What do Koenigsegg and Wallich Padel rackets have in common? State of the art carbon fiber, groundbreaking engineering and exceptional performance. And its founder, William Wallich.
This is the story of how fighting spirit and passion for high end materials can make a dream come true.
Why buy a racket if you can make one?
In school, William Wallich set out to become a veterinarian, but started his working life in the shipyards of Gothenburg, Sweden. Here, he worked for Aston Harald making high end catamaranes in carbon fiber. Their expertise in light weight carbon fiber landed them lucrative contracts with Koenigsegg, Volvo and the Swedish government.
After picking up padel in 2020, Wallich soon realized that the ordinary rackets had a lot of flaws. And why buy a padel racket, when you can make your own, better one?
He quit his job to set out on the quest of making the best, most reliable and durable racket on the market. Starting out in his parents’ garage on the island of Hönö just outside Gothenburg, he spent 9 months making prototypes until he had a product ready to hit the market. Given the opportunity to present his racket at an APT tour event in Kungsbacka in September of 2021, some of the world’s greatest players got the opportunity to try the racket Wallich spent months developing. Legendary player Willy Lahoz actually took a bow after trying the racket on the court, Wallich says with a smile on his face.
From that moment, he knew he was on to something.
Picking up speed
After the APT event, orders started flooding in.
“I spent my time either in the garage making rackets, or in my apartment putting on the finishing touches. I had foam and carbon fiber all over the place. At this point, it took me over 15 hours to complete one racket. The waiting time for a racket was hitting 4 months. I knew I had to find a proper place for manufacturing. ”. After leasing a 2000 sq ft workshop, Wallich had not only found his new place for manufacturing, but also for rest. He slept on a mattress in the workshop for a whole year, devoting his life to perfecting and producing what would become one of the most exclusive rackets in the world.
Fast forward to August 2022, and Wallich is showing his racket at the Stockholm Padel Expo. “I had the smallest and cheapest booth at the Expo, but the most traffic and interest from visitors”. After the successful showcase at the Expo, and following a 30 minutes feature with Swedish padel influencer Patric Persson, demand skyrocketed.
“Since I do every racket by hand, production is a slow and precise process. Now the wait list for a racket was up to one year. I knew this was the time to take production to the next level,” he added.
Today, Wallich has a new workshop. And yes, it is located in a padel club in Gothenburg. “Me and my colleagues don’t play as much as one might think. Perhaps twice a week. When we are on break, we usually play some table tennis. To have a court just outside our production space is great for showcasing the rackets to players visiting us, and they can follow the production through a big glass window.”
Wallich Padel rackets are now shipping all over the world, with rising interest from USA to Saudi, Copenhagen to Marbella. Most of the rackets are going on export. To this day, Wallich Padel has not marketed the racket in any way. It’s all word of mouth and organic growth. The goal is not mass production, but rather keeping focus on exclusivity, perfection and top of the line overall feel.
What’s the deal with this racket, anyway?
How is it different? Where other rackets have six to seven components, Wallich uses only the three essentials – foam, glue and carbon fiber. Where other rackets leave the edges empty or filled with no-purpose plastics, Wallich is filled to the brim, giving its player a larger sweet spot, more stability and higher performance. Spending on materials on the Wallich is 7 times higher than an ordinary racket, coming with the exact same carbon fiber as the top of the line sports car Koenigsegg.
Even though Wallich Padel Racket will cost you closer to 1000 €, it’s a financially wise pick. “Our rackets don’t break or crack. Actually, I smashed one Wallich racket against 15 other rackets. They all broke. The only sign of impact on the Wallich was that some paint from the other rackets came off and ended up on the edge. This racket will stay intact. Some players buy 2-4 new rackets a year, which is a waste to be honest. Ours are built to last, so overall spending on rackets will come down with the Wallich”.
The Wallich comes with a certificate and unique serial number. The number will give its owner access to an exclusive virtual members club which will soon be up and running. Here, you will find all the accessories, clothes and gear you need to look just as good as your racket. How about a hat or t-shirt with some top of the line actual carbon fiber?
If you are interested in the production details, you can check out Wallich explaining the whole process on his Youtube channel.
