The Story of DiscKing

2021 – The Beginning of DiscKing

The idea for the company was born in the spring of 2021. I had just completed my military service and was working as a school assistant before starting university. I had been playing disc golf occasionally for several years, but the COVID-19 pandemic had taken the sport’s popularity to an entirely new level. I noticed that demand for discs had grown massively – new discs were sold out everywhere, and buying used discs on Facebook was slow, expensive, and risky.

The dream of building my own company had been on my mind for a long time, and I saw clear market potential in the situation. I brainstormed the idea with friends, and we came across an online store selling used discs. I realized this could be done with higher quality and decided to start an online store myself. Even if the webshop didn’t work out, I would at least learn more about entrepreneurship and e-commerce, which would support my upcoming business studies. Since I had limited experience in running a company, I wanted a business partner.

I suggested the idea to my army friend Jere, with whom I had become familiar with the disc golf course at the Hamina Reserve Officer School the previous summer. Jere had competed a bit and knew both the players and the industry better. He got excited about the idea, and we got to work.

We founded a limited company, had logos designed, and built the webshop ourselves on Shopify. The goal was to create an online store where discs could be purchased quickly, easily, and reliably. We acquired used discs and bags for approximately €500, priced and photographed them, and listed them in the webshop. The first version of the online store launched on May 16, 2021 – this marked the birth of DiscKing.

KiekkoKingin alkuvaiheet – kaksi henkilöä työskentelee pienessä tilassa frisbeegolfkiekkojen käsittelyn ja verkkokaupan parissa.

Orders started coming in immediately, and we decided to run an Instagram giveaway featuring a Väinö Mäkelä Archer disc. This turned out to be one of our most important decisions, as the giveaway helped us gain nearly 4,000 followers and build a strong foundation on social media platforms. We released restocks – meaning replenishments of used discs – every couple of weeks, and at peak times over 700 customers were browsing them simultaneously. This also brought challenges, such as situations where the same disc was successfully purchased by seven different customers in the exact same second.

My parents’ garage quickly became too small, and in July we moved into a roughly 20-square-meter office space in Krossi, Kaarina. There, we worked from morning to night adding used discs to the webshop, and all profits were reinvested into growing the inventory. We wanted to expand the selection to include new discs and accessories as well, but during the autumn it became clear that sourcing new products was challenging. Many manufacturers required a physical retail store in addition to an online store, making the next step inevitable.

Kuva KiekkoKingin tarinasta – symboloi yrityksen kasvua ja intohimoa frisbeegolfiin vuodesta 2021 alkaen.

2022 – Opening the Physical Store

During the winter, we searched for suitable premises, and in January 2022 we found a roughly 100-square-meter space in Piispanristi, Kaarina. We negotiated a bank loan, renovated the space to match our brand, and opened the physical store in March. The opening was a success: hundreds of people queued outside, and up to 500 customers visited the store during the day. In addition to used discs, the selection included new discs from well-known manufacturers such as Prodigy and Innova.

KiekkoKingin kasvutarina – uuden myymälän rakentaminen ja valmis frisbeegolfkauppa, jossa hyllyt täynnä kiekkoja ja iloinen työntekijä antaa peukun ylös."

The store performed well, and online sales returned to a growth trajectory. We continued releasing Sunday restocks, which created a routine for our customers. We also founded our first sponsored team and participated in events across Finland. Over the course of the summer, however, the premises started to feel too small as the inventory continued to grow.

KiekkoKingin tiimi lajittelee ja järjestelee suuren määrän frisbeegolfkiekkoja myymälässä – iloinen tunnelma ja peukku ylös merkkinä onnistuneesta työstä.

By coincidence, our landlord had another space become available right next to our store – approximately 500 square meters. We visited the space and immediately understood that it would be perfect for our business. In addition to a large store, the new premises would accommodate practical office and warehouse spaces as well as an indoor disc golf training center, which had been a long-standing dream. Financing was arranged and renovations began, and in October 2022 we opened the new store along with Finland’s first indoor disc golf training center.

Kuvakollaasi esittelee eri KiekkoKingin alkua: pääkuvassa tyhjä, valaistu varastotila, vasemmalla alhaalla punatiilinen rakennus ja ihminen oven edessä, sekä oikealla alhaalla ulkoilmatapahtuma, jossa on myyntikoju ja ihmisiä ostoksilla.

