Racketeer’s official opening party last weekend heralded the arrival of a plush new venue on the London padel scene which claims to be the biggest club in the UK.
Racketeer’s opening celebration, delivered by Rafa Vega’s BY3 Events, gave an array of celebrity guests a first look at its 9,000 sqm interior, notable for its luxurious burgundy branding, bar and restaurant, sauna, cold plunge, event and co-working space.
The 11-court club in North Acton is the brainchild of CEO Stephanie McCaffrey, a former USA international footballer who is now player-manager of Leyton Orient ladies’ team, and co-founder Patrick Lafuente-Gray, an experienced restaurateur.
Dwell time is very much the watchword for McCaffrey (pictured above at the front, second from right) and Lafuente-Gray (second from left). The concept of Racketeer is to offer its patrons a food, beverage and wellness experience, alongside padel, that gives them multiple reasons to stay all day.
The look and feel (and price) may be premium, but McCaffrey tells The Padel Paper that she wants the ambience to be relaxed.
“People feel that premium and formality have to co-exist but we don’t see things that way,” she said.
“Our courts and lighting are the most premium on the planet and our facility is heated to 18c at all times — so the product is premium but the attitude is very casual, and we love that about Racketeer. It’s a club where you can be yourself.
“We’ve tried to bring the element of having everything under one roof, but ensuring that it doesn’t feel so exclusive that people are uncomfortable.”
The signature burgundy interior was conceptualised by the DOMINGO creative agency in partnership with McCaffrey’s wife Erin Robertson, winner of season 15 of Project Runway, a hit American fashion reality show. Together, the couple have also founded Pickle Pop, an indoor pickleball club in Los Angeles.
Racketeer puts great emphasis on its branding, even plastering its logo on a London taxi and driving it into the building for its opening party.
As McCaffrey explains, there’s strategy behind the publicity stunt: “Eventually a lot more facilities are going to come on to the market and people are going to attach themselves to a brand that deserves it. So we invested in brand upfront.”
Racketeer can claim to be the first female-led padel operator in the UK, but it’s not an accolade McCaffrey wants to shout about.
“We don’t want to scream about being female-owned. We’re the best because of our product, we’re not the best because I’m a woman. I know that’s not what we’re supposed to say, but it’s the attitude I have towards it.”
Racketeer’s founders have deliberately chosen not to clutter their gigantic square footage with as many courts as possible. They currently have 11, and McCaffrey hints that more will be added soon.
The team also has eyes on further sites already. “We didn’t get into this to do just one,” says the co-founder. “We’re aggressively prudent. We’re hitting the gas with expansion. We’re really excited to scale.
“Opening our first club has been full-on, but when you want something in life you’ve just got to go for it.”
