Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Malcolm Terry And Devon Reese. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alright, Malcolm Terry and Devon Reese thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.
Coming up with the idea to start our business actually is very funny. To be honest it wasn’t OUR idea but was pretty much forced on us by our members. So let’s go back in time. Devon and I began playing pickleball together in July, 2025. At the time he was playing at local Parks and I was playing at the ymca, we would see each other playing on social media and decided to plan a day we play together. About a month later on a sunny August morning I invited Devon out to the ymca where we played for about 2 hours straight, it was horrible, we were still new to the game and getting beat badly in our matches. It got to the point people would move their paddles in another row so that they didn’t have to play with us. One person offered some tips and advice but the other 30 plus people playing simply told us to “come back when you get better, go take time to practice” With one lady going to the extent of tapping Devon on the shoulder and saying “Maybe you should watch YouTube videos they will help a lot” As we exited the facility feeling defeated, embarrassed and excluded I took one look at Devon and said “Bro you know we don’t have to take this we can start our own thing” So that’s what we did. Fast forward to September 4th, 2025 we planned our first ever “Pickleball Thursday” which again was only meant to be a hobby, to bring people together and help them learn a game we love so much in a peaceful, positive and encouraging environment. In the beginning we were just two guys having fun playing pick up pickleball with random strangers, but as the weeks went by the numbers increased rapidly, next thing you know we are 70 plus deep at a public park attempting to run games effectively. Devon came to me the next day and said “Bro we have something special, it’s becoming bigger than what we imagined” Right then and that moment I knew the solution to solve a problem he and I previously faced, and that so many others would as well if we didn’t act quickly. Our approach, our mindset, our concern & care was not like what anyone else was doing or could even attempt to do because we truly do this from the heart and it’s genuine, you can feel it when you come out and join us. The most exciting part was knowing that none of our members would ever be treated the way we were treated when we first began to learn this game. And that’s why at Pickleball Jacksonville Club we say “More Than A Game” because we are truly a community, a family, and a safe place for all. You literally come for pickleball and end up staying for the people 🫶🏾
Malcolm Terry and Devon Reese, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
So to begin with I am (Malcolm Terry) a 35 year old family man of 5 beautiful children,. 3 boys and 2 girls. Born & Raised in Miami, FL but relocated to Jacksonville, FL in 2015. I am an old school simple man that comes from good morals & standards. I like to consider myself a free spirit that enjoys family, fitness and food. Oh and of course pickleball lol. A few other simple things are bowling, shooting at the range, and traveling the world. I got into the industry on accident, I didn’t know what pickleball was until one day my oldest daughter and I were working at the YMCA and she asked me what game were they playing. I had no idea but she insisted we found out. Went to go ask, touched a paddle and it’s been love ever since.
I ( Devon Reese )
Im Devon a 30 year old entrepreneur with my own media company that specializes in fitness and branding. I got into pickleball all from being extremely competitive. I played for the first time and realized how bad I was and from there I decided I wanted to keep getting better and help people get better along the way. In the beginning during open play (where everyone can play) people weren’t as receptive of playing with me as a beginner so I wanted to help people have a safe space where they can learn.
At pickleball Jacksonville club we offer group training sessions, beginner courses, intermediate courses, skills & drills, and live in game pointers/techniques to further assist & develop our members. The biggest problem we solve for our clients is the fear factor, many people are afraid to learn something new, or they have been in situations that weren’t so beginner friendly, we fix that with our system of all levels are truly welcome. What sets us apart is that we don’t care if you are a pro, advanced, mediocre, beginner or never held a paddle we will show you the same level of respect and care across the board. We are absolutely most proud of seeing the growth, the confidence increase and joy this game brings to our members each week. The main thing we want potential clients to know is that over here you can truly be yourself, each of our members are different, special and unique in their own way. Just show and be your comfortable authentic self nobody will judge you. It’s all about good vibes, open courts and strong communities.
How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?
I think the authenticity of just who we are built our reputation. People can pretend to be anything or anyone online, we all have seen the facades in the world of social media and just online public figures/celebrities etc. With us it’s different, it’s real. Our vibe, our aura and just overall who we are is what you see online but what you also feel in real life. And people can respect & connect with that. It’s bigger than us, and people can vouch for that, we are truly building a community one game at a time.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
We started by getting clips of the enjoyment people had during our first meet ups. From there, we get all organically by having people share our content. Our members are a huge part of the support we have while growing our platforms, from making sure our post are seen to being apart of the videos themselves. The best advice I can give is to stay consistent and get as much content as you can.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pickleballjacksonville?igsh=MW16NDBiNDZ0Ynly
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1DxRuoo5Ap/?mibextid=wwXIfr
- Other: Tik tok
https://www.tiktok.com/@pickleballjax?_r=1&_t=ZP-94ZnMJTKXNu
Image Credits
Devshootsphotography