A new indoor facility which brings year-round tennis and family programming to Yonkers is slated to open at Ridge Hill in Yonkers by the year’s end.
Calling itself a “premier boutique tennis club,” Court 16 aims to bring its “signature mix of high-energy programming, expert coaching and community-driven fun” to the upscale shopping mall.
The new 16,500-square-foot indoor facility will be the brand’s first suburban location, blending Westchester’s racquet sports culture with its own innovative design and programming. The club will offer families “a vibrant year-round destination to play, learn and connect,” said Court 16 Tennis Clubs’ co-founder, Belgian-born Anthony Evrard. Westfair’s Westchester County Business Journal caught up with him to discover more:
Anthony, the word is out you’re Belgian. Did you grow up in Belgium? Please tell our readers a little bit about your background.
“I grew up in Brussels, where my grandparents and parents ran a sporting goods store that opened in the 1960s. I was surrounded by sport and small-business culture from the beginning. Tennis became my passion early, and I moved to the U.S. at 18 to pursue my education. I graduated from Loyola Marymount University in California, where I captained the men’s tennis team.”
From your résumé you have considerable brand-building experience, including senior roles in sports and entertainment marketing at Puma, Rémy Cointreau USA and Trace Marketing and Media. At what point did you decide to create a brand of your own and how did you go about it?
“When I moved to New York, I saw how hard it was for families to find a consistent, approachable place to learn tennis. That’s where Court 16 began – with a desire to create a neighborhood tennis home where kids, parents and eventually adult players could genuinely enjoy learning the sport.
From the beginning, we weren’t trying to open just another facility. We were building a community. We shaped the brand around values like kindness, attention to detail and making the game feel accessible.”
What were some of the early challenges you experienced setting up Court 16? And current or ongoing ones?
“Each of our clubs sits in a different type of environment – an office tower across from the New York Stock Exchange; a major retail center in downtown Brooklyn; a fast-growing neighborhood in Fishtown, Philadelphia; Long Island City next to Silvercup Studios; and now Ridge Hill in Westchester. We choose places that feel original and connected to their communities, but that also means each project requires customization.
“Coordinating construction, permitting, design and hiring across such varied settings is complex. What makes it work is our team.”
How did you decide on Westchester and specifically Ridge Hill for your newest opening?
“Many families who trained with us in New York City relocated to Westchester and often told us how much they missed having a Court 16 nearby. When we explored the region, Ridge Hill stood out as a walkable, vibrant area where families naturally spend time together.
“It also gave us the opportunity to design a beautiful indoor club from the ground up. We look for locations where we can contribute to the local economy, create jobs and build relationships with schools and small businesses. Ridge Hill felt like the ideal next step.”
How did you attract investments from the USTA Ventures, part of the White Plains-based United States Tennis Association, and Babolat (the French racquet sports equipment manufacturer), and are you looking for additional investors?
“Our relationships with USTA Ventures and Babolat began with shared values. They saw the consistency of our coaching, the strength of our curriculum and the way our model brings new players into the sport. From there, the conversations grew naturally into long-term partnerships.
“We’re always speaking with potential partners, learning from those discussions and exploring strategic synergies that can help us expand our reach. For us, it’s less about seeking investment and more about aligning with people who believe in our mission and support thoughtful, responsible growth.”
Lastly, looking ahead five years, in the broadest sense, what kind of return on investment (ROI) can your investors expect?
“We take a long-term approach and… rather than emphasizing financial projections, we focus on delivering great coaching, strong team development and environments that genuinely help people grow. The demand for high-quality indoor tennis has been strong in every market we enter, and we believe that when you stay true to the mission and deliver real value to communities, long-term results follow naturally.”
