Next Up: AGM Retail Conference & PGA Merchandise Show

by Desane Blaney, AGM Executive Director

Time to "re-focus, re-energize and re-invent." And, there's not a better place to start than at the annual gathering of the industry. The newest collections, products and services will be unveiled this week at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida.

The AGM Retail Conference kicks off the flurry of activities on Wednesday with an outstanding line-up of seminars and speakers. The very popular Product Preview follows the conference and gives members an opportunity to view the offerings of over 85 Vendor Partners prior to the opening of the show floor.

If you are in the business of golf, I look forward to seeing you there.

In this issue of the AGM e-Tailer:

• Message from the AGM President Ken Morton, Jr.
• AGM Orlando Retail Conference Schedule
• Back to Basics Retailing by Lisa Langas
• AGM/PGA Members Garner Top Awards
• Golf Datatech Report by Suzie Phillips
• National Rounds Played Report and Key City Specifics
• New Members
• Member News

Click here to view this month's AGM Photo Gallery

Message from the AGM President

Dear AGM Vendor Partner and Merchandiser Members:

Whew! If you receive this letter, my fourth as your President, it means you've survived the worst. Economic experts with more knowledge than me are saying that the worst of this economic malaise is behind us and if we can start to edge this unemployment number down below 10%, we should be on our way as a nation again. From a retailers perspective, there is no doubt that this year has been more challenging in the retail business than any year before - at least in my 20 something years in the industry.

If there's a good piece of news, it's that our AGM golf shops are doing better than the national averages, proving the fact that better educated buyers and merchandisers do a better job for their shops. With detailed merchandising books, multiple exclusive seminars on DVD, private on-line educational opportunities, outstanding regional networking and educational opportunities, exclusive offers from our Vendor Partners, amazing merchandising calendars and more - the AGM has made us better at what we do. The AGM member must still do key things to make themselves successful such as attending buying shows, looking beyond the products that are brought to us by reps, taking advantage of off-price opportunities, stretching those margins, watching those price points carefully, creating exciting new promotions, keeping customers intrigued, watching those expenses intensely and regularly communicating with our peers in the industry to make sure those trends and indicators we're seeing are correct.

The Association of Golf Merchandisers continues to push the envelope. We have much more planned in 2010 - all in our effort to continue being "The Educational Voice in Golf Merchandising." Our new AGM promotional and merchandising calendar should be hanging on your office wall already, you should be signed up for the finest AGM Education Conference we've ever put together. We have a team of videographers on their way to Orlando to tape exclusive education opportunities that we'll be sending out on DVD shortly after the PGA Merchandise Show. We have a brand new Merchandising Manual that is just weeks away from being unveiled and we're busy putting together a slew of educational opportunities across the country.

If you are attending the AGM Education Conference and/or AGM Product Preview and Reception, be sure to also attend Golf World's 100 Best Golf Shop Celebration. The AGM has partnered with the Golf World Magazine on the longtime and respected 100 Best Golf Shops Awards by assisting with the selection. Whether you're a winner or not, it will be a fun celebration filled with photos of golf shops, some special awards and some great music from a Billboard music charted band, One Flew South. If you like music from the Eagles, you'll love these guys - they're terrific.

The Product Preview will feature over 85 different AGM Vendor Partners who will showcase a sampling of their lines and share some of what is new for their brands in 2010. There is no other networking event like it in our industry. It's a MUST attend for any buyer.

This is also a time where I would like to give thanks. First of all, I would like to give thanks to our Vendor Partner members. There is no doubt that this is a challenging time and we GENUINELY appreciate the support they provide. Without their financial support to the AGM and their partnerships with our golf facilities, we could not fund the programs that make us better merchandisers and retailers. Thank you.

Secondly, I thank all our Merchandiser Members. Only your involvement in the AGM makes it a value for the membership as a whole - the sharing of ideas and the collection of concepts such as our Front Nine Awards and local seminars remain the core of this organization. The AGM will double its membership this year with the the addition of new student members. I encourage you to be as active as you can and share your fresh and new ideas with us.

