Hey there! We’re Eric and Sunny, the husband-and-wife team behind SunStrike, based in the vibrant heart of Chicago, Illinois.

SunStrike began as a passion project for Eric to apply his profesional product management experience to pickleball, a consumer-facing industry and his favorite hobby. By leveraging rapid prototyping, continuous player feedback, and iterative enhancements, we developed the SunStrike HexaFlex paddle to demonstrate the power of entrepreneurial curiosity and a player-centric approach to product development.

Rather than aiming for massive growth or corporate profits, our focus has always been on learning, innovating, and perfecting the player experience, skills Eric carries over into his broader product career.

Key Highlights

• Rapid Prototyping: Multiple design iterations, blending advanced materials with real-world player insights.
• Hands-On Testing: Direct feedback from players helped refine weight balance, grip, and surface technology.
• Community Impact: We never expected to receive sponsorship offers from top globally ranked players or support charity tournaments, but our user-centric approach resonated beyond our wildest hopes.

With pro-level certification fees skyrocketing 10X year over year, and our primary careers being our top priority, we’ve chosen to keep SunStrike a passion project rather than chase the pro circuit. Our mission remains the same: to learn new skills and insights and to impact players positively. We hope our story reflects not just our love for pickleball, but a commitment to entrepreneurial curiosity and self-development. May we all become the best versions of ourselves on and off the court!

P.S.: This journey wouldn’t be possible without the loving support of my wife, Sunny, who also happens to take the best product photos ever!