According to research by the Sports and Fitness Industry Association (SFIA), there has been a marked decline in the two primary segments of consumer sports participation, individual and team sports, over the past four years to -13.5 and -6.5 percent, respectively. In 2013, spending on team sports at schools reached 22 percent, with a 10.3 percent net from the previous year; lessons and instruction, meanwhile, garnered 22.5 percent, with 5 percent net from year before. The planned expenditures for 2014 in these categories would denote incremental increases.
Both of these areas invariably work in concert with each other. The search for talent isn’t so much a problem nowadays–Atlanta startup CourtCred aims to solve that issue for basketball–but, rather, cultivating this talent to reach their potential, well before it’s time for the collegiate level–let alone the pro ranks.
Private sports coaching has emerged in the last decade as an avenue for athletes to maximize their ability.
In spite of the decline in general sports play, the SFIA’s metrics validate the sizeable market share of lessons and instruction, which is where private coaching stems from.
The first entrants in this space have ranged from dedicated to adult runners by former semi-professionals, like CoachLeach.com, to those for elite youngsters run by coaches that do traditional and personal work, like Redwine Soccer. The year-round need for specialization and training- regardless of the sport–has propelled private coaching forward. Coaches have been able to net anywhere between $30 to $100 per hour, with regional demographics, kind of sport, and their respective experience determining fiscal opportunities. They can emphasize everything from fundamentals of a given sport, skill sets, or athletic pursuits. The one-on-one development drives the personalization.
Thus, private sports coaching comprises a part of the domestic $6.3 billion industry, per IBISWorld’s projection taken two years ago.
Founded in 2011 by a former basketball player who played professionally overseas, Jordan Fliegel, CoachUp, a Boston-based startup, the days when there was virtually no one involved in private sports in the early 2000s are long gone. The price to compete–literally and figuratively–has placed a premium on athletes to search for advanced training.
In 2013, they closed in on a million in revenue. By then, CoachUp has raised $2.7 million in investors’ capital, where Breakaway Ventures, General Catalyst Partners, and even from Boston Bruins’ President, Cam Neely, took part in it. They have since established themselves to be the market leader for private sports coaching, with over 1 million website visits a month, north of 100,000 athletes, and 13,000-plus coaches in their membership. While the aforementioned revenues have derived from a commission-based model that requires parents to pay for booking sessions on their site, it’s been through listening and conversations with the various constituents coupled with improving the web and mobile apps user experiences that’s fostered growth.
CoachUp, though, also received a local boost when they enlisted Boston products the likes of New England Patriots Julian Edelman and homegrown Philadelphia 76ers Nerlens Noels as advisors and brand ambassadors this past fall. Both of these pro athletes have witnessed, firsthand, the direct relationship private coaching has had leading up to their respective careers. This kind of partnership enables a stronger brand identity, especially as they continue expand outside the Northeast region.
“They both want to give back to kids across the country, and share the secret of what a great private coach can do for an athlete of any age or skill level,” Fliegel tells SportTechie.
Now, however, the time to scale further would necessitate a change in leadership to do so.
Fliegel mentions that as the Founder, his passion never wavers for making sure private sports coaching becomes as accessible and easy for every athlete across the country, with respects to its benefits and impact on and off the field of play. He’s cognizant that he needs to surround himself with the best team possible in order to grow CoachUp, which has included their Chief Technology Officer, Gene Shkolnik, who previously served as the Senior Vice President of Product and Engineering for KAYAK, to build out their properties. It’s the addition of John Kelley, former Chief Marketing Officer of Princeton Review, as their new Chief Executive Officer, though, that’s of significant importance as they push forward.
“With John Kelley, in particular, his experience marketing to parents and kids at the Princeton Review, and his previous experience in placing people in new jobs at Monster.com, along with his experience as an athlete and a sports dad, made his background a unique fit for our business,” says Fliegel.
That kind of resume not only speaks for itself, but should strategically bolster CoachUp’s efforts, especially considering the similarities between being an online marketplace–OpenSponsorship is another–that connects people in real life by digital means and constitutes a learning component. Kelley’s last stop, the Princeton Review, in fact, had been acquired by IAC, an online conglomerate that operates the likes of OkCupid and Vimeo under its umbrella, just last summer, according to The New York Times, which would suggest that different approaches there could happen–not before Kelley helped raise its visibility to reach such a juncture.
As a startup, Fliegel acknowledges that there’s no golden rule around making managerial changes, be it coming from someone with extensive experience in working for smaller companies versus a larger corporation. Every day should be capitalized by placing one foot forward in front of the other. When certain opportunities arise to scale, there has to be swift and prudent action at that point in time. Everything should be about the best interests of growing the business.
“You need to optimize for your business’ ultimate success, not for your ego,” exclaims Fliegel, with regards differing to someone else that’s better suited to run the company and its vitality.
By and large, there’s still a lack of awareness among parents of grade school to high school level student-athletes on what private coaching can provide them.
The average cost of a CoachUp session runs $50 per hour. They will continue to partner with other organizations that have cemented themselves within their respective communities of athletes on a local manner. The gamut of touch points for scalability includes: clubs, camps, town programs, youth sports organizations, high school athletic programs, sports governing bodies, and pro leagues. All of these parties could, in one form or another, mutually cater to private coaching, where CoachUp adds an element to hone athletic and personal improvement as one holistic mission.
Adding John Kelley to the CoachUp team reinforces what they believe in, but should also practically pay dividends to make them a nationally identifiable brand that coaches, parents, and athletes trust for in the ever-evolving private sports coaching space.