---
title: "Tim Bainton on Padel Club Economics | CourtSide | TopSpin Digital"
url: https://topspindigital.co/courtside/ep/tim-bainton
description: "Tim Bainton on club leases, staffing, testing padel at existing facilities, and surveying your audience before opening a racquet sports club."
lang: en-US
---

All episodes (https://topspindigital.co/courtside)EP 15

# Tim Bainton, Volleybird / Blue Chip Sports Management

COO, Volleybird; founder, Blue Chip Sports Management

November 10, 2026

Tim Bainton, COO of Volleybird and founder of Blue Chip Sports Management, started as a tennis coach working split shifts and built Blue Chip Sports Management across multiple facilities. I asked him what changes when you take on a second club, why an expensive lease can sink a padel business, and how to test demand before committing to new courts. Tim shares his experience at Epic Padel, his investment in the Palm Beach Royals, and the advice he gives every prospective operator: survey your audience before spending a dollar.

## Key Takeaways

- Why a successful club model can fail one ZIP code away.
- The staffing and operating standards you need before taking on another facility.
- Why Tim favors owning the real estate over taking on an expensive lease.
- Testing padel at an existing club before committing to a standalone facility.
- The business reasoning behind his Palm Beach Royals investment.
- Surveying members and letting them try the sport before building new courts.

## More episodes

Episode 0

May 13, 2026

### Evan Dechtman, TopSpin Digital

Founder

A short introduction to CourtSide: why we are building a long-form interview series for the people running racquet sports, what each episode looks like, and how to be considered as a guest.
https://topspindigital.co/courtside/ep/introducing-courtside

Episode 1

May 15, 2026

### Andy Zodin, Columbine Country Club

Director of Racquet Sports

Andy Zodin on 15 years running racquet sports at Columbine Country Club, what a director actually does day-to-day, the ownership conversations that never go away, staffing teaching pros in 2026, and how private clubs are handling pickleball.
https://topspindigital.co/courtside/ep/andy-zodin

Episode 2

May 22, 2026

### Julius Gavin, Tennis University

Independent Tennis Coach, Founder

Julius Gavin, known online as tennis.god, has nearly 90,000 Instagram followers, charges $1,000 for six hours of coaching, and claims he can build a complete tennis game in 40 hours. We get into the math behind the program, the fraud accusations, the real economics of driving thousands of miles with a trunk full of balls, and how short-form content converts a viewer into a paid client.
https://topspindigital.co/courtside/ep/julius-gavin

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