with be very disappointed if they don’t get one, and I doubt that the offer will get more people to join Walmart+.
This reminds me of when people wondered why Amazon entered the streaming video business. One of Jeff Bezos’s Prime Membership concepts was to find ways outside the traditional retail world to offer value to Amazon’s members. There had to be compelling reasons to want to continue to subscribe. Walmart is doing the same thing. So the question becomes this: Where else can Walmart (Target, Amazon, etc.) create value to get customers to pay an annual membership fee year after year?
Pickleball represents a perfect demographic for Walmart so, yes, I think this is a big/good deal for them. I am not sure about the spectator part–this sport is appealing because it is so participatory, not requiring months of practice or lessons and available to all age groups. Once you get beyond the curiosity of watching retired tennis pros play it, I do not think it has “legs” to be a true spectator sport. But then again I am someone who still cannot believe you can turn on the television and watch cornhole, or darts, or bass fishing, so I do not think I am a reliable witness on that count. Thumbs up on the deal.
My sentiments exactly, well said.
Walmart’s “Break the Love” collaboration aims at creating new opportunities for customers to have fun, connect with friends and prioritize their wellness. Pickleball is the fastest growing sport in the U.S. and appeals to all ages.
Through this program, Walmart is expanding its commitment to meet customers where they are by offering them ways to add value to their lives, supporting local communities and creating moments of joy.
If there is a sociological movement, the secret is to affiliate with it before it is recognized as such. Walmart has done so just in time. I’ve always thought of pickleball as tennis for those with bad knees so I don’t quite understand the appeal.
It’s great to see Walmart doing new things to create value for Walmart+ AND for Walmart associates. Amazon doesn’t think in human terms, especially at this point, and that leaves a lot of room for innovation on Walmart’s part.