Some of the best business stories start with adversity. CRBN Pickleball is one of them.
Founded in 2020 in the middle of a global pandemic, CRBN — pronounced “carbon” — has gone from a scrappy startup with two co-founders tinkering on paddles in California to one of the most respected brands in the pickleball equipment market. Their story is about passion, authenticity, and what happens when genuine players build products for genuine players.
CRBN was built by players obsessed with the game. Sound familiar? At Pickleland, we’re the same way. A Pickleland membership puts you inside a community of serious, passionate players — with unlimited court access, leagues, and coached clinics to fuel your obsession. Find your court home →
The Origin: Losing a Job, Finding a Sport
In the spring of 2020, Garrett Gosselin lost his job amid the COVID-19 economic disruption. Like millions of people, he found himself with unexpected free time and no clear direction. But instead of letting the uncertainty drag him down, Garrett found pickleball.
And when Garrett found pickleball, he went all in. Five hours a day. Seven days a week. He progressed rapidly, entering tournaments as fast as he could. Pickleball didn’t just fill the time — it became a genuine obsession, a competitive pursuit, and ultimately the foundation of a new career.
The Paddle That Started Everything
It was Garrett’s doubles partner who planted the seed: “We should make our own paddles. We know exactly what we want and need.”
Three weeks later, prototypes arrived. These early CRBN paddles featured carbon fiber faces and specific design specifications that Garrett and his partner had crafted around their own playing style and needs. The results were immediate and striking. Control and power in a combination they hadn’t found in any commercially available paddle.
With these paddles, Garrett and his partner started dominating the challenge courts at their local facility. People noticed. Then something interesting happened: everyone who watched them play wanted a CRBN paddle too.
At first, the paddles were just for Garrett and his partner. But the demand kept coming. The “a-ha” moment arrived: this could be a business.
Partnering Up: The CRBN Co-Founders
Garrett connected with two key partners to turn the concept into a company. First, a childhood friend who was an established engineer — critical for the technical side of product development. Second, Kyle Goguen, another childhood friend from their Southern California upbringing who became CRBN’s co-founder and business partner.
Together, Garrett and Kyle brought complementary skill sets. Garrett brought the deep player intuition and court-level credibility. Kyle brought entrepreneurial and operational experience. Both shared a background in Southern California’s surf and action sports culture — brands built around authenticity, community, and lifestyle — which deeply influenced how they thought about building CRBN.
The company officially launched in 2020, making CRBN one of the first pickleball-specific brands to emerge during the sport’s pandemic-era explosion.
The Design Philosophy: Performance Without the Noise
From the start, CRBN made a deliberate choice to keep their aesthetic clean, simple, and understated. No loud colors. No confusing marketing jargon. No gimmicky buzzwords.
The philosophy was straightforward: let the paddle’s performance do the talking.
Their flagship paddle, the CRBN1 (elongated shape with a longer handle, ideal for players transitioning from tennis and two-handed backhands) and the CRBN2 (shorter handle, wider face, larger sweet spot) were designed around specific player profiles and needs. The T-700 carbon fiber face — a high-quality carbon grade — became CRBN’s signature material, delivering a unique combination of control and power that quickly gained a cult following.
What made early CRBN paddles genuinely special was their rare combination: most paddles force players to choose between power and control. CRBN found a construction approach that delivered both. Pro players who tried them almost universally commented on this balance.
Building a Pro Team Through Authentic Adoption
CRBN’s approach to professional sponsorship was refreshingly organic. Rather than writing big checks to attract top players, they let the paddles do the recruiting. Many of their pro athletes came to CRBN independently — tried the paddle, loved it, and approached the brand about sponsorship.
This was partly strategic (the small startup didn’t have big-brand marketing budgets) and partly philosophical (if a pro player genuinely chooses your paddle, that’s more credible than any contract). In the early days of the pickleball pro scene, when players weren’t yet earning massive sponsorship dollars, the credibility of mutual enthusiasm mattered enormously.
Technical Innovation: The Unibody Construction
As CRBN grew, so did their technical sophistication. Their newer paddle designs introduced edge foam paired with carbon fiber wrapping around the rails, creating a reinforced unibody construction — one seamless piece with carbon fiber reinforcement from face to neck.
This construction solved a common paddle failure point: the neck, where handle meets face, is typically the most vulnerable spot. CRBN’s unibody design made this junction dramatically stiffer and more durable. The benefit? A larger sweet spot, reduced vibration, and more consistent power transfer across the entire paddle face.
An ergonomically tapered grip circumference was also introduced, improving hand comfort and reducing fatigue during extended play.
Growth: From Courts to Commerce
CRBN grew by building community before building distribution. Their ambassador program followed a grassroots model inspired by surf brand culture — local players in every market who genuinely used and loved the product, spreading word organically within their communities. This approach competed surprisingly effectively against larger brands with bigger marketing budgets.
Their Amazon strategy proved transformative. At Prime Day 2024, CRBN experienced a 700% increase in sales on their Pivot Glasses and overall daily sales running 14x a normal day — generating over 2 million impressions in the 48-hour window. Their multi-channel approach combining direct-to-consumer, Amazon, and retail has established them as a serious commercial player.
CRBN Today
Today, CRBN Pickleball operates as a premium, community-first brand with a deep reputation among serious intermediate and advanced players. Their product line has expanded beyond paddles to include accessories like the CRBN Pivot Glasses — protective eyewear developed after identifying an 80% increase in customer searches for pickleball eyewear — and other gear built around genuine player need.
Garrett and Kyle have built their company on the principle of staying “scrappy and agile” regardless of size — close to the player community, responsive to feedback, and never too corporate to lose sight of what made CRBN special in the first place: paddles made by pickleball players, for pickleball players.
Play Like a CRBN Player at Pickleland
CRBN’s philosophy — that great equipment starts with genuine player understanding — aligns perfectly with the Pickleland community ethos. If you’re looking to find equipment that fits your game, connect with other serious players, and put in the court time to actually develop your skills, Pickleland in Austin is your home.
Want to benchmark your game officially? Join us for a DUPR scramble or rated league play and find out where you stand — just like Garrett Gosselin, who turned his obsession with tournament play into something much bigger.
Skip to content 
