My way A mixed bag of success
With brands such as Golf Care as part of its bag, John Woosey, MD of the JRW Group, explains the company’s emphasis on value for money and why Bernard Gallacher is his golfing hero
Where does the JRW Group currently stand in the market? We are unique in that we have several products that collectively make up the JRW Group. However, individually all our core products are leaders in their respective markets. Our golf insurance brands, Golf Care and the Golfers Club, are positioned first and second respectively. While our amateur golf tournament, The
Matchplay Championship, is the largest in Europe. With over 1050 courses, our GreenFree 2-for-1 golf product is also a dominant market leader. Our golf loyalty scheme, rewards4golf, has in
excess of 250,000 members, increasing at a rate of 6,000 per month. Last year, those members spent £15m with our retail partners, including £8m on golf retail products and £1.2m on golf travel. We’ve also recently launched
TeeTimeMarket.co.uk, a product which will assist golf clubs up and down the country to sell vacant tee times, and again we have high hopes for this latest brand.
How much of the market does the company lay claim to in the sectors in which its brands operate? It’s obviously very difficult to quantify but in terms of golf insurance, we’d estimate that our two brands currently account for approximately 60% of the individual golf insurance market. GreenFree 2-for- 1 golf vouchers, have approximately 50% of the discount voucher market and given rewards4golf is a totally unique concept, we’d argue that we have 100% of this market. The Matchplay Championship event is a slightly
different proposition as golfers tend to enter several events throughout the year, so it’s not a question of our event being chosen above another and visa versa. That said we’re delighted with the increase in participation numbers over the last three years, with the number of competitors increasing from 2,500 in 2008 to 5,600 in 2011.
Why have you chosen these particular brands? When we first started out over ten years ago golf was still very much an elitist sport. But as keen golfers ourselves we were almost certain that we’d find brands that could be developed to provide value for money. Tiger’s emergence at about the same time increased the sport’s popularity, and this matches up with our mandate of providing affordability. Our brands have flourished ever since.
Pro Shop Europe April 2012
What are the JRW Group’s greatest strengths? Our golf email database stands at 500,000, which should help ‘future proof’ our golf brands which is an invaluable asset when it comes to launching new products. We also value the strong relationships we’ve built with our golf retail partners and course operators. However, most importantly all key elements of
the day-to-day running of the business are retained in-house, which affords us total control.
What you do consider to be your company’s USP? I like to think we have a few of them, but ultimately it must be value. Our ethos is to deliver what we say we’ll deliver; on time; every time. And then we try to live up to it.
What are the group’s plans for the future? Is it on the acquisition trail or will growth be organic? Why is it going down that route? We’re currently seeing growth across all our brands and we have a clear strategy for growing the business organically but growth may also come from business partnering and acquisition. Essentially, if we come across a business with
similar characteristics to our own then we will certainly explore the opportunities.
What kind of relationship does the JRW Group’s brands have with their clients? We know our clients value our products, as they’ve stood the test of time and continue to expand The loyalty they demonstrate year-in-year-out is
testament not only to the strength and depth of the product range, but our customer service team. We have over 100,000 regular customers and it
can be difficult to treat everyone on a personal basis, but our team has a knack of making it look very easy.
In a business context, what have you learned from working in golf? That there are not enough hours in the day to achieve everything we want to do. Golfers are enthusiastic and diligent, which means you have to be thorough in your approach but move quickly, otherwise you’ll miss the boat. I’ve also learned that most people seem to think that working in the golf industry means that you’re out there playing golf every day. I wish this was the case, but it’s simply not true.
FACT FILE
Q: What have you got in your golf bag? Driver: TaylorMade Burner Irons: Mizuno Forged MX-23 Woods: Mizuno Putter: Odyssey 2 ball
What do you play off? 11
How often do you play? Twice a month on average, but its feast or famine; four times one week and then two months off.
What is your favourite golf course? Hillside. It’s a fabulous and traditional links course without the grandeur of higher profile venues on the North West coastline. Whenever I play there the sun always shines and the views are stunning.
Who is your golfing ‘hero’? I’ve got to say Bernard Gallacher, haven’t I? Not because he’s our Golf Care ambassador (honest) but because he’s an absolute gent.
Who would be your dream fourball and why? Jack Nicklaus: he’s still the greatest golfer of all-time. I fondly recall visiting my grandparents as a youngster during The Open, and watching on TV with intent every time he swung the club. Seve: such a character and could hit every shot imaginable. Darren Clarke: He always seems to have a story to tell, and I bet the 19th hole would be good fun.
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