It looks like the good old days are a thing of the past……
Being forced to switch to a virtual show format due to Covid last year, this week the 69th PGA Merchandise Show opens its doors again for an in-person show. In October show owners Reed Expositions and Jim Richerson president of the PGA of America announced that the 2022 PGA Merchandise Show would take place as an in-person event.
Many questioned why? When the announcement was made the United States was averaging between 80,000 and 90,000 new COVID-19 cases per day and in the Orlando area they are currently averaging 41,315 new Covid cases daily.
In previous years the traditional in-person show was very successful and important for sales and product launches. Looking back these were extravagant times with people buying, building relationships and most importantly selling. Some reps would write the majority of their business for the year during the show.
When the show was in its heyday you did not have big retail shops, buying groups, plus almost every golf shop was a single pro shop with their own buyer or buyers. Now the majority of sales or orders take place in the Fall as companies can’t wait till the end of January to see what is selling. This has resulted in fewer sales taking place on the current show floor and companies forced to try and figure out their ROI and justify their attendance.
The PGA Merchandise Show is expensive, very expensive. Some of the large companies could spend over a million dollars for their exhibit and many took pride in saying they had the largest booth or were best in show. The major golf companies were the anchor tenants for the show; Reed and the PGA of America made their money from selling the small 10 x 10 booths with a cost of around $10,000 all-in. The larger and notable golf companies were used to draw people in and this would benefit the smaller companies.
Ping was the first large golf company to question the benefits of the show back in the early 2000. They pulled out but eventually were lured back. However, other companies took notice and started to question the high cost and ROI. Then in 2018 TaylorMade decided to stop exhibiting and said they would support the PGA at the local level. Remember this was all before Covid.
Covid hit in 2020 and shut down almost everything world-wide. Nobody had ever experienced a pandemic of this magnitude and markets were unsure of what would happen next. Little did the golf industry know, Covid might have been the best thing to happen for the sport.
Everything was at a standstill at the start of the season in April. People had been locked down for months with many working from home and no social activities or entertainment. Then late May socially distanced golf courses were determined “safe” spaces and allowed to open up and courses could get back to business with restrictions.
Interest in the sport immediately followed.
Then, rounds began to surge and reached record levels. As a result, equipment, accessories and course product sales rose and the industry hit an all-time high. It was amazing to see the growth and all the new people taking up the game during a pandemic. Many people finally realized all the benefits that the sport of golf afforded them – social, exercise, play safely and be outdoors. The golf industry had no indication that this would be the biggest year yet for the recreational sport.
Now that The PGA Merchandise Show is back to its original format, the golf industry has not responded. Many companies decided to pause this year and not exhibit. The only major or notable golf companies exhibiting this year are: Adidas, Bridgestone, Antigua, Ecco, Greg Norman Collection. It’s going to be very light at demo day and in the hitting bays during the show.
Understandably many companies do not want to expose their company and employees to a Covid infested location. Most importantly many companies had record sales last year with no show. Now they question the benefits, the cost and their ROI. Does the show really help increase sales?
The PGA actually holds the show to benefit PGA professionals who head south to Florida, play some golf, take in a few educational programs and check out some new gear. Some buying still takes place but not as much as in the past. The show has turned more into a networking and relationship development event.
Once we get through this pandemic and get back to a new normal, whatever that might be, the PGA of America may have to look at a new show format, event or unique program to benefit and promote their members and the industry.
This year companies will have to evaluate how they want to support the PGA of American or maybe they will find they get more bang for the buck by promoting with local zones. If companies have another record sales season in 2022 can the PGA Merchandise Show in its current format remain relevant to the industry?
I am sure this year the PGA of American and Reed Exhibitions will be having some serious discussions on the future and benefits of the show. Everyone knows and could see from year to year the show was getting smaller with more companies pulling out. I believe Covid and the overall pandemic just brought many issues to light and now forcing changes.
We do not know the agreement between Reed Exhibitions and the PGA of America nor the agreement or contract with the Orange County Convention Center. How many years are left? Reed Exhibitions may try to spin all the positives from the show in their news releases and media coverage but face the fact, the world is changing; technology is transforming the way we do business and the PGA Merchandise Show will have to adapt to meet the demands of the industry.
Over the years the show has provided everyone with some grand memories but those were the good old days and now it’s time to make new memories.