I also owe enormous thanks to our Regional Directors and Executive Board - specifically Darcy Ryan Lyberger, Vicki Bernstein and Tracy Moffatt. Their commitment to the AGM and to the well-being of our industry is an inspiration. Each of you have become my best "buds" in the industry and I thank you. Also, I would like to give Diane Blackmer, our "staff do-everything" at AGM headquarters a big thank-you.

I finish with a small comment about our Executive Director, Desane Blaney. She is the ultimate human dynamo. The Association of Golf Merchandisers provides more quality resources to its members than other organizations with ten times the budgets and ten times the memberships, yet she pulls off amazing things for all of us with each passing year. Her attention to detail and passion for the successes of our golf shops and for our Vendor Partners is something I still aspire to attain. Perhaps there's something in that Buffalo water that gave her superhuman powers? That's the only explanation. Desane is the heart of our organization and she does it every day with grace and determination. On behalf of all of you, I thank her.

I wish each of you the best of luck this year. Together, we've weathered the worst and are better prepared and more educated because of it.

Golfingly yours,

Ken Morton, Jr.
VP Retail & Marketing - Haggin Oaks Golf Super Shop
President - Association of Golf Merchandisers

AGM Orlando Retail Conference Schedule

We look forward to seeing our members and guests at our Annual Retail Conference in Orlando. The educational seminars and networking opportunities are a great way to start the year. The conference activities include:

• 9 to 12 noon - Conference registration and member voting will be held outside Rooms W330 ABC
• 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. - Member Roundtables: Public, Private, Resort, Off-Course
• 10:30 to 11 a.m. - Annual Member Meeting
• 11 to 12 noon - Opening Session: Three Steps to Increase Your Profit Margin - Tom Shay
• 12 noon to 1:30 p.m. - Awards Luncheon, Front Nine Awards, The State of Retail with James Dion sponsored by: Abacus, Antigua, Barr Display, Callaway Golf Apparel, Club Satellite Network, Cutter & Buck, EP Pro, Fairway and Greene, Greg Norman Collection, PGA Golf Exhibitions, TaylorMade-Adidas and Zero Restriction
• The afternoon program includes the following educational seminars:
• Power Promoting Ideas - Tom Shay
• Pricing - Are You Short Changing Your Golf Shop? Becky Wilkins
• Retail Straight Talk with James Dion
• Resumes - What You Need to Know to Stand Out! Gina Hall
• The Magic 8's of Selling - Tom Shay
• Hello Social Marketing! Sheryl Bindelglass
• Interviewing Techniques for Today's Job Market - Gina Hall
• Closing Session: Ten Trends that Will Make or Break Your 2010 - James Dion

Golf World will recognize the 100 Best Golf Shops and honor special award categories. Marty Hackel and Mike Johnson will make these presentations immediately following our closing session.

Catch a preview of what's new from over 85 AGM Vendor Partners at the Product Preview from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Refreshments will be hosted by Golf World and PGA Golf Exhibitions. Music provided by Decca Recording stars, "One Flew South."

All events will take place on Wednesday, January 27th at the Orange County Convention Center, Upper Level, above Hall F. Not registered yet? Register on-site.

Back to Basics Retailing

by Lisa Langas

Success can be defined in a number of different ways when it comes to golf retailing. Your shop may boast impressive retail sales above industry averages, be known for an amazing club fitting and special order business or perhaps provide impeccable customer service that members rave about to all of their friends.

While all of these are great achievements, the true measure of success for the golf shop owner is ultimately the profitability of the business. The bottom line is, if you didn't have a golf course, would your retail business be viable? Are you and your staff prepared with correct retail methodologies implemented year to year, month to month and day to day to maximize the businesses' profits? More times than not, we need to take a step back and review basic retail principals in order to accomplish these goals.

Back to Basics Retailing focuses on defining your facility. Many times the retail identity is not consistent with the rest of facility. Understanding private vs. public, moderate vs. high end, customer demographics, seasonality and competition all need to be factored into how you operate a successful golf shop business. Clearly understanding these factors will help direct you to the correct assortment of products, visual display standards, pricing policies and level of customer service for your target customer group at your facility day in and day out.

