GolfTEC Media Kit 2016.indd
Transcription
GolfTEC Media Kit 2016.indd
OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN MEDIA KIT 2016 TABLE OF CONTENTS Company Overview 3 Historical Timeline 4 20 Year Infographic 6 Executive Biographies 7 Key Messages 10 TECswing Q&A 12 Club Fitting Q&A 13 Contact Information 15 OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN GolfTEC Media Kit 2 COMPANY OVERVIEW Founded in 1995, GolfTEC is the world leader in golf instruction and one of the fastest growing, most successful companies in the golf industry. Its fact-based approach to improvement benefits golfers of any skill level, maximizing performance and enjoyment of the game. 2016 is setting up to be a banner year for GolfTEC, as the company is on pace to break records for revenue, profit, total facilities, students, employees and coaches. This type of growth and influence over the past 20 years is unmatched in golf. Key GolfTEC Facts •Leading global provider of golf lessons; over 6 million lessons given •Nearly 200 locations worldwide, including North America, Japan and Korea •No.1 employer of PGA Professionals in the U.S. •Responsible for more than 26% of all private golf lessons given to core golfers in the U.S. •GolfTEC students have a 96% success rate; 7 shots is the average number of strokes dropped All GolfTEC students, regardless of initial skill level, follow the same proven system – a comprehensive approach that uses a mix of patented teaching technology and highly-trained coaches to help them reach their golf goals. The company’s systematic approach to game improvement involves “Five Factors”: •Fact-based Diagnosis •Sequential Lessons •Advanced Retention Tools •Video-based Practice •Precision-matched Clubs New for 2016 is the launch of SwingTRU Motion Study™, the most comprehensive motion study of the golf swing ever conducted. It includes detailed analysis of more than 13,000 golfers, from PGA Tour players to beginners, that pinpoints specific positions throughout the swing that directly correlate to success. The data is used in most GolfTEC lessons to help students understand how their body movements compare to the best players in the world and how these numbers can lead to improved performance on the course. The results are indisputable. With the finest Certified Personal Coaches, the leading technology and the Five Factors for proven results, GolfTEC delivers improvement for players of all skills, ages and genders. OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN GolfTEC Media Kit 3 HISTORICAL TIMELINE 1995 • • • • Company is founded by Clayton Cole under the name Driving Obsession Joe Assell is hired as the first teaching professional and manager Mike Clinton is hired as a teaching professional First location is opened in Denver, CO 1996 • Second location opens in Chicago, IL 1997 • Joe Assell and Mike Clinton purchase the company and rename it GolfTEC • GolfTEC opens third location in Chicago, IL 1998 • GolfTEC opens two locations – one in Atlanta, GA and one in Dallas, TX • $1 million in total sales $1 Million in Total Sales 1999 • GolfTEC opens one location in Denver, CO (6 total) 2000 • GolfTEC opens one location in Chicago, IL (7 total) 2001 • GolfTEC partners with Gart Capital Partners – GolfTEC’s largest investor 2002 • GolfTEC opens three locations – one in Dallas, TX, one in Denver, CO, one in Houston, TX (9 total) • GolfTEC receives patent for g-SWING technology 2003 • • • • GolfTEC partners with Golfsmith GolfTEC opens first Golfsmith co-location in Houston, TX $4 million in total sales GolfTEC hires its 50th Coach 2004 • • • • • • First franchise location sold in Phoenix, AZ First franchise location opens in Irvine, CA GolfTEC opens 12 locations (22 total) $6 million in total sales GolfTEC hires its 100th Coach GolfTEC does $1 million in sales in one month (August, 2004) 2005 • • • • GolfTEC opens 25th location in Houston, TX GolfTEC opens 16 locations (38 total) $10 million in total sales GolfTEC hires its 200th Coach 2006 • GolfTEC opens 50th location in North Richland Hills, TX • GolfTEC opens 24 locations (62 total) • $16 million in total sales 100 th Coach Hired $10 Million in Total Sales OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN GolfTEC Media Kit 4 2007 • • • • • • GolfTEC opens 38 locations (100 total) GolfTEC opens 100th location in Las Vegas, NV GolfTEC teaches its 1 millionth lesson $25 million in total sales GolfTEC