This week, Emily chats with Catherine Baxter, CEO and founder of Nettie, well known for their products tailored to pickleball lovers. Inspired by her in-laws' love for the sport, Catherine saw a gap in the market for high-quality, well-designed pickleball products and set out to create her own. She launched the company in 2021 and gained traction through local partnerships and media coverage, expanding beyond her hometown of Cincinnati to be distributed through retailers like Dick’s Sporting Goods, Saks Fifth Avenue and Free People. In this episode, Catherine shares her experience building a pickleball brand, the power of leveraging your local community and how key collaborations that align with your values can exponentially impact your growth.

TUNE IN FOR TOPICS LIKE:

0:35 Rise of pickleball and creation of Nettie

4:57 Catherine’s decision to build Nettie from Cincinnati

7:50 Initial launch and getting distribution

13:26 Tapping into local connections to secure PR coverage

20:05 Taking an omnichannel approach to marketing

21:23 Hamilton Musical partnership collaboration 


24:02 Evaluating the ROI of a partnership

26:02 Securing a partnership with Barbie to be the exclusive pickleball partner

34:30 What’s up next for Nettie

Listen to this week’s Local Marketing School conversation!

Other episodes you'll enjoy if you enjoyed Catherine’s episode:

• #1: The Power of Everyday People in Influencer Marketing | Charise Flynn & Emily Steele | Hummingbirds

• #5: Staying Authentic while Scaling a CPG Brand | Nola Morris, Thelma’s Treats

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This podcast is produced by Hummingbirds. Learn more about Hummingbirds at hummingbirds.com.