Once you have identified who you are, it is important to determine if your vendors fit your brand. Evaluating the performance of vendors you are currently carrying is a basic review process to ensure they are in line with your overall retail goals. Do they offer multiple price points, are they broad enough to fit core and peripheral products, are they financially sound and do they service your account as you need them to? The answers to these questions will help you to determine the correct vendors to partner with and identify new vendors which fit your profile and financial success.

The second focus in Back to Basics Retailing is the key important concept of initial markup and markdowns. There are many ways to establish retail pricing with various markups. Unfortunately these methods do not take into consideration specific profit goals and expenses of an individual business. There is a simple calculation to determine the correct amount of markup needed to meet profit goals and control the erosion of markup from markdowns. Applying the correct amount of markup will establish the accurate original retail prices for maximum sell through to ensure profitability is not eroded by an inappropriate markup plan.

It is important to maximize markup by controlling the amount of markdowns spent to increase sell through of slow moving inventory. Markdowns are a necessary component of any retail business. Establishing a monthly markdown budget, identifying inventory which is subject to markdowns and tracking the results of markdowns taken will increase maintained margins through the year.

It is easy to lose sight of basic retailing practices in a busy golf shop operation. Implementing the concepts outlined above, will provide the foundation for a profitable year focused on meeting your customers expectations via correct product assortment and retail pricing.

Lisa Langas is a member of the AGM Education Team and a Golf Shop Consultant. Contact Lisa at llangas@comcast.net

AGM/PGA Members Garner Top Awards

Congratulations to AGM members who were recently named top award winners by the PGA of America. Once again, three AGM members received national recognition as PGA Merchandisers of the Year: Caroline Basarab Dennison of the Sea Pines Resort for resorts, Brian Morrison of Olympia Fields CC for private clubs and Nevin Phillips of Mahogany Run GC for public facilities.

PGA Section Merchandisers

• Joe Angelino - Grand Cypress Resort, Orlando, Florida
• Adam Augustine - Mark Twain GC, Elmira, New York
• Robert Bartley - Camelback GC, Scottsdale, Arizona
• Tom Davidson - Circling Raven GC, Worley, Idaho
• Joe Galan - Great Gorge CC, Hamburg, New Jersey
• Jeff King - Mission Hills CC, Mission Hills, Kansas
• John Marquardt - Paradise Pointe Golf Complex - Smithville, Missouri
• Mark Mongell - Cherokee Town & CC, Atlanta, Georgia
• Dawn Neujahr - Champions Run - Omaha, Nebraska
• Jeff Phillips - Wellesley CC, Wellesley, Massachusetts
• Jason Prendergast - CC of Jackson, Jackson, Mississippi
• Pat Stein - Wild Rock, Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin

Golf Professional of the Year

• Cary Cozby - Wichita CC, Wichita, Kansas

Horton Smith Award

• Jared Anderson - Fremont GC, Fremont, Nebraska
• Susan Roll - Carlsbad Golf Center, Carlsbad, California
• Chip Clover - Brookfield CC, Clarence, New York

Bill Strausbaugh Award

• Tory Hayes - Birdies & Tee's Golf, Osage Beach, Missouri
• Eric Dietz - Rochester Golf & CC, Rochester, Minnesota
• Jared Anderson - Fremont GC, Fremont, Nebraska
• Cary Cozby - Wichita CC, Wichita, Kansas
• Chip Clover - Brookfield CC, Clarence, New York

Retail Holiday Sales Report

by Kathy Grannis of the National Retail Federation

In the end, retailers got the best Christmas present of all: a holiday season of gains, not losses. After a year that saw holiday sales decrease by 3.4 percent, retailers bounced back in 2009. According to the National Retail Federation, retail industry sales (which exclude automobiles, gas stations, and restaurants) for December rose 2.3 percent unadjusted year-over-year and fell 0.5 percent seasonally adjusted from November.*

As a result, preliminary 2009 holiday sales, which combine the full months of November and December, rose 1.1 percent to $446.8 billion, surpassing NRF's projected decline of 1.0 percent.

