So, lot’s of clubs can’t (or won’t) shell out 6-figures for a full service management contract – for good reason in many cases…
But in a lot of markets, it’s becoming harder and harder for stand-alone clubs to compete in terms of economies of scale and buying power…
So what can the “little guys” do to contain costs?
Data in the golf industry is completely fragmented. There are more than 20 major point of sale systems (think cash registers with accounting software)…and they don’t speak the same language.
There’s really no system of aggregating and using big customer data in the golf business…until now.
KPI Golf responded to 2 requests for proposal today – one of which was a whopping 90 pages long!
So, you can probably imagine the work that went into composing a 90-page RFP. I won’t mention which golf club it was, but they spent a whole lot of time, energy and money on conducting market research, surveys, competitive analysis, and outlining much of the club’s recent history. Read more
John Brown is talking with one particular golf course owner about operating expenses on our Club Operator’s Forum. This is a 6-week program where we discuss golf industry trends, and share insights on how club owners can compete and make life better for themselves.
It’s common practice to stick with vendors for long periods of time, especially if you feel like they’re “taking care of you”.
John Brown discusses the options that struggling and underperforming golf courses have. The first big misconception is that professional advice and exploratory conversations only come with hard sales pitches for club management contracts. This isn’t the case at all.
The logic first step to take is to pick up the phone and call a consulting or golf management company. KPI Golf offers free phone consultations, investing hours in learning about the club’s challenges and assessing best fit.
Facility: 81 Hole Private Golf Community with 4 Clubhouses, Marina, and 1,200 Members
Location: Southeastern United States
Ownership: Private Ownership/Developer
Focus: Containing Costs and Return to Profitability
About: This is a very successful well established golf community with associated real estate, marina and many other components. Their $23 Million operating budget has gotten away from them leading to an annual loss of $1.5 Million.
KPI’s John Brown and Casey Bourque discuss the advantages of golf course clustering for golfers, staff members and for operators. According to John, this was a hugely successful strategy that helped many of his managed clubs in the past. Whether it’s buying power, shared supplies, or improved opportunities for customers to play golf, clustering is a great idea.
Facility: 54-Hole public municipal golf course
Location: Southeastern United States
Ownership: Municipal – County Owned
Focus: Containing Costs and Return to Profitability
About: This is a county-owned golf facility that was losing several hundred thousand dollars on an annual basis. Because of its municipal status, they couldn’t make a great deal of money through the operation, but certainly didn’t want to lose. We were charged with helping the facility break even.
Facility: An 18-hole, 350 members country club with golf, pool, tennis and dining
Location: Northeastern United States
Ownership: Individual Private Ownership
Focus: Containing Costs and Return to Profitability
About: This is a well-established country club with an annual operating budget of $3 Million. When we were brought in, the club had been managed by another golf management company. The club was losing $350,000 annually