ranked #24 in the Denver Business Journal “Top Colorado-Based Franchisers” GolfTEC hires its 300th Coach 2008 • $29 million in total sales • Joe & Mike win award for Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year • GolfTEC opens in Mexico 2009 • GolfTEC partners with Sports Illustrated Golf Group • $32 million in total sales • GolfTEC hires its 400th Coach 2010 • • • • • $37 million in total sales GolfTEC teaches 2 millionth lesson GolfTEC named to Franchise Times “Fast 55” GolfTEC named to the Inc 500 list of Fastest-Growing Private-Companies GolfTEC opens in Canada 2011 • $46 million in total sales • GolfTEC does $1 million in sales in one day (August 25, 2011) • GolfTEC teaches 3 millionth lesson 2012 • • • • • • • $28 million in total sales (thru 7/12) GolfTEC teaches 4 millionth lesson GolfTEC opens in Japan GolfTEC opens in Korea GolfTEC releases update to g-SWING technology GolfTEC launches the My Pro To Go app GolfTEC hires its 500th Coach 2013 • Going on 4% National Ad Fund • GolfTEC teaches 4 Millionth Lesson 2014 • 196 Total Centers (including Korea and Japan) • 667 Total Coaches (including Korea and Japan) • GolfTEC Teaches 5 Millionth Lesson 2015 • GolfTEC celebrates 20 years • GolfTEC has its best sales year to date 2016 • • • • GolfTEC Launches SwingTRU Motion Study Strategic Alliance with the PGA of America GolfTEC Teaches 6 Millionth Lesson GolfTEC opens 200th Center OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN GolfTEC Media Kit 5 TOTAL LESSONS GIVEN at GOLFTEC: 6 MILLION of Helping People Play Better Golf WORLD LEADER IN GOLF INSTRUCTION 113K IN THE PAST 20 YEARS: 200K WEEKLY REACH 1.03M IMPRESSIONS VIDEO VIEWS OPENED 450,000 DENVER, CO 192 CENTERS IN 87 CITIES 37 STATES & 4 COUNTRIES First Location and Corporate Headquarters IMPROVED GOLFERS 90M SWINGS CAPTURED ON VIDEO 266M SWING MOTION MEASUREMENTS 14,000 GOLFTEC STUDENTS HAVE A 96% SUCCESS RATE LESSONS GIVEN 826,000 IN 2015 IN THE 227,642 TECfit CLUB FITTINGS PER YEAR 2,484 1995 2000 2005 442,093 2010 RS ON AVERAGE IMPROVE BY: E Y A L P STUDENT HOLE-IN-ONES SINCE 2009 625 CURRENT PERSONAL COACHES OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN GolfTEC Media Kit 6 EXECUTIVE BIOGRAPHIES Joseph Assell President & CEO, Co-Founder Honors & Awards 2008 Ernst and Young Entreprenuer of the Year Top 40 under 40 in the Golf Industry Bill Straughsbaugh Award Member of the GolfTEC Board of Directors Member on the GolfTEC Associate Board PGA Member since 1999 Background Since the Company’s inception, Joe Assell has provided the leadership and skill necessary to grow GolfTEC into the leading provider of golf lessons in the world. His guidance has helped take the company from a one employee operation recording $90,000 in sales in 1995 to employing more than 650 individuals globally, including over 400 PGA Members and Apprentices, with annual sales exceeding $80 million. This incredible growth is showing no signs of slowing, as GolfTEC is on pace to set records in 2016 for revenue, profit, lessons given, number of employees, number of facilities and number of students. Since 2010, the company has increased annual revenue by 73%. As CEO, Assell oversees strategy as well as multiple divisions within the company including finance, legal, sales, technology, and marketing. He leads a ten-person senior management team in executing the strategic development and growth behind GolfTEC. Over the past 20 years, Assell has been recognized with numerous awards including: 2015 Colorado PGA Golf Professional of the Year, 2008 Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year, Colorado PGA Teacher of the Year, Colorado PGA Bill Straughsbaugh Award, Denver Business Journal Top 40 under 40 and Golfweek Magazine Top 40 under 40. In addition, Assell serves on the National PGA Marketing and Member Benefits Committee as well and the National PGA Golf 2.0 Get Golf Ready Committee. Locally, he is on the Finance Committee of the Colorado PGA and the Associate Board of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Metro Denver. A cum laude graduate with a B.B.A. in Marketing from the Professional Golf Management Program at Mississippi State University, Assell won the school’s Young Alumni of the Year award in 2002. He currently resides in Greenwood Village, CO with his wife and two children. OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN GolfTEC Media Kit 7 EXECUTIVE BIOGRAPHIES Jeremy