“The mission of Dude Perfect is to serve families with the most trusted entertainment on earth,” Coby Cotton, one of its founding members, told me. After unveiling their new headquarters, Dude Perfect is one step closer to making that mission a reality.
Last year, when I interviewed Cotton and co-founders Tyler Toney, Cory Cotton, Cody Jones, and Garrett Hilbert, they were well on their way to building the next Disney with over 60 million subscribers on YouTube. Now with this 80,000 square foot space, it seems like they’ve built their own Disneyland to go along with it, too.
Designed with Jack Porter, the creative force behind many athletic spaces from Duke University to Notre Dame, Dude Perfect’s new headquarters is the definition of “work hard, play hard” with a slide, moving basketball hoops, and co-working space.
But the actual space is just one piece of the puzzle. Building a world-class team to fill it is the other. To draw a metaphor from basketball, the “starting five” of Toney, Jones, Hilbert, and the Cotton twins has dominated YouTube for over 15 years. Like any championship team, they’re now building an all-star front office and deep bench to turn their early wins into a dynasty.
That’s why they recently raised over $100 million from Highmount Capital and hired NBA executive Andrew Yaffe to be their new CEO, joining a roster that includes Chad Coleman (Chief Brand Officer), Tim Holt (VP of Post Production), and Chad Terrell (VP of Production).
I spoke with them and the dudes while touring their new headquarters to get a better idea of what goes into building one of the today’s most trusted brands.
World-Class Headquarters
Located in Frisco, Texas, Dude Perfect’s new headquarters, also known as DPHQ3 since its their third studio, spans nearly 50,000 square feet and represents just the beginning of their expansion.
The facility also includes over 30,000 square feet of additional warehouse space earmarked for even bigger plans, including a Samsung Virtual Production Studio and an interactive retail space.
Jack Porter, the leading design agency known for crafting stunning athletic spaces, helped bring Dude Perfect’s brand to life.
“They’ve been killing it and helped us design a lot of this stuff,” Cotton said about Jack Porter’s involvement in DPHQ3. “They’d create these fancy renderings where you could stand out there with your phone, turn around, and see what the space is going to look like once the graphics are up on the walls.”
Below is one of those early images that Jack Porter shared with Dude Perfect when designing the new space.
Nearly every inch of the headquarters combines fun with functionality. Compared to their old headquarters, this one features taller ceilings — ideal for filming high-flying trick shots — and simple wall murals designed to double as versatile backdrops for filming.
There’s also a racing simulator, a slide that spirals from the second floor, a putting green from PuttTek, football field, basketball court, and more.
“There was way more thought that went into this space than there was before,” Cory Cotton explained. “People expect a certain amount of sports stuff with what we do but we’re trying to take that to the next level creatively. So, on the basketball court, we’re installing moving goals specifically for trick shots.”
The headquarters also has a lounge space upstairs where the co-founders and executives gather for weekly meetings to brainstorm and check-in on each other.
“If somebody’s frustrated at each other for something, the is the place to clear the slate,” his twin Coby joked.
Cutting-Edge Technology
Another highlight of Dude Perfect’s forthcoming expansion is Samsung’s Virtual Production Studio, a massive wrap-around screen set to be installed in their adjacent warehouse. This state-of-the-art addition will revamp their video production, not just for Dude Perfect but for other creators who they hope will utilize the space.
“It’ll be its own kind of production studio for Frisco. There’s nothing like it north of Dallas. You’d have to drive 45 minutes from here to find anything like it,” Garrett Hilbert explained.
Once installed, this setup will allow the team to create dynamic and immersive backdrops for their videos, from replicating the energy of a packed stadium to transporting viewers to breathtaking natural landscapes regularly seen in their Bucket List series.
But cutting-edge technology isn’t limited to the warehouse. Inside the current headquarters, their lounge boasts The Wall from Samsung, an ultra flatscreen display known for its stunning resolution and versatility. Designed to deliver a premium viewing experience, “The Wall” also provides the perfect backdrop for Dude Perfect’s brainstorming sessions, team reviews, and catching up on the latest games together.
From Idea to Edit
Beyond serving as a space to film, the new headquarters also doubles as a workspace for Dude Perfect’s growing team. With plans to expand from 28 employees to over 50 within the next year, the space is designed to accommodate both creative and operational needs.
“That was one of the biggest reasons we came over here. If there is a justification in all of this, it was to be able to grow the team,” Cotton said.
Even after 15 years, the founders have kept their hands on the business side, with Cotton handling onboarding and Hilbert handling finances, for example. But the goal now is to step back from the day-to-day operations and focus on content.
“We were a little bit slow in building out a full team to replace ourselves on a lot of the actual business work. So, it’s amazing how much of the actual work we’ve done and are still doing 15 years later. Something we’re very much looking forward to is getting some people in here who can do a way better job than we can at the actual business stuff.”