"With an eye on managing inventory and maintaining lower price points, retailers did a tremendous job of planning for the holiday season," said NRF Chief Economist Rosalind Wells. "While the consumer appears to be spending again, double digit unemployment numbers will remain an impediment to maintaining this momentum."

Apparel was a big driver for retailers as clothing and clothing accessories stores for December increased 7.0 percent year-over-year and dipped 0.6 percent from November. Sporting goods, hobby, book & music stores also performed well with December sales increasing 3.9 percent from last year and up 1.6 percent month-to-month. Health and personal care stores continue to be a bright spot in retail with year-over-year December sales increasing 4.8 percent and monthly gains of 0.8 percent.

The weak housing market continues to impact the sale of home furnishings with December sales of furniture and home furnishing stores decreasing 3.5 percent from December 2009 though increasing a slight 0.3 percent from the previous month.

*All year-over-year numbers are unadjusted and month-to-month comparisons are seasonally adjusted.

This article was reprinted with permission from the National Retail Federation of which the AGM is a member.

Golf Datatech Report

by Suzie Phillips

Total Units & Dollars
On & Off Course Shops Combined
Total Year to Date Through November 2009
2009 Compared to 2008

Product	Total Units	Total Dollars	Average Price
GOLF BALLS	(000's Doz.)	(000)'s Omitted	Per Dozen
2008	18524.74	$500,220	$27.00
2009	16573.14	$462,277	$27.89
Percentage Change	-10.5	-7.6%	3.3%
WOODS	(000's Units)	(000)'s Omitted	Per Club
2008	4301.05	$724,035	$168.34
2009	3837.64	$622,696	$162.26
Percentage Change	-10.8%	-14.0	-3.6%
IRONS	(000's Units)	(000)'s Omitted	Per Club
2008	7101.77	$509,628	$71.76
2009	6240.14	$429,456	$68.82
Percentage Change	-12.1%	-15.7%	-4.1%
PUTTERS	(000's Units)	(000)'s Omitted	Per Putter
2008	1245.60	$170,440	$136.83
2009	1037.13	$141,631	$136.56
Percentage Change	-16.7%	-16.9%	-0.2%
WEDGES	(000's Units)	(000)'s Omitted	Per Wedge
2008	1009.70	$93,497	$92.60
2009	996.47	$92,224	$92.55
Percentage Change	-1.3%	-1.4%	-0.1%
GOLF SHOES	(000's Units)	(000)'s Omitted	Per Pair
2008	3112.11	$262,050	$84.20
2009	2833.73	$235,681	$83.17
Percentage Change	-8.9%	-10.1%	-1.2%
GLOVES	(000's Doz.)	(000)'s Omitted	Per Glove
2008	1060.17	$162,497	$12.77
2009	968.52	$147,947	$12.73
Percentage Change	-8.6%	-9.0%	-0.3%
GOLF BAGS	(000's Units)	(000)'s Omitted	Per Bag
2008	1213.28	$145,264	$119.73
2009	1031.55	$129,772	$125.80
Percentage Change	-15.0%	-10.7%	5.1%

For more detailed reports covering retail sales for golf products including apparel contact Golf Datatech, sphillips@golfdatatech.com or call 888-944-4116.

National Rounds Played Report & Key City Specifics

Rounds were up by 15.8% for the month of November 2009 and down by -0.2% year-to-date. The findings represent 3,670 reporting courses.