Beck Sr. Vice President of Operations Honors & Awards 2005 GolfTEC Manager of the Year 2014 GolfTEC Veteran of the Year 2014 Denver Businss Journal Top 40 Under 40 Nominee PGA Member since 2001 PGA Colorado Section Member Engagement Committee Background Jeremy earned his B.S. in Business from the Professional Golf Management Program at Ferris State University in 1999. As a GolfTEC instructor, he has given over 10,000 lessons and been named GolfTEC 2001 Coach of the Year. In 2005, Jeremy was named Manager of the Year and subsequently joined the GolfTEC executive team as the VP of operations. In that role, he has utilized his front-line best practices to create the systems to allow GolfTEC to successfully scale up and manage its growth. In 2014 he was named Headquarters Veteran of the Year. He currently oversees Instruction Quality, Coach Training, Corporate Center Operations and Facilities. A PGA member since 2001, Jeremy continues his involvement with Ferris State University by serving on the Executive Committee for its Professional Golf Management. Steve Bauerle Sr. Vice President, Business Development Honors & Awards Boys & Girls Club, Associate Board Member Founder of 14er Golf Speaker at the European Golf Leadership Summit Presenter at the Adventure Summit PGA Member since 1999 Background Steve graduated with a B.B.A. in Marketing from the Professional Golf Management Program at Mississippi State University. He was elected to PGA Membership in 1999. He has been with GolfTEC since 1999 and has been directly involved in the company’s rapid growth over that time. He has played an integral role in the company’s franchise operations, helping to develop the franchise model’s systems and processes. He has also been actively involved in the company’s expansion into overseas markets. Steve has been directly responsible for developing several new and innovative revenue streams for the company. These have included GolfTEC Events, which enables corporate clients to provide their customers with unique interactive golf experiences to help drive brand loyalty. He has also instituted GolfTEC Travel which provides golf enthusiasts with access to the world’s premiere golf destinations. Steve is the owner of seven GolfTEC franchises in Minnesota and Ohio. OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN GolfTEC Media Kit 8 EXECUTIVE BIOGRAPHIES Paul Wise Sr. Vice President of Revenue and Marketing Honors & Awards Evans Scholarship MBA & MS, University of Colorado National PR & Digital Campaign Awards Background Paul spent nearly a decade working at a local Colorado golf course, which provided him with diverse and valuable golf experience, including an Evans Scholarship to attend the University of Colorado. While in college, Paul interned with the USGA®, Colorado Golf Association®, Pepsi® and Nike®. Paul was named Outstanding Graduate for his MBA–Change Management degree, and also holds a Master’s degree in Management & Organization from the University of Colorado. After graduate school, Paul spent the next 15 years in Corporate America leading marketing, sales and new product development teams for global brands including CenturyLink® (telecommunications), Gates® (automotive & industrial components) and Schrader® (automotive sensing). Paul joined the GolfTEC team in early 2015 to propel brand and sales growth across core and new product offerings, as well as enhance existing marketing, sales performance, club fitting/merchandising and call center functions. Paul has won numerous industry awards for creative advertising programs, global public relations campaigns and governmental affairs initiatives. Andy Hilts Vice President of Education Honors & Awards 2015 & 2008 Colorado PGA Horton Smith Award 2005 Colorado PGA Teacher of the Year PGA Member since 1999 Master PGA Member since 2005 Background In 1999, Andy graduated from the Professional Golf Management Program at Mississippi State University. While teaching full time between 1999 and 2005, Andy gave over 11,000 golf lessons. After five years as a PGA Member, he achieved the status of PGA Master Professional in Instruction during June of 2005, and was named the Colorado PGA Teacher of the Year, followed in 2008 by the Colorado PGA Horton Smith Award. Since 2005 he has trained and mentored GolfTEC’s 600 Certified Coaches at their 200 GolfTEC Improvement Centers. Golf Digest has listed Andy as one of America’s Best Young Teachers