How Athletiq Is Giving Indian Pickleball Players a Homegrown Option Beyond Imported Equipment
Pickleball is growing fast in India, but most quality equipment has come from imported brands. Explore how Athletiq is working to change that by building performance pickleball products designed specifically for Indian players.
Pickleball is no longer a niche sport. Once popular mostly in the United States, it has been growing steadily across Asia, with India emerging as one of its most active markets. The number of courts in the country has jumped from around 200 in 2024 to over 2,000 in 2026, and the player base is expected to cross 1 million in the coming years.
Globally, the sport is estimated to be a $1 billion business opportunity by 2030. For most of this growth, Indian players have relied on imported equipment, with few homegrown options offering comparable quality at accessible price points.
Gurugram-based Athletiq, founded in 2025, entered the market to address that gap. The brand makes performance pickleball paddles and accessories designed specifically for Indian players, and currently serves as the Official Performance Partner of the Indian Pickleball Association, the national federation recognised by India's Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
Athletiq - Company Highlights
| Company Name | Athletiq |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Gurugram, Haryana, India |
| Sector | Sports, Performance Equipment, Athletic Lifestyle |
| Founder | Harsh Sharma |
| Founded | 2025 |
| Website | goathletiq.in |
Athletiq - About
Athletiq is an Indian performance-driven sports brand built around pickleball and the emerging recreational sports culture in India. The brand operates at the intersection of performance engineering, community building, and premium athletic lifestyle. As the Official Performance Partner of the Indian Pickleball Association, Athletiq is one of the most credibly positioned homegrown brands in the pickleball category.
The brand's product lineup spans pickleball paddles across skill levels, accessories, gym and fitness products, and an upcoming padel range. All products are developed with a focus on Indian playing conditions, player requirements, and competitive pricing, distinguishing Athletiq from imported international alternatives.
Athletiq - Industry
Athletiq operates in India's rapidly expanding recreational and community sports market. Pickleball, in particular, is witnessing exceptional growth driven by its accessibility, social character, and low barrier to entry.
Industry estimates project pickleball to represent a business opportunity of $1 billion globally by 2030. In India specifically, the number of courts has grown from approximately 200 in 2024 to over 2,000 in 2026, while the player base is expected to scale from 1,00,000 to 1 million in the coming years.
Over the next 5 to 10 years, Athletiq aims to evolve from a product company into a full-fledged sports ecosystem brand spanning equipment, apparel, coaching, tournaments, athlete sponsorships, and performance technology.
Sanvi Barjatya
Athletiq - Founder and Team
Athletiq was founded by Harsh Sharma, an entrepreneur with a background in sports, fitness, branding, and ecosystem building. His founding vision extended beyond product sales, focusing on building a future-ready Indian sports company capable of meaningfully contributing to the growth of modern sports culture in India.
Harsh currently leads brand strategy, ecosystem partnerships, business growth, athlete collaborations, and long-term vision and expansion.
The broader team spans product development, operations, marketing, community engagement, partnerships, e-commerce, and content strategy. The work culture at Athletiq is described as fast-moving, collaborative, and performance-oriented, with hiring focused on individuals who genuinely understand sports culture.
Athletiq - Startup Story
The inspiration behind Athletiq came from observing the rapid evolution of India's fitness and sports culture. While participation in recreational and community-driven sports was growing, there were very few Indian brands creating genuinely performance-focused products with a strong athlete-first identity.
The turning point came with the identification of pickleball's explosive global rise. The Indian market lacked premium homegrown brands focused specifically on the needs of pickleball players. Initial validation came directly from local pickleball communities, coaches, and players, who consistently highlighted challenges such as limited availability of quality equipment and expensive imported products misaligned with Indian player requirements.
Athletiq began by studying player behaviour, testing product prototypes, analysing global equipment trends, and building relationships with manufacturing partners capable of delivering high-performance output. Early conversations with sports professionals and fitness enthusiasts confirmed a strong belief in the long-term potential of the category.
Athletiq - Name
The name "Athletiq" is a deliberate reimagining of the word "athletic," redesigned to create a more modern, premium, and globally scalable brand identity. The distinct spelling gives the brand immediate recognition while communicating movement, performance, and sport.
"Go Athletiq" represents action, ambition, and progression, reflecting a mindset of continuously pushing performance boundaries. The brand's internal guiding philosophy is "Built for Performance. Designed for Athletes."
Athletiq - Vision and Mission
Athletiq was founded with the vision of creating a homegrown Indian sports brand capable of competing globally in terms of innovation, product quality, and athlete experience.
In the short term, the mission is to accelerate pickleball adoption across India by making high-quality equipment, training ecosystems, and performance products more accessible to Indian players. The long-term vision is to build a globally recognised Indian sports brand representing innovation, athlete-first product development, and the future of modern sports culture.
