Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Lawrence Gordon. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Lawrence, thanks for joining us today. Can you share a customer success story with us?

We started with 24 boys’ basketball players in the spring of 2022, intending to be a bridge-builder using basketball to connect communities regardless of socio-economic background to teach the next generation that we are better together. We aim to blend our teams with kids from West & South Charlotte, to practice, connect, and build with one another, getting kids to meet people they usually would not meet. In addition, we wear the Love Bolt logo on our uniform to show the Charlotte community that we are a program that prioritizes community, race, sports, and education.   

At the end of the ’22 spring season, parents wanted more and asked us if we could create more teams with the same quality experience. So we started recruiting more coaches as we started attracting more families. So in 3 months, we went from 24 boys at the end of Q2 to 160 boys entering Q4. Plus, we launch a girls club to provide the same opportunity and now have 40+ girls who train and play with us. So totaling over 200 boys and girls we serve. 

The success and growth of our grassroots program are because of amazing parents, players, coaches, and partners like Love Bolt. Charlotte is last in economic mobility, and we strongly feel that using basketball to create social capital will help the next generation improve those statistics. 

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers?

I am the Founder of Sport Mode One, a sports events group that organizes basketball events and creates basketball experiences for youth. I run a grassroots program for boys and girls ages 5-14 called The Skill Factory, which serves over 160 kids seasonally through teams, enrichment camps, and after-school programs. Our goal is to be a bridge-builder using basketball to connect communities regardless of socio-economic background to teach the next generation that we are better together. We have kids who attend public school and kids who attend private school here in Charlotte practicing, connecting, and building with one another, sharing resources and life perspectives meeting other kids they usually would not meet.

We have two signature high school events, the George Lynch Invitational and the Anthony Morrow Shootout, both named after former NBA players. This year at the George Lynch Invitional we will be giving out $5,000 in scholarship to five graduating seniors. In addition, we organize a signature college event, the Charlotte Tip-off at UNCC,, for division one teams.

Can you talk to us about how you funded your business?

I started working at a local startup in Charlotte, Thirty Capital, where I led sales efforts and was the Head of Business Development. My role kept me close to the owner, and we established a good relationship. There were many ups and downs, but I gained favor with the company’s owner through the years. At one point, I didn’t think I was cut out for the job anymore, so I approached him with an idea. He knew my track record in sports and sales, so he allowed me to pitch him. I knew he believed in me and had an invested interest in my success, so when he told me he would give me my seed money, I was off and running. I will share more about my journey later in the “pivot” to show how my motto to write everything in pencil relates because the one thing that got me funded isn’t what kept me alive as a startup.

Have you ever had to pivot?

My initial business plan was to organize a hybrid division one college basketball event in Charlotte that would bring both men’s and women’s college basketball games to one arena to show solidarity in the sport. I was going to use my years of experience in the sport to connect with coaches and my recent connections with the Charlotte Sports Foundation to secure Spectrum arena. During 2021 I spent most of my time traveling to colleges and meeting with coaches as I tried to coordinate matchups. Meanwhile, I had to secure a corporate sponsor for the games. Everything looked promising as I received my first couple of team commitments and corporate sponsor interest.

By April 2022, my momentum had slowed, the team commitments I received backed out, and my team prospects and sponsor pipeline had gone to zero. My board which consists of a few members of the executive team at Thirty Capital told me I would have until the end of May to develop a new plan to show why they should continue on the journey with me, or it was over.

In April of 2022, I pivoted my business plan, took a hobby I was doing at the time which was coaching local kids, and focused on building more basketball teams year-round. As a result, we went from 24 boys at the end of Q2 to 200+ boys and girls entering Q4. Plus, we have done two profitable enrichment camps during Q3, and a profitable high school tournament, with another scheduled for December 20-22, which will net a profit.

I have repeat customers, and we have momentum in an area I would have never thought existed until faced with the pressure of putting my initial vision and business plan on hold. My pivot gave me more runway, which gave me time to adjust, and the college basketball event I failed to do in 2022, we are working on launching in 2023. Sport Mode One was initially a sports event group prioritizing events only, and now we have become a company specializing in grassroots basketball, camps, and events.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.sportmodeone.com
• Instagram: @sportmodeone, @theskillfactoryclt
• Linkedin: Sport Mode One
• Twitter: Sport Mode One

Image Credits
Jeremy Singleton – media