The future is bright. Now stand up, take a bow, and pat yourself on the back.
Over the past couple of years, you have had to endure constant changes, restrictions, and shutdowns. Throughout all that you pivoted and re-invented your business several times over and each time you got stronger and more resourceful. It hasn’t been easy, with long hours and sleepless nights, but you were creative and dedicated to keeping the operation going, staff employed and members and guests
engaged.
Take a moment and reflect on your accomplishments, your resilience and, as an industry, your ability to come together and support one another through sharing ideas and best practices.
As we move into summer with some renewed energy and the hopes of a season without restrictions, we breathe a small sigh of relief and believe we are moving towards more normal times.
Sure, we still have challenges we are going to need to combat but let’s face it, none of these are new to us. We have faced staffing shortages and business obstacles for decades, so let’s take a step back and reflect on all the great things that we, as an industry, have accomplished during the pandemic.
As an industry we had to reinvent ourselves and literally create different ways to deliver our services and engage our members and guests. We have a very long list of creative ways that we were able to provide an experience to the members
and guests, while generating revenue and employing some of our staff through difficult times.
We had drive-thru Mother’s Day Brunch that replaced the traditional buffet. We created online portals to automate and simplify the ordering process for take-away orders. We created new outdoor dining spaces to meet the demand when we were forced to offer outside dining only.
Some of the other cool things that were created were DIY meal kits, virtual events such as wine tastings and even cooking classes via Zoom. And for golf events we enhanced oncourse food action stations that replaced the traditional awards dinner.
Whatever your success story was, celebrate it and, where possible, keep it going, enhance it, grow it and embrace it. Just because the restrictions are lifted doesn’t mean we need to stop all the great new services/revenue streams that were developed.
Out of necessity members and guests have developed new habits and routines over the last few years that have kept them largely out of the clubhouse, so we need to break these habits and get them back into the clubhouse. Not just for the health of the business, but for the health of the membership.
A large part of the reason why people join a private club is because of the social aspect that the club offers. This has been lost during the last few years, so how can we get the social element back in the club? This is especially important for new members of the club that joined over the past few years. The new members need to develop roots within the club by creating a large social circle.
Developing golf and food and beverage events that allow mix and mingle opportunities is going to be key. Have golf events that either have them sign up in twosomes or as singles so they can be paired up with different people that they may not know. This may have been a process that was tried prior that never took off, but with coming out of lockdown and forced isolation I think you will find more acceptance in 2022 for this format.
Create food and beverage events that are not your traditional dinner with everyone sitting at a table of 8. Have it where there are action stations around the room to allow casual conversation, or if it is an event with a plated dinner maybe have long communal style tables seating 16-20.
Another possibility is to have a progressive-style dinner where couples change tables for each course, so they are sitting with different people throughout the evening. It’s been a few years since we have had to put on large events, so have fun with it and be creative.
Too often in the past we got stuck in a rut when it came to annual events. We would offer the same format and same menu because that’s what the members expected.
I think many people during the pandemic took a look at their lives and reflected on the things they missed and what they would do when it was all over. Let’s face it, we have been locked up long enough and most people are ready to get out, socialize and try new things, especially if the new things offer a sense of life pre-pandemic or something even better.
Look at this season as a fresh start. Think outside the box! Let’s make sure COVID doesn’t become the divide in the membership. Let’s put a positive spin on it and make it the thing that pulls the membership closer together. This can be the silver lining that you were looking for.
Celebrate the fact that we are on the other side of a time that I think most of us never thought we would ever see. Take all you have learned – your renewed energy and new outlook – and make your clubhouse the place your members can’t wait to get back to.
Let’s make this a season to remember for all the right reasons!
