As much as we like to reminisce about the ‘good-ole days,’ the reality is that we are now living in a technological and data-driven world. We have access to a wealth of information on any topic imaginable at just the tap of a finger. Furqan Iqbal noticed that there was an exception to this reality – the tennis world – which is why he founded Tennis Locker.
Tennis Locker is the world’s only on-court mobile app for managing tennis programs and player development. All within a single platform, tennis directors, coaches, players, and parents have access to all the data they need with one tap of a button. With new features being constantly added, Tennis Locker strives to provide modernized operations, data-driven player development, and insightful analytics to their clients.
As the parent of a nationally-ranked tennis player, Iqbal had an extremely difficult time finding a comprehensive platform for understanding his son’s growth and development as a player. This challenge led him to leave his former job and create Tennis Locker from scratch. Now nearly one year from the launch of the app, Tennis Locker has upwards of 10,000 users.
The launch of Tennis Locker occurred in August of 2017, coinciding with the first annual WTCA Conference in New York City. According to Iqbal, launching Tennis Locker at the WTCA Conference made perfect sense. “At the end of the second day of the conference, we presented to about 100 attendees. We met with a number of different federations, including the Italian Federation and the Australian Federation. It was a great conference, there were people from all different areas of tennis, and it made sense to have our launch right in the middle of the conference to share our mission.”
Connecting with members of the international tennis community was also extremely important to Tennis Locker, as well as face-to-face interactions. “Networking at the conference was a huge benefit. We met coaches from all around the world,” said Iqbal. “We had a number of signups at the conference. It really got the word out about Tennis Locker. We also put a lot of time in the lobby talking with people at the conference. Post-conference, a lot of those connections that we made actually ended up becoming clients of ours.”
With the second annual WTCA Conference NYC quickly approaching, Iqbal will be back not only to announce new and exciting updates to the Tennis Locker platform, but also to support the mission and vision of the WTCA. “We’re seeing in our app that there are gaps in involvement for females in coaching. We’re a huge supporter of the mission and vision. We’re trying to now figure out how we can share some of the details of our data and mend the dropout rate for females in the sport.”
So, what else can coaches, players, facility owners, and parents expect from Tennis Locker? “The app combines a 360o dashboard for the parent, the player, and the coach to be able to be on the same page about a player and to contribute to their development,” said Iqbal. “Before, there was no concrete way to measure a player’s progress. Tennis Locker also aids in retention and engages parents. All parties have access to tournament analytics, head-to-head analytics, video analysis, and any other files that need to be shared.”
In just one short year, Tennis Locker has formed partnerships with a number of nationally-renowned brands and programs – John McEnroe Tennis Academy, Midtown Athletic Club, Lifetime Fitness – to name just a few. These partnerships would not be possible without Iqbal’s focus on networking and building relationships with members of the tennis community.
In just two over two weeks’ time, Iqbal will be back in NYC to build more relationships with members of the tennis community at the WTCA Conference in NYC. Who knows, there may even be some exclusive and exciting announcements for attendees. Join us on August 30-31 at the East Side Marriott Hotel for an inside look at the organization revolutionizing tennis.
To stay up to date on the latest news, updates, and information from Tennis Locker, visit their webpage, Facebook,LinkedIn, and YouTube.