Sophie Duguet, director of the Skinup company, specializing in racket sports equipment, looks back on the origin of Skinup, the creation of the SkinUp Academy, and shares her vision on the market padel.

The Genesis of Skinup

The origin of the Skinup project was born from a strategic repositioning of the brand in the sports market. Initially, Skinup was in the slimming textile market, targeting a cosmetic textile sector that was not yet well defined. After a positioning study, it quickly became apparent that we were addressing an almost non-existent market. To evolve, we decided to reorient Skinup towards the sports market, an area with established configurations, dedicated human resources and an existing competitive market. Our innovation agency advised us to focus on racquet sports, as there were no large textile players in this area, unlike sectors dominated by brands like Adidas or Nike.

Subsequently, I met Laurence Bois, then federal tennis coach, and I suggested that we launch the Skinup Academy. Initially, this academy was to be both the showcase of our brand and a center of innovation. Very quickly, we invested in the purchase of land and developed this innovation center into a real country club. We started with development plans, diversified our products, and realized that we could occupy a significant place in the racquet sports market.

Initially, the project was limited to 2 to 4 courts, mainly for tennis and pickleball. However, about four years ago we realized the enormous potential of padel. We then acquired two hectares of land to establish 15 plots. Today, our offer is complete and diversified, including tennis facilities, padel, pickleball, a country club, sports-study programs for tennis and padel, as well as sports tourism, corporate sports and health sports initiatives. We have really developed a 360° offer around racket sports.

Skinup Academy

An academy rather than a club

We chose to create an academy rather than a club to avoid the geographical limitation inherent in a traditional club. Clubs generally have a local catchment area, but our ambition goes well beyond these boundaries. We welcome players not only from all over Europe, but also from the USA and other parts of the world.

Of course, we have locals and young people in our tennis-studies program, but our global approach allows us to reach a much wider audience. We have young people who come from Paris, La Rochelle, and other distant places. This geographical diversity enriches our academy and moves us away from the traditional club model, often limited by its location.

The idea behind our academy is to offer our model to different types of structures, whether private clubs, municipalities, hotels or sports complexes. We want to deploy and popularize racket sports in various environments.

Even though we have a country club section with nearly 500 members for this third season, our vision goes well beyond that. We want to be a center of excellence and innovation, attracting talent from around the world and providing unique opportunities for development in racquet sports.

The market padel

At first, I must admit that I didn't really believe it. In fact, I'm more convinced by the potential of pickleball. The three sports: tennis, padel and pickleball are complementary and attract different audiences with varied motivations. What worries me a little about the market padel, it is the proliferation of projects which are flourishing almost everywhere without a solid business plan and without taking into account local customer dynamics.

Our example is interesting because we conceptualized our offer taking into account the absence of other similar offers in the surrounding area. We do not only focus on the padel. When Monsieur plays padel, Madam or children can play pickleball. We have diverse offerings that meet the needs of the whole family.

Skinup Academy

With regard to the market padel, I think we need to be vigilant about the risk of saturation. There are still a lot of things to do at all levels, whether for leisure, competition or corporate sport. What makes me smile are the investors who open centers of padel without qualified teachers, which leaves the players destitute. This is where we are a step ahead with our educational and sports team. At our house, everyone is trained in tennis, padel and pickleball, which allows us to offer a complete and quality experience to our members.

For anyone interested in the opportunity to become an ambassador club, licensee or franchisee with Skinup Academy, do not hesitate to contact Sophie Duguet at the following address: sduguet@skinupacademy.com.

Discover Skinup's complete range of equipment for racket sports on skin-up.com

Dorian Massy

New follower of padel, I am fascinated by this dynamic sport which combines strategy and agility. I find in the padel a new passion to explore and share with you on Padel Magazine.

On the same subject

Tags