Percentage Change in Rounds Played Volume

2009 vs. 2008	November	Year-to-Date
U.S.	15.8%	-0.2%
Public	17.6%	0.1%
Private	10.7%	-1.3%
Pacific	-1.0%	-0.2%
Mountain	0.4%	-1.4%
West North Central	70.3%	3.2%
East North Central	69.9%	0.7%
South Central	9.7%	-1.1%
South Atlantic	4.2%	-2.0%
Mid-Atlantic	50.4%	0.4%
New England	38.8%	0.6%

Key City Specifics

2009 vs. 2008	November	Year-to-Date
Washington-Baltimore	16.3%	-0.7%
Orlando	2.1%	-2.8%
Naples-Ft. Myers	1.6%	-0.2%
Atlanta	6.4%	-7.8%
Hilton Head	-8.5%	-0.3%
New York City	41.8%	-2.0%
Chicago	74.0%	0.8%
Philadelphia	31.4%	-3.7%
St. Louis	40.1%	3.7%
Houston	-2.6%	1.1%
Los Angeles	-1.1%	-1.6%
San Diego	-2.5%	0.7%
Phoenix	2.5%	-1.9%
Las Vegas	19%	3.1%
Seattle	-27.6%	-4.1%

The National Rounds Played Report and Key City Specifics are a joint effort of Golf Datatech, National Golf Foundation, PGA of America and the National Golf Course Owners Association.

New AGM Vendor Partner Members

The following golf companies joined the AGM during this past month. Please support these new members as well as the many other AGM Vendor Partners. Click here or go to the Vendor Partners page to view all of the fine offers and services available for AGM members.

Jun

Lisa Horne, CEO

Jun is an apparel company that adds a glamorous but functional twist to women's golf and "every wear" apparel. The Jun collection, with respect to the traditions of golf, adds a classic Old Hollywood twist with a touch of innovation. The Jun's Every Wear Collection can be worn everywhere... work, shopping, dinner, movies, or traveling. Jun's innovative design is for women on the go who don't want to sacrifice style for comfort. All of Jun's collections are made in the USA.

For additional information, visit their website at www.designsbyjun.com or call Lisa at 877-237-4813.

Sunice Golf USA

Howie Ellis, Executive Vice President

Sunice golf products incorporate the essentials of golf outerwear, including featherweight fabrics and noiseless garments that allow for full-range of movement and protection against the elements.

For additional information, visit their website at www.sunice.com or call Howie at 781-544-0416.

New AGM Merchandiser Members

Please welcome the following merchandisers who joined the professional ranks of the AGM this past month. For contact information on all of the AGM members, please visit the Members Only pages at www.agmgolf.org.

Chelsey Rae Bond

2009 AGM Scholarship Recipient, Student, Mars Hill College - Mars Hill, NC

Amanda Brown

Merchandising Manager, Shoal Creek Country Club - Shoal Creek, AL

Chria Card

PGA Director of Golf/General Manager, Turnberry Resort - Turnberry, Ayrshire, SCOTLAND

Kyle Cassin

2009 AGM Scholarship Recipient, Student, PGM Program at Mississippi State University - Starkville, MS

Todd Cernohous

PGA Director of Golf, Blackstone Country Club - Peoria, AZ

Mark Gerhardt

2009 AGM Scholarship Recipient, New Mexico State University - Las Cruces, NM

Mary Lowe

Retail Manager, The Golf Club at Chaparral Pines - Payson, AZ

Joseph Mendez

General Manager/COO, Radley Run Country Club - West Chester, PA

Troy Pare

PGA Head Professional, Wannamoisett Country Club - Rumford, RI

Casey Ryan

Golf Shop Manager, Evanston Golf Club - Skokie, IL

Member News!

• Bobby Jones Apparel - has named John Kirwan President. An industry veteran, John had previously been associated wth Polo Ralph Lauren.
• Chris Heyn - is the new CEO of Summit Brands, parent company of EP Pro, Fairway and Greene and Zero Restriction.
• Matt Elmes - has accepted the position of Regional Manager and Key Accounts Representative for PUMA The company recently re-structured their North American business model.
• Peter Millar - introduced Todd Martin as the President of the Golf Division. Todd had previously served as President of Fairway and Greene.

The AGM eTailer is published monthly for the members of the Association of Golf Merchandisers. To submit news, articles and information for an upcoming edition of the eTailer - please contact us at (602) 604-8250 or click here.

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