2023 – A Year of Growth

In 2023, we focused on developing the webshop, the store, the training center, and our marketing. We invested in inventory and streamlined our used-disc processes. We also launched paid marketing, which delivered promising results. We launched KingiLiiga, our own putting league, which quickly gained popularity among local enthusiasts.

The sponsored team grew with new members, and we founded Junior and Ambassador teams, which received hundreds of applications. For the first time, we were also able to pay modest salaries to the company’s shareholders.

Kuvakollaasi esittelee frisbeegolfiin liittyvää myynti- ja varastotoimintaa. Pääkuvassa 'Kiekkokingi.fi' -teltalla myydään frisbeegolf-kiekkoja ja tarvikkeita. Vasemmalla ylhäällä näkyy varastotila täynnä laatikoita, alhaalla kolme henkilöä hymyilee myyntipöydän takana. Oikealla ylhäällä henkilö järjestelee kiekkoja ja alhaalla näkyy ulkoilmatapahtuma, jossa asiakkaat selaavat valikoimaa.

2024 – The Year of International Expansion

In 2024, we focused on professionalizing the business. We clarified our brand identity and operational processes and continued to significantly grow our inventory. By this point, nearly 100,000 used disc golf discs had already been sold, and Sunday restocks continued regularly. The selection of new products also expanded significantly, and we began a collaboration with Merrell to sell outdoor footwear suitable for disc golf.

International expansion became one of the key themes of the year. The English-language webshop (discking.eu) had already been operating for several years, and orders had been shipped steadily around the world. During the summer, we launched a Swedish-language webshop (discking.se) and began active marketing in Sweden. The Swedish market gained traction faster than expected, and we realized that the DiscKing brand had significant potential to scale beyond Finland.

Over the course of the year, DiscKing clearly began to take shape as a platform for international growth, on top of which future expansion could be built in a controlled and long-term manner.

Frisbeegolfkaupan sisätila, jossa seinällä on esillä värikkäitä frisbeegolf-kiekkoja. Vasemmalla puolella hyllyissä roikkuu erilaisia frisbeegolf-reppuja. Etualalla näkyy lisää kiekkoja, ja tiskin takana on ikkuna varastotilaan. Myymälän valaistus korostaa tuotteiden esillepanoa.

2025 – The Breakthrough Year

The year 2025 began with momentum as we executed a long-negotiated agreement behind the scenes and Väinö Mäkelä joined our team. At the same time, we returned to weekly behind-the-scenes videos on our YouTube channel after a short break. The videos quickly became one of our most-followed content formats of the year and an important part of our brand.

During the year, we also raised additional funding to grow our inventory so that we could meet increasing demand even more effectively. International marketing efforts were intensified, and we decided to become a partner of the Disc Golf World Championships held in Tampere in August, as well as the main partner of the World Distance Championships held one week earlier.

At the World Distance Championships, we experienced an unforgettable moment when our team player Rasmus Saukkoriipi won the world championship with an incredible 197-meter throw. The achievement brought us massive visibility both in Finland and internationally.

The World Championships held in Finland were a success overall and became the largest disc golf event ever organized. We also participated in Disc Golf Expos and acted as a hole sponsor in Nokia, which further strengthened our visibility at events and within the community.

The year 2025 included growth that we could not have fully anticipated. Our revenue rose close to €1.5 million, with a significant portion of the growth coming from international sales. In hindsight, many of the details and development efforts we had refined over the years finally fell into place and enabled an exceptionally strong year of growth.

2026 – Looking Ahead

The year 2026 has started at full speed. Right at the beginning of the year, we launched a large-scale store renovation with the goal of building the cleanest disc golf specialty store in the world. At the same time, we continue our determined development of the webshop, product selection, and customer experience.

Our vision is to make DiscKing the largest disc golf retailer in Europe, and our mission is to offer the best products, the best service, and the best content in disc golf. We are building toward this goal long-term – step by step, but with ambition.

Time will tell what the coming year will bring.

Thank you to all customers, partners, and everyone who has been part of the journey so far – this is only the beginning.

– Eemil Matti / Founder