Lansing, MI – In an effort to enhance the involvement of corporate partners and create benefits for member courses, a group of golf course associations located in the northern region of the United States have joined forces to create the Northern Golf Alliance (NGA).
The founding members include the Buckeye Golf Association (BGA) in Ohio, Golf Course Owners of Wisconsin (GCOW), Michigan Golf Course Owners Association (MGCOA), Midwest Golf Course Owners Association (MWGCOA) and Pennsylvania Golf Course Owners Association (PGCOA).
“It doesn’t matter what we do, it matters why we do it,” said Kate Moore, the executive director of the MGCOA. “As member-driven associations, we formed this Alliance to provide a great tangible and financial benefit to our members.”
That first partnership and Northern Golf Alliance benefit is with the VGM Club, a national wholesale club program specializing in discounted purchasing and collective bargaining opportunities with golf related products. For a nominal annual membership fee (discounted by up to 50% for NGA association members) member golf courses will impact their business through pro-shop, agronomy, clubhouse, as well as food and beverage purchasing power.
“Our first corporate partner, VGM Club, brings a wealth of goods and services for our members to take advantage of,” said Ken Guenther, Buckeye Golf Association executive. “In a time when our industry is struggling in terms of participation and growth impacting our members bottom-line, these types of partnerships are critical to our future success.”
About NGA
The NGA is a collaboration between the golf course associations in northern states or regions having similar customers and climates. NGA associations are dedicated to placing substantial benefits for their individual members as their priority when accepting or recruiting Vendor Partners to the Alliance. In addition, the Alliance will provide broader marketing and sales opportunities with vendors to reach multiple states and regions, as well as collaborative marketing opportunities through exceptional discount programs for member golf courses.
About VGM Group, Inc.
VGM Group, Inc., is an ever-evolving buying group for a wide array of industries. VGM specializes in the golf and private club industries, as well as restaurant chains. VGM also provides services in high-tech rehab and respiratory providers, orthotic and prosthetic practitioners and HME providers in Canada. The expanded golf industry program has helped grow the total number of participating clubs to well over 3,500 nationwide. The core objective of VGM Club is to be the most trusted service provider in the golf club industry. Visit www.vgmclub.com.
Contact:
Kate M. Moore, Executive Director
Michigan Golf Course Owners Association
(800) 860-8575
KMoore@mgcoa.org
