Tennis Store for Regular People
Have you broken your racket strings recently? Oddly enough, both Anna and I broke strings on the same day so we went to a favorite place on 35th street to get our rackets restrung. While there we sat down and chatted with Woody Schneider, who along with partner Joan Dziena are the owners and founders of NYC Racket Sports, to hear the origin story of the shop, which has been around for over 15 years.
Woody started out having two passions: tennis and music. He was a musician while working at a store inside Grand Central Station but after 13 years at the Commuter Sports Center, his boss told him that he was shutting down the store. Coincidentally, at the same time, his band broke up. At this crossroad, Woody decided to go out on his own. He began in the stockroom of a friend’s store in Grand Central but eventually rented a 100-square foot space of his own to set up a stringing shop which turned into a free-standing kiosk. That kiosk was transformed into one of his two stores. The other is located near Penn station.
With two stores located in some of the busiest areas in Manhattan, the business was very successful. They were even named retailer of the year in 2011. But unfortunately, the store was not immune to the ups and downs of the economy. Instead of closing the store, Woody gave up his apartment and didn’t take a salary to keep the store going.
Even though the walls of the store were almost bare, Woody never gave up and only worked harder. He put in 11 hours a day, 7 days a week and worked for 72 days without taking a break.
That is dedication and passion. Slowly, the store became profitable again, that is until the pandemic hit and the city shut down for a few months. But Woody is so integrated into the NYC tennis community that people sent him texts about getting a racket restrung which he happily did. This type of service kept the store in the minds of loyal customers and tennis enthusiasts so they survived the downtime.
When the world and city opened up again, Woody noticed that tennis had become more popular than ever. There was an increasing demand for rackets, strings and apparel so he expanded his inventory and hired more staff. NYC Racket Sports now has 5 staff members who will string your racket either while you wait or for you to pick up later that same day. They not only provide a service, but their expertise on which strings to use based on your level of tennis and style of play. We got to experience the “store for regular people” as our rackets were restrung by the time our conversation with Woody had concluded.
Fun facts about NYC Racket Sports
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They include 11 racquet and paddle sports. Can you name them? We were able to name 9, then needed Woody’s help for the last two.
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Did you know that you can store your luggage for the day at NYC Racket Sports? Fee is $6 per bag per day.
Anna and Carol
Founders of AD-IN
www.ad-in.me
[email protected]