Athletiq - Products and Services
Athletiq currently offers a range of high-performance pickleball equipment, gear, and accessories. The product portfolio includes paddles across beginner, intermediate, and advanced skill levels, built using materials such as 3K raw carbon fibre, T700 carbon fibre, Kevlar, and thermoformed Japanese Toray T700. The catalogue also includes pickleball accessories, gym and fitness products, and a padel range currently in development.
What differentiates Athletiq is its combination of performance engineering, premium aesthetics, Indian market understanding, competitive pricing, and community-led product development. Products are built specifically keeping Indian playing conditions and player requirements in mind, with continuous improvement driven through real-world testing and direct feedback loops with players and coaches.
Athletiq also maintains an Innovation Lab focused on material science, R&D, and precision engineering for better performance output.
Athletiq - Business and Revenue Model
Athletiq operates primarily through a direct-to-consumer model with a strong emphasis on offline distribution as well. The brand's philosophy is that a sports brand can only be built through a ground-up approach, one that is experienced by coaches, players, and academies.
Revenue channels include official website sales, marketplace sales, and collaborations with tournaments, players, and coaches. The brand works deeply within the ecosystem and follows a collaborative business model across all relevant stakeholders.
Athletiq - Launching Company Strategies
Athletiq's first customers came primarily through grassroots pickleball communities and word-of-mouth referrals. The founder and team visited players and coaches on the ground to build initial product adoption.
Rather than relying on paid advertising, the early strategy centred on community engagement, product sampling, tournament visibility, Instagram-led storytelling, and athlete and coach relationships. The approach was ecosystem-first rather than transaction-first, which helped Athletiq build organic trust within the pickleball community and establish itself as an authentic participant in the ecosystem rather than just another sports seller.
Athletiq - Scaling the Brand
Scaling Athletiq has involved building ecosystem credibility ahead of aggressive commercial expansion. One of the biggest milestones in this journey was becoming the Official Performance Partner of the Indian Pickleball Association, the national federation of Indian pickleball.
This partnership significantly strengthened Athletiq's positioning within the Indian pickleball ecosystem and reinforced its commitment to the sport's development in India. The brand continues to scale through strategic partnerships and community-led visibility rather than heavy short-term marketing spends.
Muskaan Kapoor
Athletiq - Challenges Faced
One of Athletiq's most significant challenges was building a serious performance sports brand in a category that was still relatively new in India. In the early stages, the brand had to simultaneously educate consumers about pickleball, build trust as a new Indian brand, develop quality performance products, and establish ecosystem credibility.
Competing against well-established international sports brands posed another layer of challenge. Athletiq addressed this by focusing relentlessly on product credibility, community trust, and athlete engagement. A key learning from this phase was that emerging sports categories are built through community trust far more than through traditional advertising.
On the operations side, accurately forecasting demand in a rapidly evolving market was a persistent challenge. This was addressed through continuous consumer feedback, agile inventory management, and close coordination with ecosystem partners.
Athletiq - Marketing Strategy
Athletiq's most effective strategy has been ecosystem-led marketing. Rather than treating marketing as pure advertising, the brand positioned itself as an active contributor to the growth of Indian pickleball. This was achieved through tournament collaborations, athlete partnerships, coach engagement programmes, and community events.
The partnership with the Indian Pickleball Association stands as the single biggest visibility and credibility milestone for the brand, significantly accelerating trust and recognition within the pickleball ecosystem across India.
Athletiq - Funding
Athletiq is currently bootstrapped by its founder. The brand has stated its intent to continue on that path, with any future fundraise to be driven purely by business requirements and scale trajectory rather than external pressure.
Athletiq - Competitors
Athletiq's primary competition comes from established international pickleball brands. Some of the major competitors include:
- Joola
- Selkirk
- Franklin
- Head
Athletiq - Future Plans
Over the next 1 to 2 years, Athletiq plans to expand its performance pickleball product portfolio, launch advanced paddle technologies, strengthen athlete sponsorship programmes, and build deeper academy and coach partnerships.
The brand is also set to launch a padel equipment range. The larger long-term goal is to help shape the future of Indian pickleball while building a globally respected Indian sports performance brand.
FAQs
What does Athletiq do?
Athletiq is a performance-driven Indian pickleball and sports brand offering paddles, accessories, and fitness products designed for competitive and recreational players.
Who is the founder of Athletiq?
Athletiq was founded by Harsh Sharma, an entrepreneur with a background in sports, fitness, branding, and ecosystem building.
Is Athletiq associated with any national sporting body?
Yes. Athletiq is the Official Performance Partner of the Indian Pickleball Association, the national pickleball federation recognised by India's Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
