Ben Johns and Anna Bright play pickleball at the new Life Time on Penn 1 next to Madison Square Garden in New York City on May 4, 2024.
Mike Stobe | fake images
Fitness for life is fully involved in pickleball.
That commitment to America's fastest-growing sport was clear in New York City on Saturday, where one of the world's top-ranked male pickleball players, Ben Johns, and former tennis player Andre Agassi were practicing their dinks and falls in the new Life Time stadium. courts.
It's all part of the upscale fitness company's strategy to grow its brand by investing in pickleball.
To continue that goal, Life Time announced Tuesday that it will partner with lululemon, naming the company as the official apparel partner of Life Time pickleball and tennis. The relationship includes selling Lululemon apparel online at Life Time clubs, as well as collaborating on key pickleball events.
“This partnership highlights the extraordinary growth of these sports and brings together the best in sports apparel with the best tennis and pickleball experiences,” said Celeste Burgoyne, president of the Americas and guest global innovation at Lululemon.
Life Time, founded in 1992, currently has more than 170 “sports country clubs” nationwide.
These clubs are looking for creative new ways to get America moving again as the fitness landscape has evolved post-Covid. Life Time CEO and founder Bahram Akradi, an avid pickleball player, is betting that the popular tennis-like sport will be that catalyst.
(L-R) Tyson McGuffin, Collin Johns, Life Time founder and CEO Bahram Akradi, Andre Agassi, Anna Bright and Ben Johns pose for a photo at the new Life Time on Penn 1 next to Madison Square Garden in the city of New York on May 4th. 2024.
Mike Stobe | fake images
“Pickleball is working. It's packed all the time,” he told CNBC.
And it continues to grow. On Saturday, Life Time featured Manhattan's largest indoor pickleball destination, just blocks from Penn Station. The 54,000-square-foot club has seven street-level pickleball courts that officially opened on April 15.
Akradi said the company has installed new playing surfaces or converted tennis courts across the country and now offers more than 700 pickleball courts nationwide. It has become the largest provider of permanent pickleball courts in the country.
Akradi estimated that the company has already invested between $50 million and $100 million in pickleball and has contributed between 6% and 7% of Life Time's membership fees.
“That's substantial. It's a big number,” he said.
Life Time has also partnered with professional pickleball to host nearly a dozen pickleball tournaments on the company's courts, with some even broadcast on national television. This week, for example, the Atlanta Open, part of the PPA Tour, will compete in a Life Time in Peachtree Corners, Georgia, with 16,000 people expected to attend.
Andre Agassi and Anna Bright play pickleball at the new Life Time on Penn 1 next to Madison Square Garden in New York City on May 4, 2024.
Mike Stobe | fake images
Agassi recently began playing pickleball, which is a lower-impact sport, after accumulating years of wear and tear on his body from his illustrious tennis career.
“I think wherever we are now, there will be 10 times as many people playing this sport in the next five to seven years,” Agassi told CNBC. He said he believes pickleball will be successful because it promotes healthy habits, creates community and has a low entry point for beginners.
In February, Life Time named Agassi as inaugural president of the company's newly formed tennis and pickleball board, where he will be tasked with raising the sport's profile, programming and leagues.
“My hope is that he grows in college and in the Olympics,” Agassi said.
Off the court, Life Time now features tips from pickleball's top player, Johns. The company announced last month that he and his brother Collin will provide members with 70 instructional videos to help players take their game to the next level.
“We partnered with Life Time because they are very interested in spreading pickleball and their members want to get better,” Johns told CNBC.
Johns has had a front-row seat to the sport's exponential growth and said he has seen his salary increase 10-fold since 2021 as pickleball has captured more sponsors and media rights.
Life Time's pickleball strategy is already showing first results.
While Life Time shares fell about 23% from March 2023 to March 2024, its first-quarter earnings report showed total revenue increased by $85 million from March of last year, adjusted EBITDA increased more than 20% and net memberships increased by 38,000.
Analysts blame the stock's recent poor performance on a combination of macro, balance sheet and interest-related concerns.
“In our view, LTH remains the most underrated story in our coverage and perhaps in the broader consumer space,” a Guggenheim analyst wrote on May 1.