Beyond the main co-working area and executive offices, the layout of the workspace is intentionally designed in many ways to mirror the journey of a video from concept to completion.
It begins in the Idea Lab, a dedicated space where new video and product ideas take shape.
“All video ideas, product ideas, and things that kind of start as the beginning of an idea happen here,” Cotton explained to me.
Once an idea is developed, it transitions into pre-production, where Chad Terrell, VP of Production, takes charge of organizing and managing the process. He assigns teams, tracks progress, and ensures projects like “Trick Shots Measured in Miles”— a video the team has been working on for over six months — stay on schedule and run efficiently.
From there, Garrett Little, Senior Graphic Designer, is brought in to help design Dude Perfect’s thumbnails into polished, eye-catching images that drive millions of clicks.
“When we give Garrett something remotely good to start with, he can come up with something amazing,” Cotton said. “He’s been crushing it with his thumbnails.”
Eventually, the videos land in the hands of Tim Holt, VP of Post Production, who said his team spends about two to three weeks depending on the format.
Getting Feedback, Faster
Collaboration is another key to Dude Perfect’s success, and I saw this first-hand when I sat in on one of the team’s feedback sessions as they watch-through one of their upcoming videos.
“We try to do a team watch-through of whatever the next video is so that, in one moment, people can throw out feedback to the editing team,” Cotton said. “It’s shockingly helpful for the editors to just sit there and watch our reactions.”
Finally, Dude Perfect built a dedicated workshop area in their new headquarters to build sets since nearly every video involves a custom-built set. But the workshop isn’t just about creating props for videos; it also plays a role in enhancing the fan experience down the road.
“One of our hopes is to take some of the stuff we’re filming in videos and, for a short period of time, have it available for fans to interact with when they come to the retail store here,” Cotton explained.
This effort reflects Dude Perfect’s commitment to creating memorable moments for their audience, moving beyond simply filming videos to offer fans an immersive experience when they visit headquarters.
“In our last office, the best-case scenario was someone might see one of us poke our heads out the door for a quick picture,” Cotton added. “Now, we want to give people a much better experience if they stop by.”
“We’re Trying To Give Them More”
As impressive as the new HQ is, Dude Perfect’s ambitions go far beyond creating popular videos.
“We’re trying to shift toward creating videos where people can watch something and then do something. We know that families appreciate what we do, which is incredible. We’re honored for that, but we’re trying to give them more.”
Part of this vision includes Dude Perfect World, a $100M concept for a theme park, which the dudes said is still being developed seperately from this headquarters.
“We all have kids now, so we all get pumped anytime there’s something new in our city, so we’re trying to do our part to serve families in that way.”
Developing New Talent: The Story of “Sparky”
For CEO Andrew Yaffe, who joined Dude Perfect after years at the NBA, developing new talent is another key part of the company’s next chapter.
“We just announced we’re relaunching our gaming channel this year. I think that’s a great example of areas where we’re going to want to work with great gaming talent,” Yaffe told me. “I think there are a lot of other areas where you could see us bringing in specific talent to focus on new initiatives that make sense for Dude Perfect.”
A prime example of expanding Dude Perfect beyond the five original dudes is Kevin “Sparky” Sparkman, who has become a beloved figure in the group’s videos. Initially brought in as an outside talent, Sparky has seamlessly integrated into the brand.
“When Sparky came in, it was the first time they had ever brought in outside talent, and I think everyone — the dudes — were very cognizant,” Yaffe explained. “We want to make sure the audience accepts and understands Sparky.”
That’s exactly what happens. The audience not only accepted Sparky, they embraced him thanks to how he was thoughtfully brought into the videos.
“Cory actually had shoulder surgery this year, and Sparky sat in for him on a number of videos, and nobody batted an eye. It’s just an amazing job by him and the whole company to bring him along in a way that now feels so natural.”
Yaffe’s philosophy on talent development stems from his time at the NBA, where he helped launch initiatives like the Creator Cup and spotlighted athletes as multi-dimensional stars, both on and off the court.
“The person-to-person connection that people have with creators is really powerful. They have that with NBA players, with leading athletes and celebrities, and they also have that with people like the dudes.”
Looking ahead, Yaffe hinted at more announcements to come as they expand their team and content slate.
“We want to continue to grow and scale. I think Dude Perfect really means something to our audience in the world, and we think there are a lot of people out there who can live by that ethos and create content that families love and that is fun, competitive, and about sports. We want to work with people who are like-minded in that approach.”
As I left DPHQ3, I couldn’t help but feel optimistic about the future of family-friendly content, especially as a new dad myself. Over 15 years into their journey, Dude Perfect has already accomplished so much and created so many memories for fans and their families alike. But something tells me that some of their best moments are yet to come — and will be made within the four walls of their new headquarters.