KEYNOTE INTERVIEW


A Times article from 2004 championing natural turf over artificial surfaces


playing golf’. So I put my idea to John over a cup of tea and a biscuit in his back garden and he came on board the following day. Pitchcare was launched in July 2001, roughly one year after the idea had come into my head, and was officially launched to the industry at that year’s Windsor show.” The 2001 Windsor show was the first time I met Dave and his enthusiasm for his project was clear for all to see. Always in the background was John with his ‘sensible’ head on. It is a partnership that has endured, even though the two of them didn’t always see eye to eye.


“It was the same at Wolves,” says Dave.


“John would occasionally insist that a game went ahead when I clearly thought the opposite! But that was our strength as a partnership.” “John and I were on a peppercorn salary and, whilst we were haemorrhaging money, I was determined to win. We were getting great feedback from the members, with the message board being particularly popular. For the first time, groundsmen and greenkeepers had somewhere they were able to talk to each other.”


“Some detractors even labelled us ‘Bitchcare’ because of the various and occasionally heated discussions that were taking place on the message board. Needless to say, the comments and discussions back then were nothing like the vitriol that now exists on social media, but I


guess public criticism stings!” “Whilst we had an online shop, we were only selling a mixed bag of around seven or eight products. Yet, slowly but surely, we were gaining in popularity as more members joined us and word started to spread. We started to attract a few advertisers and, with the aid of a £50,000 loan from the Department for Trade and Industry (through NatWest), and £20,000 from the Black Country Chamber of Commerce, we were able to keep going. And I’d maxed all of my eight credit cards into the bargain, all of which had £15-20k limits.”


“It took us three years to realise a paper profit, but we were still paying off loans and credit cards. It would be another five years - around the time of the financial crisis of 2008 - that we entered the black; enough to buy John and I a pint, at least! Back then, it was a real financial


rollercoaster, but I was


From left to right: The first issue of the Pitchcare magazine in June 2005, Dave in 2007, Dave in 2009 and demonstrating the effectiveness of Helly Hansen workwear with Laurence Gale


16 PC June/July 2020


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