The Bounce team sat down with the co-founder of Good Get Apparel, Dan Lawson, and talked pickleball and athleisure wear!He’s a pickleball player himself, and after getting more and more into the sport, he was looking for clothing that was specifically made for pickleball players. However, Dan struggled to find anything that fit the style and quality he was looking for, so he started doodling some designs back in February 2022 for the products he was looking for. After a year of prototyping, Dan, alongside his business partners David and Jonathan, officially launched Good Get Apparel in July 2023. They are based in Augusta, GA and started by getting more involved with their local pickleball communities and events across the wider region.Good Get Apparel has partnered with national leader in the pickleball industry The Dink and are looking to get involved in more pickleball events locally and further afield.
Ryan, CEO of Bounce: How did you get started playing pickleball?
Dan: I started playing pickleball near the end of the pandemic lockdown. I was playing a lot of golf, because that was the only sport where I could get out and do something. And a buddy of mine invited me to play pickleball one night with him and his friends.I played a lot of racquetball. My daughter plays tennis, so I’ve played that as well. I was never good at it, but I really loved racquetball and that translated fairly well to pickleball. And I just fell in love with it.Like so many of us, once introduced to pickleball, he never looked back!
Q: How did you get into the apparel industry?
A: I have a background in healthcare technology, so, a lot of what I do and enjoy is very analytical. I was playing pickleball a lot, and I was looking for something to wear. A lot of the stuff that we were seeing out there on the courts felt very clip art-y. It didn’t appeal to me or align with what I like to wear.What I wanted was not out there, so I started doodling designs. I was thinking of just doing elegant graphic tees, something fun and specific for pickleball, but that evolved over time. Some paddle makers have been making clothing, but it was mostly branded t-shirts. They weren’t doing a lot of performance gear, so we started going down that arena. We really wanted to focus on making high-quality performance gear, finding and creating the right materials for shorts, skirts and leggings. It felt like there was a gap in the industry that was pickleball specific. A lot of the bigger brands were just taking their tennis stuff and putting it under the pickleball header, which is fine. I think it serves a purpose, but it doesn’t address the community aspect of this sport. It doesn’t create products specifically made for the passionate community of pickleball players.
Q: Why did you want to get involved in Bounce?
A: The trajectory that Bounce has going into this next year really aligns with what we’re wanting to do as well. Quality is the focus. It’s not about running super huge tournaments. It’s about quality tournaments that are run well. Bounce tournaments are really about taking it to the next level for amateur players.
Sponsoring the Maryland Farms Winter Classic
We feel quality is what really sets Good Get Apparel apart, while blending functionality and style, but you can see for yourself! And we love how dedicated they are to the pickleball community. With that, we are excited to announce that Good Get Apparel has sponsored our next tournament, the Maryland Farms Winter Classic! If you’re coming to the tournament in Nashville, TN on January 27-28, you’ll be able to meet Dan from Good Get Apparel, talk pickleball and learn more about the clothing they have on offer and their ambassador program. And you may even be able to win some apparel too!Visit our tournament page for more information on the event and how to sign up.
