Pickleheart Capital Campaign The people who play at public parks deserve real tech. So we’re building it and giving it to them.
Public parks are the grassroots of pickleball, where the game took off, and where every new player still shows up first. Clubs have apps, booking, ladders, and pro shops; the parks that grew this sport run on group chats and one volunteer’s goodwill. Pickleheart is how the game gives back to its root source: useful tech, built for public-park communities, free to them. Help us fund it.
What we've built
Bharat and Peter spent months researching how park communities actually run... then built alongside the people who run them, the community leaders at Riverside Park and the Harlem Pickleball Association. Every piece below exists because someone at a park needed it. What it all adds up to is simple: a park where you always know when to show up, the people who hold it together have real support behind them, and walking up to the courts feels like arriving somewhere you belong. The details:
The mobile app
LIVELinda’s wrapping up work and itching to play. Central Park or Riverside? Who’s there right now? How crowded is it? What’s the wind doing? SHOULD I GO, AND WHICH PARK!?
The Pickleheart app provides the answer. It’s the difference between “maybe nobody will be there” and “my people are there.” Live now for Apple users; Android is coming soon.
The Insiders Shop
LiveRaza is up before the park is. He posts on a few different text threads the night before: Is anyone coming? No one replies. He hauls the nets out anyway. Then 20 people show up, and the morning fills with great games, games that only happened because Raza bet his morning, and his own money, that they would. The nets, the balls, the ball machine when he can swing it: all his.
The Insiders Shop is our thank-you for being Raza: up to 30% off the gear it takes to keep a park running, top-brand paddles, balls, and equipment. Apply, get personally reviewed within a business day, and shop once approved. Our thank you for being you.
Riverside Park's Community Shop
LIVERosa runs the fundraiser the way every community leader has to: she orders 20 hats out of pocket, guesses the sizes, collects money over Venmo and cash, then spends two weeks meeting people at the courts to hand them over, and eats whatever doesn’t sell. All that hustle for a few hundred dollars.
So we replaced it. Riverside Shop now has its own merch line: custom apparel with the park’s own logo, a wide range of products, printed on demand. A player orders, it gets made and shipped, and revenue flows back to the community- no inventory, no cash collecting, no deliveries, no risk. Players get swag that reps their favorite place in the world; Rosa gets a fundraiser that runs itself. Every live park community gets one.
The Roadmap
We launched the MVP. So much more is in the works. Coming SOON!
Chat — ships in September
Our chat tool puts YOU at the center of your experience. If you’re a community leader we’re giving you a better mousetrap. As a player, everything lives in one place.
Game Records and Park Ladderboards
Easily keep track of your games and then participate in park competitions that follow all the normal guidelines of the park.
Expanding across NYC and beyond
4 is the start, not the ceiling. We want to thrive in each park before adding new ones.
The ask
Help us bring Pickleheart to public parks across the country
We're building the mobile app and the shops that support the people who keep a park running.
$35,000 of $100,000 raised. $65,000 to go.
We believe in accountability
We want to run this non-profit like a startup. So we are not asking for a donation. We're asking you to make a small loan to a non-profit membership association. We offer modest repayment terms.
The exact schedule is set in your promissory note, since it varies by loan size.
Bharat and Peter believe in this mission so much, they are already deeply invested in teh cause. They are both full-time and all-in on this mission.
Why patient capital, not a straight donation
Pickleheart’s vision is to run on earned revenue, not fundraising. A fixed-return loan fits that discipline better than a donation would, and as a non-profit, we can’t offer equity in exchange for capital. Choosing a loan over a donation is a statement of confidence: mission and responsibility, together.
Help us bring Pickleheart to public parks across the country
We're building the mobile app and the shops that support the people who keep a park running.
$35,000 of $100,000 raised. $65,000 to go.
Explore our parks and communities
Browse the parks and communities already on Pickleheart. We are starting small in Manhattan and will expand once we have worked out the kinks and proven the model works.
Perks
Each participation level includes Pickleheart swag and mission-aligned thank-you experiences, such as early membership access, exclusive apparel, paddles, and invitations to future community events.
These are expressions of appreciation and belonging, not financial incentives.
Partners
Pickleheart works with Franklin and ADV Pro to bring real gear to the Insiders Shop and community shops.
Revenue model
Pickleheart scales like no single venue ever could. While making everyone feel like they belong.
| Year | Parks | Users | Membership | Store | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2027 | 105 | 13k | $25k | #381k | $406k |
| 2028 | 250 | 40K | $200K | $900K | $1.1M |
| 2029 | 900 | 125K | $500K | $3.0M | $3.5M |
Financial terms
- Total raise
- $100,000
- Return
- 6.5% annual fixed return
- Grace period
- 18 months
- Repayment
- Installments over 5 years, beginning after the 18-month grace period. Exact schedule set in your promissory note.
- Minimum
- $500
- Security
- Unsecured, no collateral
- Governance
- No ownership or control conveyed
All participants receive the same economic terms, regardless of loan amount. This is about shared mission, not preferential treatment.
Help us bring Pickleheart to public parks across the country
We're building the mobile app and the shops that support the people who keep a park running.
$35,000 of $100,000 raised. $65,000 to go.
Understanding the risk
Real risk capital
The loan is unsecured. Repayment depends on operating success.
Key risk factors
Timing of adoption, revenue growth, and standard execution risk for an early-stage nonprofit initiative.
FAQs
Yes. It’s a loan with a fixed 6.5% return and a real repayment schedule, an 18-month grace period followed by installments over 5 years. The one thing it isn’t is equity: no ownership, no control, no share of upside beyond the fixed return.
Repayment begins 18 months after your loan closes and continues in installments over 5 years. The exact schedule is set in your promissory note, since it varies by loan size.
Every participation level includes Pickleheart swag and mission-aligned thank-you experiences — early membership access, exclusive apparel, paddles, and invitations to community events. See Perks above.
A way to fund our early stage non-profit directly, with real financial terms instead of a donation ask. $500 to $10,000, 6.5% fixed return, and your money goes toward the app, the shops, and the parks themselves.
No. This is not a donation. This is an investment.
Ready to play?
Pickleheart is live on the App Store. See who's at your park, how busy the courts are, and whether your people are already there — before you leave the house.
Download the app
