The Foremost Golf GTEC show held at the Harrogate Convention Centre November 2nd -4th broke all records with over 600 delegates from the Foremost and Alliance golf groups attending the show.
“The show measured in numbers of attendees, feedback from delegates and suppliers and level of interaction between suppliers and pros, was an overwhelming success” commented Paul Hedges, CEO Foremost Golf. “We had more show space than ever before, more business was written than ever before and more educational seminars were held than ever before.”
“For us this was a very important week” stated Leslie Hepsworth, CEO of the newly merged Srixon and Cleveland brands in the UK. “So we were thrilled to host over 600 Foremost and Alliance Golf delegates on our stand over the two exhibition days. It has been our best ever show with the Foremost and Alliance groups, members were very keen to understand the huge plans we have and how in turn this can grow business and margin for them.
“Orders written were over double that of last year, but the intentions stated by all that visited the stand offers much more scope than that, we are clearly at the beginning of something very special within the golf industry.
“We have enormous plans going forward and the show gave us the best platform to shout about it. Foremost should be congratulated on raising the game to new levels this year at the show and for really producing results in a changing marketplace, long may it continue.”
Jason Keigher, sales manager, Wilson was equally enthusiastic. “Foremost Golf has taken the coordination of their group to new levels in the last 18 months using a very sophisticated Channel Management organisation,” he said. “That was reflected not just in the sheer numbers of pros that came through the doors and visited our stand, but in the level of professionalism with which the pros engaged us.
“They were asking serious and sensible retail questions that reflected the level of effort that Foremost Golf is putting into both retail support and retail education. That is good for all our businesses”.
There were nine educational seminars that were run on the Monday and Tuesday at the show, each running every hour for an hour for up to 12 delegates. By the close of the show there had been 1,200 hours of education completed on topics ranging from ‘How to build a buying plan’ to ‘Managing cash flow’; from ‘Custom Fitting’ to ‘Marketing your difference’ and from ‘Using in-store signage effectively’ to ‘Managing and presenting Clothing in a Pro Shop’.
Presenters and educators included:
• Tom Wishon one of the world’s leading exponents of club making and club fitting;
• Pete Cowen – coach to several top tour professionals and Ryder cup team members; Kymi Bodenberger winner of several merchandising awards in the United States,
• Chris Bell an international signage and communication consultant from EpiSys.
“The golf market is changing and there are new and greater pressures that we are now facing” stated Paul Hedges. “But in the face of that change we need to make our position as PGA Professionals clearer. We deliver value because of our expertise. This show has seen 600 PGA staff invest in improving their expertise.”
Foremost Golf has been operating for 22 years and is now the largest operating commercial group of PGA professionals with over 980 members of the Foremost groups – Foremost Golf and Alliance Golf.
Suppliers that attended the show were: adidas, TaylorMade, Ashworth, Callaway Clothing, Sunice, Batteries Direct, The Golfers Club Collection, Sun Mountain, Adams Golf, Brand Fusion, Callaway Golf, Cleveland Golf, Cross, Crossover Technologies, DAB International, FlightScope, FootJoy, Gasp Systems, Glenmuir, Rife, Golf Logix, Datrek, burton, Golf Smith, Greg Norman Collection, Hi-TEC, Huxley Golf, MD Golf, Mizuno, Mobilis Healthcare, Nike, Nikon, PGA Collection, Ping, Ping Collection, Powakaddy, Premium Golf Brands, PGA, Proquip, Ram, Stuburt, Srixon, Sunderland, Sundog Eyewear, Titleist, Tour Edge, US Kids and Wilson
Foremost Golf www.foremostgolf.com