While pickleball’s popularity has certainly been on the rise recently, for Georgie & Lou co-founders Mimi Kuchman and Lori Manzer outdoor racquet sports have been in their families since as long as they can remember. It was in 2017 when the idea struck to create a line of bags specifically for pickleball. That year Lori went looking for a savvy, haute bag to give to her mother, an avid player, and she could not find one that functioned well and looked fashionable. Mimi felt this as well; she and her husband had just become interested in pickleball, and she knew practical-but-fashionable accessories in the space were non-existent. The two had previously become acquainted through mutual friends and quickly recognized they would be perfect business partners for a new venture. Georgie & Lou was born the following year.
Together the designers create bags that are both functional and fashionable, for both on and off the court. “We believe that style does not have to be left off the court! We are here because we have a love for pickleball and believe style and function come together beautifully in our bags moving effortlessly from the court to the clubhouse and beyond,” say the designers. Pickleball Insider agrees, calling the line “quite possibly the perfect pickleball bag” recently.
Georgie & Lou is proud to have a partnership with the US Pickleball Association and The World Pickleball Tour, which began after their bags were noticed online. The World Pickleball Tour begins in November and the designers look forward to continuing the partnership. “This was their first year running their program and we felt a partnership benefitted us all through exposure to pickleball players from all over the country.”
The designers are considering taking their talents for creating the perfect pickleball bag off of the pickleball court and expanding into other sports. “We just came out with our newest bag called The Traveler, and we are considering the possibility of a tennis bag in the same style. It’s an amazing new design that includes our exclusive carabiner system, pockets designed to hold pickleball and a new back pocket that when unzipped lets the bag slip onto a suitcase. Once you arrive at your destination, zip it back up and you again have a great pocket,” they said.
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