for the last two years. OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN GolfTEC Media Kit 9 KEY MESSAGES Mission At GolfTEC, our mission is to help people play better golf. Core Philosophy From millions of lessons given, we know that: Fact-based coaching, supported by technology, leads to measurable improvement. There is no “one” technique that works for everyone, but there are acceptable ranges based on tour averages that will help every golfer play better. An on-going, comprehensive approach creates faster, more lasting results than an occasional lesson. An experienced coach with deep understanding of your game will deliver consistent improvement. Video practice is an effective and essential part of the improvement process. The proper clubs, custom-fit for your swing help you play better golf. This philosophy has a 96% success rate. OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN GolfTEC Media Kit 10 KEY MESSAGE Business •2015 was GolfTEC’s most successful year-to-date: •On pace to set records for revenue, profit, lessons given, total facilities, number of students and number of Coaches •Revenue is up 73% since 2010 – outpacing well-known companies inside & outside of golf segment •2015 Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Private Company List (3,764) •Celebrating 20th anniversary (founded in 1995) •More locations than any golf retailer, lesson provider or club-fitter; nearly 200 facilities •Continued international growth; currently in U.S., Canada, South Korea and Japan •750,000 lessons taught in 2015 •14,000 TECfit club-fittings taken per year; leader in high-end club-fitting Teaching •Has taught over 6 million lessons taught worldwide; dramatically more than any other single entity in golf. •Largest employer of PGA Professionals in the world •Nearly 430,000 students since 1995 •Proven results: •96% success rate among GolfTEC students •The average GolfTEC student will drop 7 strokes from their score •All Coaches attend rigorous multi-week certification at GolfTEC University to master the analysis of golf mechanics, the technology of the GolfTEC system and the most productive teaching techniques. Technology •Patented TECswing™ system provides video combined with motion measurement of each swing, quantifying mechanics and helping coaches take a fact-based approach to instruction •More than 90 million swings captured on video •266 million motion data points recorded •Foresight® launch monitors measure launch angles, spin rates, club speeds and more •All lessons recorded and available to view through the online Player Performance Center or GolfTEC TO GO app SwingTRUTM Motion Study •Most comprehensive study of the golf swing measurement data ever conducted •Analyzed data from 13,000 golfers, ranging from PGA Tour players to beginners •Identifies key movements in the swing correlated to better performance •Over 225 terabytes of data, nearly equal to the Library of Congresses multi-media section or the entire library of HD movies on iTunes® •Example of how “Big Data” will help golfers improve; glimpse of how athletic performance will be analyzed in the future in all sports OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN GolfTEC Media Kit 11 TECswing Q&A What is TECswing ? TM It’s our advanced analysis and feedback tool for teaching golf. It’s unique and especially powerful because it combines video analysis and motion measurement in real time. Being able to both see the swing on video and at the same time measure the range of motion of key swing elements allows the GolfTEC Coach to see, understand and analyze the swing like never before. It gives us an incredible amount of data. We compare it to a doctor having both an X-ray and an MRI—there’s so much critical information to work from. TECswing also uses audible beeps to provide instantaneous feedback to the student. These provide a quick way to either train the proper movement or alert the student when the movement is wrong. For example, if a student turns their hips too far in the backswing, the coach can set a beep to go off when the hip measurement goes beyond a specified amount. That immediate feedback—turn the hips too far and you hear a beep—is very effective in changing movement patterns. How is the new TECswing different? The hardware components, cameras, monitors, even the sensors that the student wears remain the same. But the software has been updated and improved significantly. We