How retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods could hurt growing sport of pickleball

Akshay Kulkarni · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 26, 2025 8:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 infinitesimal ago

Pickleballers successful B.C. are serving up vexation arsenic their instrumentality has been swept up successful the increasing cross-border commercialized warfare betwixt the U.S. and Canada.

The athletics of pickleball has been increasing successful Canada for years, with Pickleball Canada reporting a 25 per cent summation successful registered members from 2023 to 2024.

The crippled combines elements of tennis, badminton, and array tennis. The main portion of instrumentality is the paddle  — chiefly from U.S. brands — that players usage to deed the shot crossed the net.

But paddles made successful the U.S. are now subject to a 25 per cent tariff that Canada imposed connected March 13 successful effect to U.S. tariffs connected galore Canadian imports.

A pickleball instrumentality seller successful B.C. says it's looking to import straight from China to antagonistic the tariffs, and a pickleball subordinate suggests that Canadian manufacturers could capitalize on the propulsion to bargain local.

"It's astir apt going to marque immense waves successful the pickleball industry," said Cara Arding, who owns the online retailer Pickleball Depot.

Arding's concern is based retired of Vernon and besides has a retail determination successful Kelowna. She says it's 1 of the biggest Canadian online retailers of pickleball equipment.

The instrumentality seller said she had made a large bulk bid earlier the imposition of retaliatory tariffs and would look to support her prices arsenic overmuch arsenic imaginable — but already, her customs receipts from U.S. imports are higher than usual.

"Ultimately, you know, we'll lone beryllium capable to clasp those ... aged prices truthful long until we commencement having to marque immoderate adjustments," she said. The extremity user is, unfortunately, going to spot immoderate terms increases.

Arding said she's present looking to pivot and diagnostic much Canadian paddle brands, immoderate of which are imported straight from China.

She besides said that the retailer was moving with Chinese factories straight to make their ain house-branded equipment.

"It's ace important for Canadians close present to beryllium capable to bargain — adjacent if it's not Canadian-made oregon manufactured — [a product] that is coming from a Canadian company that designed it wrong Canada, that has that Canadian content," she said.

Landon Kitagawa, the president of the Delta Pickleball Association, said that pickleball paddles tin outgo anyplace from $80 connected the little extremity to much than $400.

He said the mean pickleballer could look to online Chinese retailers similar AliExpress oregon Temu if they privation to wholly bypass U.S. manufacturers.

"It's rather a caller happening wherever I'm seeing much and much of those paddles commencement to find their mode into the courts, and performance-wise, radical look OK with them," helium said.

However, Kitagawa cautioned that immoderate paddles person to beryllium certified by Pickleball Canada earlier they're allowed successful tourney play.

He said that Canadian manufacturers could find an borderline supplying pickleball players with little costly products if the tariff concern escalates.

"If each things being equal, successful presumption of ... paddles manufactured successful China, they could find themselves astatine an advantage," helium said.

WATCH | Pickleball instrumentality to beryllium deed by counter-tariffs: