‍Valentin Debouche, Executive Director at Osaka World USA, shares insights on the company's strategic partnership with DUPR and their exciting entry into the rapidly growing pickleball market, emphasizing community building and appealing to collegiate athletes.

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Why did you decide to partner with DUPR?  

There are two things that immediately connected DUPR and Osaka: a sense of passion and community.  

Meeting Ben and Tito, we realized that DUPR was heavily invested in the growth and legitimacy of the sport in the US. They are present on all fronts and are always looking for more initiatives to be involved with. For a brand like Osaka entering a new space with pickleball, this is what you look for in partners.  

The DUPR team’s excitement for what is to come in pickleball has been infectious. We hope that the collaboration between DUPR and Osaka brings many successes, building up from Collegiate Pickleball to more joint ventures in the future.  

Why is Osaka looking to enter into the pickleball space? How do you view this sport and the opportunities within?  

Since 2022, it has been clear that Osaka will eventually enter the pickleball market. With 38M players in the US and a 40% increase in new members YoY, it has become the fastest growing sport in the US by a mile.  

For those who do not know Osaka, we can be considered as an up-and-coming brand for up-and-coming sports. We believe that passion for a sports brand comes from the right balance between fashion and function. People are not just looking for a high performing racquet or paddle anymore. They are always on the lookout for what is going to become the next cool thing. This is what we believe to be our edge at Osaka, where we have had a central focus on stylish, contemporary, and unique designs. 

With pickleball, we aim to have the same success as with other sports, by bringing a lifestyle approach paired with top-of-the-line equipment. We are ready to take on this great challenge.  

What do you hope to gain from this partnership?  

With this partnership, we hope to bring brand awareness and gain more exposure to the pickleball market, reach a large audience, and connect with players at events nationwide.  

The collegiate events part of this partnership is particularly important to us. A successful strategy for the Osaka team has been to focus on activations at events and connect with players by providing them with a distinct experience. First impressions matter. Being able to display your brand and what you stand for in front of thousands is an opportunity we could not pass on. There is no better way to get a positive momentum with the people you connect with.  

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Once we have established that first connection with the players, we accompany them throughout their development. We are there every step of the way and can give them access to high-performance equipment from entry-level to elite. And because of our lifestyle approach, we are constantly developing more collections to appeal to our young and older customers and give them that sense of community. 

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We look forward to attending our first DUPR events. To all college players, you are in for a treat! 

What do you hope this partnership offers to collegiate pickleball players?  

 ‘Why fit in when you were born to stand out?'

This has been at the core of everything we do at Osaka. On top of the unique design identity, one of our key strengths is to adopt a lifestyle approach to all our sports. We recognize that people are not just playing a sport for the health benefits of it. People have a need to be a part of a community. And that is exactly who we want to target in the marketing of our brand. Once you give an athlete a sense of belonging through your brand, they will stay loyal to you. 

We hope to bring this sense of community to all the collegiate players we will meet and interact with during our partnership with DUPR. We hope to bring them a new brand that will appeal to them and stand out from the masses.  

What was particularly appealing to you about the collegiate pickleball space? 

Collegiate athletes represent the strongest segment of our customer base. They sit at the forefront when it comes to adopting unique brands, new products and embracing new innovations. They are the disruptors we hope to collaborate with to bring our brand to new heights.  

As the sport grows in popularity and professionalizes itself, college players will become the next (inter)national athletes and ambassadors for our brand.  

To learn more about Okaka's partnership with DUPR, click here.

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