Chillicothe, IL—Players Turf, a leader in artificial golf surfaces, went against the grain at the 2006 PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando, FL, but came out big winners in sales numbers.
"We did extremely well at the show," said Players Turf Founder and President Ray Sever. We did as good, if not better than any other year we’ve been there. In those six years, we never sold anything right off the floor. This year we had two checks in hand and have five more signed contracts. Usually we’ve had to follow up on leads before we made any sales."
"The surprising thing was, the number of faces we saw was down, but the sales were up," explained Sever. "Everyone who spoke with us was a serious buyer."
In addition to the on-the-spot sales, Sever still has many leads that will require attention.
"During the show, we were contacted by eight universities," he said, "and we had a lot of commercial interest for our new products. Driving ranges are very interested in our Tee Lines. We have two new models that require no infill and because they’re made of nylon, there’s no green residue or sand scratches left on the club head after hitting."
Sever credits Reed Exhibitions, the presenters of the show, for much of the success.
"It used to be that pros would give their badges to friends and they’d come just to look around," he said. "Yes, the numbers were down, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing because you don’t have the tire kickers. Reed did a good job keeping those people out, so there were more serious buyers. In the past, people would come in and I’d be too busy to talk with them and they’d leave because I was talking with a tire kicker."
Sever is a bigger fan of the PGA Merchandise Show than ever before.
"I’ve read articles ripping this year’s show," he said, "but the truth is, yes the (attendance) numbers might have been down, but for most companies, sales were up because there were more serious buyers there."
Contact:
Holly Geoghegan
Golf Marketing Services
407-682-4853
holly@golfmarketinginc.com