have another 18 measurements added to the 6 we already have. And we’re not simply measuring the size or amount of movement; we are also measuring it’s speed. So besides the turn, tilt, and bend of the shoulders and hips, we’ll measure the movement up and down, in and out, and side-to-side of the shoulders and hips. That’s a total of 12 movements. Plus we’ll know the speed of each of those 12 motions for a total of 24 measurements. Not only will we see how those body parts move, we’ll know how quickly they move with a frame-by-frame measurement on the video screen. Can you use TECswing outside? Our new TECswing software, along with our new TECswing GO mobile app, gives our coaches more knowledge and insight into the student’s swing outside on the course. It also gives them the best tools in the golf industry to teach the facts about the swing no matter where you are. So where do you go from here? We tell our coaches that we are on the cutting edge. They can read all the golf books they want by the great players and teachers, but there’s really not much new in any of them. All they are reading is someone’s thoughts on the grip or plane or turn. It’s just the same stuff stated in a different way and—this is important— through that person’s own bias. But what we are doing at GolfTEC, and what the new TECswing software helps us do, is learn things that nobody knows yet. We’re going to start making all sorts of discoveries about the golf swing and golf success and we’re going to share them with the world. We are truly excited about that! OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN GolfTEC Media Kit 12 TECfit ® CLUB FITTING Q&A Why is club fitting important? There is a direct correlation between the clubs we play and the way we swing. If a player has a club that is improperly fit for his or her swing, it will force them to make adjustments. Custom-fit clubs reward good swings with good results, while improperly fit clubs make even a good swing produce bad results. Let’s say your golf club is too upright for you. If you make a good, on-plane swing, the ball may go left due to the club’s lie angle. So you’re being penalized even when you make a good swing. Standard, off-the-rack clubs often miss on most specs for the average golfer. For example, lie, loft, length and shaft flex can all be an issue with stock clubs and all of these factors hinder your performance. That’s why we highly recommend that all golfers, no matter their skill level, should get custom fitted by a highly trained expert. Who does the TECfit club fitting at GolfTEC? At GolfTEC, our TECfit club fittings are conducted by coaches who are certified both in fitting and instruction. This is incredibly important because the person fitting you must understand the relationship between your clubs and your swing. Whether you take lessons or not, you’ll want to get fit by someone who understands this. What makes the TECfit process unique? Our fact-based, unbiased process creates a precision match for each golfer, which means there is very little chance they will be unhappy with the results. Other fittings are often pretty quick: You hit a couple of shots, the fitter asks how it feels, and that’s about it. Where are the facts? Where’s the data? And how do you know he’s not trying to push you to a particular brand? We don’t work like that. TECfit is extremely thorough. It uses a full 90 minutes, to gather the data, generate the recommendations and let the student make the final decision. It all starts with the coach talking with the player to learn what they wants to achieve. This goes hand-in-hand with the coach knowing the player’s game. But even if you’re not taking lessons from a GolfTEC coach, he is going to ask about your ball flight, your physical limitations, brand preferences, what you’re trying to accomplish, and so on. It’s important to know the player’s expectations. Next, we take measurements, determining the optimal length, lie, shaft flex, grip size, all the obvious things. But we also use our technology to capture swing data, information such as launch angle, spin rates and ball speed. We plot all shots to see how they cluster, looking at the ones that did the best side to side as well as long and short. We look at yardage consistencies, patterns from particular clubs, and we measure descent angle, how steeply the ball is coming down at the end of the shot: We want to make sure the ball will