Can You Make Any Money With A Golf Shop ?

speeder757 · September 23, 2006

Need Help !!!!

I have a friendly discusion with a friend of mine. Can you make any money with a golf shop ?? I know their are alot of variables. I am just looking for a general consensus. seems like a tough business to me.

Gxgolfer · September 23, 2006

Brick and mortar is very hard unless you have a specialty. Ebay is killing most of the small shops.

retep · September 23, 2006

in mclean, virginia, which is a DC suburb, there were two custom shops nearby that both closed. on the larger side of things, there is golfdom and several washington golf mini-chain stores nearby. Then there is my favorite, merrifield golf, owned by a very funny korean guy who has great prices, special orders things he doesn't stock, and will tell you that you are not good enough for the shiny clubs you bought/want to buy from him. His niche is the korean market since he speaks korean. So i guess if you know your way around repair, have a niche, not too many competitors, decent marketing /word of mouth, it might be do-able... I figure i'll help the little guy since a couple of boxes of e6's at 2-3 $/less a dozen helps him more than giantstorediscounter.com.

JHR · September 23, 2006

Brick and mortar is very hard unless you have a specialty. Ebay is killing most of the small shops.

This post is funny to me, i was just talking to a friend of mine that is in town visiting me.

He is one of the owners of the once great store PutterMonster/ Golfmonster in Vegas. We just had this conversation last night when talking about the store closing.

Even all my purchases could not help him. When they were a specialty store just on the web they were able to make money, when they opened a retail store, they could not make nearly the money as when they had the specialty stuff, and they performed club work there as well.

He stated that 7 golf shops closed up in Vegas since he had. Like Ryan said you need a specialty or you need to sell a ton of stuff.

We have a store here in Michigan named Carl's Golfland, they are #1 or 2 in the country for private stores, but they have 75% of the market here, Golfsmith is surviving because they have the product for the guys that like to build their own, but if they were not a national chain, they would not make it here.

I would say the golf business is a tough way to make a living.

jdtoyou · September 23, 2006

in mclean, virginia, which is a DC suburb, there were two custom shops nearby that both closed. on the larger side of things, there is golfdom and several washington golf mini-chain stores nearby. Then there is my favorite, merrifield golf, owned by a very funny korean guy who has great prices, special orders things he doesn't stock, and will tell you that you are not good enough for the shiny clubs you bought/want to buy from him. His niche is the korean market since he speaks korean. So i guess if you know your way around repair, have a niche, not too many competitors, decent marketing /word of mouth, it might be do-able... I figure i'll help the little guy since a couple of boxes of e6's at 2-3 $/less a dozen helps him more than giantstorediscounter.com.

I grew up in McLean and now live in Sterling. They did open a little chain/franchise, Golf Ect., here is Sterling. But other than that it's Dick's/The Golf Shop, Washington Golf and Golfdom. There is also a decent little shop ouot in Leesburg, Leesburg Golf.

speeder757 · September 23, 2006

I guess i was right then. Tough way to make a living. Almost impossible. Seems like Ebay has killed the golf business, much more so than the big retail chains, as they sell for the same price as everybody else.

My friend wants to open up a golf, tennis, baseball, soccer, and softball sports store. I was telling him i just dont know if you can make a GOOD living at it. The town he wants to open it up in has 50,000 people in it, with basically no sports shop except Big 5, which is all discounted 2-4 yr old stuff.