We recently connected with Ashlee Blakley and Suzanne Greever and have shared our conversation below.
Ashlee and Suzanne, looking forward to hearing both of your stories today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?
Ashlee: Pickleball has exploded onto the scene. Over the last three years, it has been one of the fastest-growing sports in America and is showing no signs of slowing down. The 2023 Sports & Fitness Industry Association’s (SFIA) Topline Participation Report reported that participation almost doubled in 2022, increasing by 85.7% year-over-year and by an astonishing 158.6% over three years. The sport’s appeal lies in its accessibility and the wide range of players it attracts across all age groups. Pickleball now has 8.9 million active players over the age of six (6) years old. The average age of active players is 34.8 years old with the ages of 18-44 making up 70% of all players.
When we discovered our love for the sport two years ago, we knew we wanted to be part of the industry’s growth story and help navigate the exciting yet uncharted territory around it. Suzanne, my business partner, and I are both entrepreneurs to the core, so it felt like a natural step for us to dive into discussions on how we could contribute to making aspects of the sport even better. The key to starting any business is identifying a need and finding where you can make an impact with your product or service. For us, Twisted Pickle (www.twistedpickle.world) is about fulfilling a genuine need within the Pickleball community and helping it thrive.
Together, we have over 40 years of combined experience in our respective fields, which are also very different. From the beginning, this unique background of expertise is what sets us apart and allows us to provide a range of education and expertise across various aspects of the sport.
Suzanne brings a wealth of experience in business development, operations, construction, design, and customer experience. I bring to the table expertise in marketing, branding, video production, and the creative arts industries. Together, our combined skill sets offer a wide range of knowledge and tools tailored to meet the needs of our diverse Pickleball clients.
The idea of bringing our backgrounds together and giving back to the sport we both adore was the peak of excitement for our team. Suzanne and I can credit Pickleball for helping us improve and maintain our health, especially after the challenges of COVID-19 and the long work hours we both endured. From day one, our motto has been to “Connect Pickleball to its People,” which continues as we work to assist facilities and brands in building meaningful connections and growth within the Pickleball community.
Suzanne and Ashlee, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourselves to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Ashlee: After college, I moved to Los Angeles and launched my career in the TV/film and advertising industries as an International Makeup Artist. I got to see firsthand how marketing magic happens, behind the camera, bringing stories to life for a variety of clients. When I eventually returned to Texas, I stayed in the game, focusing on marketing through video production, especially in the beauty industry, working with large corporate clients from California to New York.
For me, the heart of my work includes solving the puzzle of brand identity. Sitting down with clients for a brand marketing audit is one of my favorite onboarding activities—it’s all about figuring out who they are, what they stand for, and who they’re trying to reach. Without a strong brand identity and trust in their market, even the best products or ideas can struggle or never make it off the ground. You’ve got to know your brand before thinking about reaching your target audience or launching in the marketplace.
Bringing my background and skills in production and marketing to serve our clients at Twisted Pickle, alongside Suzanne, is what makes us stand out in the Pickleball industry. While Pickleball is exploding in popularity, it’s still like the Wild West out there—chaotic and unpredictable. Our expertise allows us to bring some much-needed structure, organization, and planning, helping new businesses navigate this exciting but challenging industry.
We’re all about being that “competitive edge” for our clients, especially new brands. At Twisted Pickle, Suzanne and I help them map out their journey from start to finish, which includes planning, management, risk assessment, scaling, operations, and marketing, so business owners can focus on bringing their product or service to market and hit the ground running toward success.
Suzanne: I have over two decades of executive experience in strategic planning, business operations, leadership development, and construction management for large corporations and growing startups. As CEO of multiple hospitals, I guided organizations to national recognition for top clinical outcomes, customer experience, and financial performance, managing businesses with annual net revenues exceeding $100 million.
Even with years of corporate experience, I am an entrepreneur at heart, having led a successful business and leadership consulting company and now co-founding Twisted Pickle with Ashlee. Twisted Pickle is a pickleball-centric business offering comprehensive services from business consulting to marketing to brand management. What sets us apart is we are pickleball players who use that lens to help guide other pickleball-focused businesses. We understand pickleball as a sport and as an industry.
What I enjoy most about working with our Twisted Pickle clients is helping them elevate their businesses by creating excellent customer experiences, developing an engaged workforce, and having thoughtful and efficient business operations. Ashlee and I work with our clients to lay a solid foundation so their company can scale up and be strategically positioned to adapt to future market needs.
Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?
Our conversations began gravitating towards our mutual passion for the sport, sparking meetings and discussions about how we could leverage our skills and experiences to contribute to the growing Pickleball industry. With a shared vision and determination, we made a plan to establish Twisted Pickle.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
Ashlee: As a service-based brand, I knew right from the start that documenting the “journey of becoming Twisted Pickle” was important. We weren’t just selling a product; we were sharing the story of us as owners and our unique contribution to the Pickleball community.
It was also important for me to build trust through our social media channels, and that meant showing the people behind the brand, showcasing our personalities, experiences with our clients, and day-to-day operations, but also sharing the highs, and the lows.
Authenticity and human connection are number one in today’s social media landscape. Consumers crave genuine connections and transparency from the brands they choose to engage with. That’s why I firmly believe that creating trust is non-negotiable. By showing our background stories and sharing our journey openly, we’re not just selling a service—we’re building our brand to be rooted in trust and authenticity. Brands should strive to create a community that resonates with consumers across all industries.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.twistedpickle.world
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/twisted_pickle_
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100087606339767
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/twisted-pickle-llc/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLJ4JL_TPTF_0SzYrFpsCAA
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@twistedpickledfw
Image Credits
Fish Fotography & Ashlee Erickson Production