There can be few businesses that have capitalised on The Ryder Cup opportunity better than Asbri Golf, the branded accessory specialist and distributor based in Pontypridd, just outside Cardiff. Asbri won a licence to produce Ryder Cup golf accessories for the Welsh market, and while that particular project is building steadily towards a crescendo at The Ryder Cup itself, which will unfold at Newport’s Celtic Manor Resort, October 1-3, the benefits of being a Ryder Cup licensee are reaching far beyond the borders of Wales.
“Without a shadow of doubt, The Ryder Cup has promoted Asbri Golf to a global audience,” starts Paul Williams, Asbri’s sales and marketing director. “Once it was announced that Wales would be hosting The Ryder Cup we saw an opportunity to create a Welsh golf brand, and the first business plan was drafted with a view to simply servicing the Welsh golf industry. The leverage of The Ryder Cup, though, has enabled us to expand our distribution worldwide. Distribution has steadily grown and we export to around 20 countries at the moment.”
To illustrate the point, Asbri has been integral to the Ryder Cup Wales/Visit Wales stand at the last five PGA Merchandise Shows in Orlando. Asbri’s presence in Orlando has enabled the company to develop its distributor partnerships, the result being that Asbri’s export business now accounts for 30% of the company’s turnover. It was at Orlando that Asbri was introduced to the USGA merchandising team, and Asbri is now an ‘authorised merchandise vendor to the USGA’. Asbri Golf products are now bearing the 2010 US Open Pebble Beach logo and they are currently on sale via the 2010 US Open website.
“We also have an American distributor called Proactive Sports,” adds Williams, “and the plan is to push our Cresta Collection through various avenues in the US. In Europe the brand is becoming increasingly well recognised, and we have very good distributors in Spain, Portugal, France and the Netherlands among other countries. The US market is something like five times the size of the UK market and it is a bit more difficult to crack, but we are expecting some positive results from the PGA Show, which just shows the impact The Ryder Cup can have on a small Welsh business.”
Collectors’ items
Asbri’s official Ryder Cup collection is compact, and features shoe bags, pouch bags, head covers, golf towels and an item that has become something of a signature product for Asbri, its Pitchmaster.
“The Ryder Cup collection is selling extremely well, and in particular there is our Pitchmaster, which is quite unique,” says Williams. “It is a retractable pitchfork and it is exceeding all sales targets. Like all our products it is designed by Asbri – nothing that we sell has been bought in. It is having unique products that enables us to do so well.”
Beyond The Ryder Cup collection, the Pitchmaster is being stocked by 577 golf clubs around the world (and counting) and it has been taken on by over 1,200 corporate accounts. It is impressive numbers such as these that have contributed to Asbri Golf’s sales figures rising by 35% in 2009 from 2008.
“In the recession, with the business conditions we have to operate in at the moment, that is a fantastic achievement,” agrees Williams. “We are just trying to manage the growth at the moment. We will be finding new premises this year, and probably employing two or three new pairs of hands. Managing the growth of the company is one of the biggest challenges we are facing.”
Now in 2010, the year of the Wales Ryder Cup, Asbri’s sales figures are set to make another leap forward. The company is also looking to develop its distribution business, which has already seen it collaborate successfully in Wales with brands such as Glenmuir. Understandably, Williams describes Asbri’s expectations this year as “very significant”.