stop on the green and not roll off the back. It’s not just about distance. The player hits several shots that are fed into our computers and crunched by our software. OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN GolfTEC Media Kit 13 CLUB FITTING Q&A What does the software do? The software, which was created by Swing Labs, takes all this data—and there’s a lot of it—and narrows the search for the best clubs. There are thousands of possible clubhead and shaft combinations out there: You’d have no idea where to begin without this software, which cross-references your data with all the options and identifies the top models that will optimize the performance of your swing. From those we choose 3 to 4 to test. Some of that narrowing is based on the client’s preferences, particular models and brands, how the club looks and so on. The software works with what each manufacturer has in its on-site fitting cart, so we can turn the recommendations into a club and immediately put it in the player’s hands. We primarily work with the top four equipment companies—TaylorMade®, Ping®, Callaway® and Mizuno®. Here’s the most important thing: The software takes a totally unbiased approach. It doesn’t prefer one brand over another. It doesn’t care how much inventory the store has. It crunches your personal data and, without preference, precision-matches the best clubs for your swing. But that’s not the end of it. Once the list of clubs is narrowed down and you start hitting them, the computer measures how you perform with each one and then ranks them based on overall performance. The student doesn’t always choose the number-one performing club, but they have the chance to look at, feel and hit the actual clubs that were recommended. So there are no questions about what works and what doesn’t. Once the student and coach have chosen a club and its specs, it gets ordered. The vast majority are custom-made to the exact specifications we’ve determined for that golfer. Do the clubs ever need to be tweaked? We do some of that before the order goes in. For example—and again, this is something that your coach would know because he understands your swing and your game—we believe that lie angles often should vary throughout a set. You may need an upright lie with your irons, but we’ll order the wedges with a flatter lie so you don’t pull them left. Many golfers think that, by default, they should have driver, 3-wood and 5-wood. But in many cases, depending on their driver specifications, the first fairway wood might be a 4- or 5-wood or even a hybrid. This will be based on the swing data as well as discussions between student and coach. We also encourage our coaches to consider mixed sets within a brand. A lot of golfers, particularly better players, might want high-performance clubs in the short irons but more forgiving long irons, so we’ll order the 7-iron through wedges in one model, the long irons in another model. We stay within the same brand to get the same shaft type and match other characteristics of weight and feel, but there are lots of choices within companies, and we make the most of them. Has fitting changed with the recent explosion in adjustable clubs? Adjustability is a hot trend, especially with drivers. However, we suspect that many golfers aren’t changing the characteristics of their drivers, not because they shouldn’t but because they don’t understand how or why. Our coaches can help the golfer dial in the correct specs, tweaking the club as needed to ensure the optimal fit. Can club fitting save the golfer money? Many clients come in with a preconceived idea of what they want. They say, “My friend is playing this club and loves it, so that’s what I want.” Because club fitting is so personal, most of them learn that the club they think they wanted may not really work for them. So the process eliminates the mistake of buying the wrong club. Just because a club works well for one player does not mean it will work well for everyone. It’s not a one-size-fits-all process. That might be the best lesson we can teach the consumer-golfer. OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN GolfTEC Media Kit 14 CONTACT INFORMATION For additional information, please contact our PR partner Buffalo Brand Invigoration Group Bill Feidler (703) 615-4034 bfeidler@buffalobig.com Kristin Mesick (703) 940-3576 kmesick@buffalobig.com OLD EXTERNAL SIGN NEW EXTERNAL SIGN GolfTEC Media Kit 15