Wilson lands sole retail space at 44-acre racquet sport campus in Raleigh
Wilson Sporting Goods will be a key player at a new racquet sport complex taking shape on a 44-acre plot in Raleigh.
Swing Racquet + Paddle will build its first “Sportstainment” center (they trademarked the term) in the city’s Brier Creek community. It will contain 28 tennis courts, 25 pickleball courts, four beach tennis/volleyball courts, and a ping pong lounge.
The Swing center will also serve up padel, a Mexican racquet sport usually played doubles on an enclosed court slightly smaller than a tennis court. In padel, stringless bats are used by players to carom shots off walls in the same fashion employed by squash players. Currently, less than 500 padel courts are found in the U.S. Swing will add 15 more to that total.
"Racquet and paddle sports are thriving, and Swing is here to elevate the player experience for generations to come," said Swing CEO Rob Autry. "Swing will offer much-needed court inventory while becoming a vital community hub where deeper connections and unforgettable memories are made."
Autry ran the Café Carolina and Bakery in Raleigh before founding Vstrator, a video solution athletes and their coaches can use to capture “coachable moments.” It’s been used by the San Francisco Giants and pro athletes that include Rafael Nadal and Reggie Bush.
Wilson will maintain a strong brand identity at Swing, with its logo prominently fixed above the entrance. Inside, it will host a multi-racquet-sport retail experience showcasing the latest innovations in Wilson equipment, a first-of-its-kind racquet fitting experience, and a stringing bar for tennis racquets.
“Wilson is excited to embark on this unique partnership with Swing, uniting tennis, pickleball, and padel in a facility of unprecedented scale," said Wilson CEO and president Joe Dudy. “It’s unlike any kind of experience that athletes will ever have with the Wilson brand.”
Earlier this year, the city of Raleigh made a $10 million investment in the Swing project, which it expects to deliver the city $360 million of economic impact in its first three years and attract more than one million visitors to the Raleigh area annually.
“We are excited to see the huge impact Swing creates in terms of jobs, tourism and special events that will bring amateurs and professionals to our region for competition,” said Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin.
