Page 14 - GBC Spring 2021 English

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Golf Business Canada
In between, the Golf Business Canada Conference & Trade Show featured an Operational Town Hall with Slade King (Play Golf Calgary), Lee Tamburano (Canadian Golf & Country Club) and Miles Mortensen (The Links at Brunello) and how they quickly pivoted from normal operations to a COVID- ready business model.
Also featured was a slate of 26 breakout sessions on topics ranging from retaining new customers in 2021, to innovating in a new normal, to using social media to grow your golf business with an impressive list of presenters that included the likes of Allison George, Toad Valley Golf Course General Manager; Cronk Group Inc president, James Cronk; Peter Smith, CEO of Players 1st Inc.; Theresa Syer, Founding Partner at Syer Hospitality Group, Golf and Performance Coach, Tim O’Connor and many more. Diverse, inter- active and educational, the schedule provided an exceptional value proposition.
“For the entire three days all of the events functioned on time, the presenters were great and their content was innovative and relevant,” said Doug Quick, General Manager at Kingsville Golf Club in Kingsville, Ontario. “Our
management team will definitely implement many of the ideas garnered from the conference.”
READY, STOP, RUN
When the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a pandemic on March 11, 2020, no one could have predicted the short and long term implications.
Amid enough plot twists to satisfy a J.K. Rowling novel, from the golf industry’s shut down; to its re-start with safety protocols; to its unprecedented levels of consumer engagement pushed inventory to the brink – especially in provinces or regions where expanded tee time intervals were mandated.
As pent up demand overw- helmed available supply, NGCOA Canada owners and operators sailed into uncharted waters. Navigating those rough seas was intense at times. When the waves subsided there were rewards. And they had a ripple effect. Trickling up, the industry has never had an influx of new consumers or returning ones at one time. Trickling down that freshly engaged demographic combined with hardcore avid players and the non-requirement for discounting had a dramatic effect on bottom line. Even without the standard
level of corporate events and food and beverage sales.
The zero to full speed ramp up this season is why the opening town hall session was titled, Ready- Stop-RUN! Out of the starting gate the nation’s largest course owner/ operator, ClubLink never stopped running.
“Members played 30 percent more golf this year which is extraordinary. We have never seen more than a three to five percent movement either way,” said Brent Miller, ClubLink’s Vice-President, Corporate Operations and Member Services. “We doubled our membership sales to 40 and under folks and had about 1,000 new people join. Adjustments like working from home, less travel, augers well for more golf in 2021 so managing tee time inventory is going to be a big focus. We certainly did our best to make the experience as good as we can make it.”
None of that comes as any surprise to Jon Last. The Founder and President of Sports and Leisure Research Group continues to find the golf market extremely resilient. The big question for Last is what does the game need to do to sustain that as other industries start getting back on-line? His ‘Oasis From the Chaos’ insight is meaningful.