Padel’s future growth and prosperity lies partly outside the ‘tennis bubble’, according to the director of one of the UK’s main padel operators.
Dax Mellor (pictured above), Director of Operations at Padel4all, says his company’s marketing of padel to people of all ages and backgrounds in local communities demonstrates how the sport must attract an audience outside of tennis’s jurisdiction in order to sustain its current rapid rate of expansion.
The Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) is padel’s governing body in the UK and last week, The Padel Paper revealed a move by the International Tennis Federation to bring padel under its jurisdiction worldwide. The proposal was defeated narrowly by a members’ vote at its AGM in Glasgow.
Tennis’ relationship with padel is complex. A lot of padel’s development in the UK so far has occurred within existing tennis facilities and has been supported by LTA interest-free loans to build courts. But there is private concern within tennis about the explosion of this rival pursuit – the world’s fastest growing sport – on its own doorstep.
Padel4all operate padel centres in Swindon, Southend and Bristol and plan to build four more (each featuring four or more courts) across the south of England next year. They deliberately target locations that do not compete with tennis facilities – instead, they look to augment existing sport or leisure facilities to bring a new sport into a mainstream environment.
Mellor told The Padel Paper that Padel4all’s success so far comes from appealing deliberately to an audience with no history of racket sport participation, in addition to current tennis and squash players.
“The whole dynamic of how padel centres work is different to the model of mainstream rackets provision in this country,” he stated.
“In terms of where padel sits under the tennis umbrella, I always use the analogy of five-a-side football. Players play for their Saturday or Sunday 11-a-side team, but that doesn’t stop them playing five-a-side at the local sports centre.
“But I think padel’s success will come from outside that bubble. It will come from people looking for something to do where they’re not putting strain on their body, but still feel as though they’re getting a workout; from those looking for exercise or a pursuit later in life, or looking for a social element.
“Padel will obviously draw from an existing rackets community who will be interested in it, such as those who don’t want to play tennis outdoors in the winter, but it is looking beyond that audience where padel is going to be successful in this country.”
Mellor explained how Padel4all have ‘packaged’ and marketed padel to what he calls ‘the five-a-side brigade’ – casual punters who turn up out of curiosity, looking for a fun activity. He says this demographic must be quickly integrated into a padel community.
“Generally, new players arrive with three mates who they can encourage to come down occasionally. But if they want to play every week, we run a whole series of activities, sessions and competitions. It’s absolutely vital.”
Padel4all runs 20-25 hours of programmes every week at its venues; social sessions, matchplay, group coaching, entry-level sessions (Intro to Padel and Padel Xpress), women-only sessions and more. In Swindon they even have a school outreach programme and a class for people with Down’s Syndrome.
Mellor adds: “You join in as if it were a spin class – just book online and everything is ready and organised by staff and coaches when you arrive.
“There are a lot of operators out there and many think courts will fill up just because it’s a great sport. To be sustainable, it all needs carefully managing.
All Padel4all venues are LTA-registered and what we offer the governing body is significant. We are pay and play – book a court, pitch up, hire a racket and away you go. Because we have canopies, we are protected from the elements, and you can play all year round.
“These are two important things for the LTA – accessibility and year-round play. We are creating communities for everyone, that extend beyond the traditional racket sports fraternity.”
