63-year-old sporting goods retailer files Chapter 11 bankruptcy

Bob’s Stores, Next Adventure, and Moosejaw each unopen down successful 2025, portion Eastern Mountain Sports closed galore of its locations. Eddie Bauer is presently successful the process of closing its stores successful the United States, and Orvis has closed much than 35 locations.

Pickleball, however, has been a monolithic maturation story.

"An estimated 48.3 cardinal Americans person played pickleball, a transverse betwixt ping-pong and tennis, astatine slightest erstwhile successful the past 12 months, representing an summation of 35% successful the past six months alone," according to information from USChamber.com.

That has created a batch of sales, but the maturation of the athletics has not been capable to prolong Gamma Sports, a retailer that specializes successful wholesale and retail income of paddle sports instrumentality and apparel.

The institution has filed for Chapter 11 extortion from creditors successful the Western District of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

Gamma Sports has a past dating backmost to 2 years earlier pickleball's instauration successful 1965.

"The company, based connected Herrs Island, sells pickleball, tennis, and paddleball instrumentality and related apparel online and done retailers. It was founded successful 1963 by a atomic engineer, Harry Ferrari, an avid tennis subordinate who developed a patented irradiation process to amended synthetic strings for tennis rackets. As its popularity has grown, the company's website has been much focused toward pickleball products," The Pittsburgh Business Times reported.

The institution has filed for bankruptcy, contempt the maturation of pickleball.

"For the 4th consecutive year, pickleball is the fastest-growing athletics successful the U.S.," confirmed the 2025 Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) Participation Report. "In 2024, 19.8 cardinal Americans participated successful pickleball, a 45.8% summation from the 2023 fig and an unthinkable 311% summation from 3 years ago."

• The institution has assets of $1 cardinal to $10 million and liabilities of $1 cardinal to $10 million.

• Among its 20 largest non-insider creditors, three are owed much than $100,000. Tri-Great International Ltd., a wholesale supplier of tennis equipment, is owed $152,701; Ming-Hsing Leather Co., a grip manufacturer, is owed $126,065; and Zhejiang Teloon Group Co. Ltd., a tennis shot maker, is owed $102,115.

• Gamma is represented successful the voluntary filling by Jason Ott and Jillian Nolan Snider of Frost Brown Todd, based downtown.

• Case number: 2:26-bk-20738, Pennsylvania Western Bankruptcy Court
  Source: PacerMonitor