NYC Racquet Sports Celebrates 15 Years of Service

By Marnie Kunz

As NYC Racquet Sports rings in 15 years of serving the racquet community in New York City, co-owners Woody Schneider and Joan Dziena look back at their most important business decision - naming the company. Deciding to name the company “racquet sports” - as opposed to just “tennis” - paved the way for the business to grow and serve a larger community of racquet and paddle sports enthusiasts from around the world. 

Racquet Sports: What’s in a Name?

When NYC Racquet Sports began, co-owners Woody Schneider and Joan Dziena decided to name the store to welcome all racquet sports. In contrast with local tennis shops, the owners had a bigger vision - to include tennis, squash, racquetball, badminton, and all racquet and paddle sports. Having a transparent name was very important to them. 

“Every store we’ve owned has always been called exactly what it is,” Woody says. “Grand Central Racquet Stringers is located inside Grand Central Terminal, and the NTC Pro Shop was located at the National Tennis Center.”

The history of NYC Racquet Sports traces back to 1992, when Woody started Grand Central Racquet Stringers in Grand Central Terminal and dedicated the shop to racquet stringing. In 2008, Woody and Joan signed the lease for their flagship store, NYC Racquet Sports, located in Manhattan’s bustling Herald Square.

“For NYC Racquet Sports, we were very specific not to call it an NYC tennis shop. We wanted it to have a broader meaning,” Woody says. 

Deciding to call the racquet store NYC Racquet Sports gave the business room to grow and serve many communities, including paddle sports. Now the flagship store includes 11 racquet and paddle sports, ranging from tennis to pickleball, which is now the fastest-growing sport in the United States.

Serving the Racquet Sports Community

Today, 15 years after the business began, the racquet shop has grown to include 11 racquet and paddle sports and counting. The NYC flagship store now serves the following racquet and paddle communities:

• Tennis

• Junior tennis

• Ping pong/table tennis

• Badminton

• Squash

• Beach tennis

• Padel

• Paddleball

• Pickleball

• Pop tennis

• Platform tennis

With so much variety of equipment in the racquet store, as well as master stringing services, NYC Racquet Sports continues to grow, catering to all levels of players. From serving U.S. Open tennis fans to local squash clubs, NYC Racquet Sports continues to deliver the best racquet sports equipment and services. 

Squash is now one of the many sports that the store serves. 

“New York City and squash go hand in hand,” Woody says. “NYC is the ultimate squash city because all these college alumni clubs are located here and have squash courts built into their clubs.”

Local alumni clubs with squash courts include Princeton Club of New York, Harvard Club of New York, and Yale Club of New York. In addition to alumni clubs, NYC has a host of new squash clubs opening up, Woody says. NYC Racquet Sports does stringing for Open Squash and several other squash clubs.   

Racquet and Paddle Sports Apparel, Accessories, and Shoes

In addition to stringing services, NYC Racquet Sports serves the racquet and paddle sports communities with the best quality apparel, accessories, and shoes. With racquet and paddle sports experts on staff and the leading brands in clothing and accessories, the store helps you find the perfect fit. Whether you need moisture-wicking shirts that will keep you cool on the court or the perfect skort with deep pockets for tennis balls, you’ll find the top gear at affordable prices at NYC Racquet Sports. 

Racquet and paddle sports require shoes specifically designed for lateral movement on the court, and NYC Racquet Sports offers the best footwear options as well as fitting services to help you find the perfect shoes for your sport and needs. The racquet shop features shoes from renowned brands like Babolat, Head, Mizuno, Prince, and more. 

Racquet Stringing

Racquet stringing is a strong tradition at NYC Racquet Sports. Before the company began, Woody and Mark Teague worked at a sporting goods store located in Grand Central Terminal. The owner of that business decided to retire, which left Woody in a great position to start his own business with his own ideas. Woody began renting a small space in Grand Central Terminal dedicated to racquet stringing, and Mark continued working beside him stringing racquets.

And 30 years later, master stringer Mark Teague now manages the flagship store alongside Woody and Joan. Woody, a local staple in the NYC racquet and paddle sports community, still does some master stringing for customers. With a team of five stringers and two locations, the shops continue to serve thousands of NYC racquet and paddle sports players each year. 

Serving the U.S. Open Crowd

The annual U.S. Open in Flushing, Queens (Woody’s home borough) attracts more than half a million tennis fans from around the world each year, bringing in lots of foot traffic and racquets in need of stringing to NYC Racquet Sports and Grand Central Racquet Stringers. The stores serve as a community for tennis fans and racquet sports enthusiasts, hosting special signings and events, as well as attracting celebrity clientele. 

Tennis Stars at NYC Racquet Sports

Some of NYC Racquet Sports’ celebrity clients include Serena Williams, Andy Roddick, Ramy Ashur, and the Bryan brothers, all of whom have had racquets strung by our master stringers. 

The flagship store continues to host special events for tennis fans and the racquet and paddle sports communities. Star tennis player David Ferrer, a three-time Davis Cup champion with Spain, signed tennis balls for fans at NYC Racquet Sports, the flagship store. Paul-Henri Mathieu, who won four singles titles on the ATP Tour, also spoke with fans at NYC Racquet Sports. And let us not forget the visit from the legend himself, John McEnroe, who spent the afternoon at NYC Racquet Sports thrilling the crowd in attendance!

The Future of Racquet Sports

NYC Racquet Sports along with Grand Central Racquet is happy to ring in 30 years of serving the racquet and paddle sports communities in New York City and the world. As our name states, we serve all racquet sports enthusiasts and we look forward to continuing to help our customers find the best gear and offer expert stringing services to keep you in the game. 

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Marnie Kunz is a writer, fitness trainer, and founder of Runstreet based in Brooklyn, NY.