Building Pickleball Smarter: One Entrepreneur’s Lean Playbook

When Elliot Marcille relocated to Bozeman, Montana, in 2020, he was looking for a business to own — something with recurring revenue and strong economic fundamentals.

“I looked for businesses that made sense in a town like Bozeman,” said Marcille, explaining he wanted something with “non-cyclical demand and growth potential.”

What he found instead was a sport — and an unmet need.

Marcille had casually started playing pickleball in 2017 with his brother-in-law in Florida. In Bozeman, he noticed the local courts were overcrowded and, at times, contentious. One incident stuck with him — a dispute over court usage led to a security guard being brought in to help enforce park hours.

“I was like, ‘You know what, if somebody’s going to fight over something, I’m interested in learning more about it,’” said Marcille.

That curiosity quickly turned into action.

He didn’t start with a facility — he started with a QR code and a survey. Taping it to the public courts, Marcille invited local players to weigh in on the potential for an indoor club.

“I said, ‘Hey, I’m Elliot. I’m opening up this pickleball facility this fall.’ And, you know, I didn’t have the pickleball facility arranged yet, but I was trying to gauge interest,” he said.

More than 100 players responded. Over 60% preferred a recurring monthly membership, and many indicated a strong willingness to pay. With that data in hand, Marcille leased an old warehouse set to be demolished — viewing it as a low-risk test site.

“I thought, if we can fill up courts at this test facility … I can prove the business works and that we’ve got the demand to fill up more courts,” said Marcille.

Marcille self-funded the project, aiming to get the facility “about 80% of the way there” by opening day. He acknowledged real estate in Bozeman posed major challenges, including zoning, parking, ceiling height and layout.

Still, the space worked — and more importantly, players showed up, and Bozeman Pickleball Club was born.

To keep overhead low, Marcille designed Bozeman Pickleball Club to run autonomously. Members access the facility through a reservation system integrated with a door lock. There’s no front desk staff, and no one continuously onsite to answer questions or lead programming. To compensate, Marcille focused on responsiveness.

“I’ve tried to over index on customer service, just like any small business: answering the phone, being responsive to people,” said Marcille.

Programming and events are piloted carefully and treated like product launches. Marcille takes a software-style approach: try it, track results and adjust. Some offerings, like a new intermediate clinic, were instant successes. Others — such as the ball machine rentals — took time to catch on.

“If it works, we’ll do more of it,” said Marcille. “If it doesn’t work, we’ll cut it.”

While Marcille is frugal where it counts, he’s intentional when it comes to the courts themselves.

“I got the advice from somebody that $1 invested in the courts versus $1 invested in anything else, you’re going to get 10 times the return on your investment,” he said. “People are coming for the courts.”

Marcille has made numerous changes based on member feedback — installing custom black backdrops to improve ball visibility, adjusting lighting multiple times, adding pads,and offering on-the-house refreshments.

“My facility right now has turned into a really nice place, but on the outside it’s like this ugly industrial building in like a rundown kind of part of town, and you open the door and it’s just like good vibes, great music, great lighting, fun people, inclusive,” he said.

Marcille is currently raising funds for a second facility in Bozeman, which may include more courts and possibly a padel court — though he’s still weighing that addition carefully.

“This is a business,” said Marcille. “First and foremost, you’re basically renting out real estate … you’re doing mini leases for every court, for every person.”

And because those “mini leases” turn over hourly, operations are everything. For Marcille, pickleball is ultimately a customer service business.

“If you don’t want to do operations and you’re not happy talking to customers and fielding making mistakes … don’t do it,” said Marcille. “You’re dealing with just infinite customer service things.”

He’s also working to bring more young adults into Bozeman Pickleball Club through discounted student memberships and relationships with local college athletes. With Montana State University nearby, he sees long-term potential in the college crowd.

But no matter how much the business grows, the mission stays the same.

“Every single person I interact with or that I see at Bozeman Pickleball Club is happier, fitter and more connected with their peers when they leave versus when they come in,” said Marcille. “It’s frankly a privilege to be able to bring that to people.”