
Photo © Carlos Caetano | Dreamstime.com
From Warminster, Pa., to Irwindale, Calif., an expanding chain of basketball-specific fitness and competition facilities is scoring points with both youth and adult players.
Los Angeles-based PickUp USA Fitness — which offers members 10-minute pickup basketball games officiated by two referees — has more than 15 franchised locations, according to its website, with more on the way in Iowa, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Florida and other states. The sizes range from about 10,000 to 30,000 square feet and are situated in areas typically zoned light industrial or retail, according to Jordan Meinster, founder of PickUp USA Fitness. In addition to on-the-court action, facilities also offer access to weights and fitness equipment
Founded as single location in 2012, PickUp USA originally focused on adult programming before adding youth programs that began as small-group training and flourished into full-scale leagues with games and skill development. For both kids and adults, the winning team stays on the court; players from the losing team must re-enter an online queue to return to action.
“It’s game, after game, after game,” Jay Medeiros, owner of the PickUp USA franchise in Hanover, Mass., told The Patriot Ledger in April. That facility opened earlier this year, about two years after Medeiros filled out a franchise-opening agreement in October 2022.

According to The Ledger, Medeiros’ facility is one of 20 PickUp USA facilities that were expected to open in 2024. He is a lifelong basketball fan, still plays pickup ball and previously coached his two kids on travel and AAU teams.
“I always wanted to have some sort of a place for people to play or train,” Medeiros said. “I didn’t envision something of this size, but here we are.”
The first PickUp USA facility in Iowa, meanwhile, is expected to celebrate a soft opening in the Des Moines area by the end of the year. Franchisee Kerby Louis sees his venture as a way to make money doing something he’s passionate about.
“A PickUp USA franchise allows me to own a business that’s generating positive cash flows around activities that I enjoy — basketball and fitness,” Louis said in an announcement about the new facility, which generated more than 100 signups in a week or so during a pre-opening membership sales campaign.
Meanwhile, Brian Boyer, the former head women’s basketball coach at Arkansas State University opened the first PickUp USA franchise in Missouri more than four years ago. Today, it’s the most popular basketball gym in Lee’s Summit, he said.
Entrepreneur.com, in a post about becoming a PickUp USA franchisee, emphasized how doing so “may offer a more predictable outcome than investing in a completely new brand that could struggle to thrive in an already crowded and competitive industry. To be part of the PickUp USA Fitness franchise team, you should make sure you’re financially ready for an initial investment made up of a franchise fee and other startup costs. In addition, you should prepare yourself for ongoing fees that will include advertising, royalty and potential renewal fees. … PickUp USA Fitness is behind its franchisees and offers a comprehensive support program that may assist the franchisee at all times. The PickUp USA Fitness operations team will help you find your premises, set up your gym, and assist with marketing and operations. A complete training program may teach you everything you need to know.”
That said, according to some reviews on the job-search website Indeed.com, some franchisees might be basketball enthusiasts who want to serve their community but have little experience running a business. One former employee cited a lack of training, while others indicated they hadn’t been paid in over a month.
For his part, Meinster says vetting and training are critical processes of the Pickup USA business model.
“PickUp USA is very selective in our franchisee vetting process,” he told aspioneer.com, which focuses on business expertise. “We typically award one franchise for every 100 inquiries we receive about our franchise program. We have a very deliberate process that starts with … conducting initial phone calls, sending information packets and handling the front-end of our qualification process. The strongest candidates are awarded franchises. We’re not looking for the person with the most money or the person with the most stacked resume. We want hard workers that are all-in on the PickUp USA concept. Those that are determined to put in the work and believe in our concept always make good franchise partners for us. ... We do lots of remote training, in-person training at our headquarters and substantial amounts of training onsite at our franchisees’ locations.”