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Could somebody from NICKENT respond to this?

SuperStroke
i wish nickent the best.over the last few years i've played or hit several of there products. very good stuff from drivers, hybrids,irons, putters. i have a pipe putter thats puts a great roll on the ball.
as we all know it's difficult times.
it seems like every morning going home from work i hear on the radio about a company laying people off. i'm thankful i have a job.
 
Yeah, emac, I agree. I was actually really happy that they went this route. I never like to see layoffs and I imagine that is what was going to come.
 
Being in the automotive industry, I can completely understand what's going on at Nickent. I'm very glad that they are not going under, and pulling back from PGA Tour sponsorships is very understandable.

Look at how many other companies have been pulling out of their traditional sponsorships and cutting way back on the amount they spend on advertising in general. With the current realities in the marketplace, everyone is reassessing where they can get the most "bang for the buck" and cutting excess expenditures to weather the storm.

I look forward to the market's recovery and seeing companies like Nickent come back stronger than before as people *hopefully* start to realize the value of the product they are making.
 
Not to sound stupid, but I guess this means that Quinney is no longer a NICKENT staffer?
 
I believe that is correct LB, atleast for the time being.
 
So, just to clarify, when Nickent says they are, "pulling out of the PGA Tour" they mean that they will no longer be paying people to use their clubs, but those people are still able to use those clubs, correct?
 
That is correct Bake.
 
Ok, just making sure. When they simply say they are pulling out of the Tour, its kind of a vague explanation of exactly whats going on.
 
Agreed. They will be on the forum a few times this coming week, and I am sure will have more information to come.
 
It sounds more like its a matter of sales being down and not be able to afford to pay people to use their stuff.
They are facing the same problems that a lot of other companies are facing.
 
It's kind of wierd though, isn't it? I don't pretend to be a business guy, but I thought the purpose of the sponsorships was to put the brand before the eyes of the consumers, which should create more revenues than the cost of the sponsorship. I don't think they believe that PGA sponsorship expenses are not well spent; for a golf equipment company, getting PGA Tour players to play the equipment is probably the best return on the advertising dollar available. Thus, this move suggests to me they are in a precarious short term position -- in other words, for now, their #1 concern is to stay afloat, but once liquidity is assured, they will be able to afford to take the long view and spend advertising dollars aimed at generating profits over time.

Sorry, just me theorizing aloud probably for my own entertainment. Again, I'm not a business guy, so I really don't know what I'm talking about. Carry on.
 
WSE,
In some ways you are correct. However what people fail to realize is that being on the Tours is not just about paying the players. It is also about having tour truck access and putting green access to the players etc...Those all cost money and it costs money each and every week.

I think putting the clubs in players hands is a great return on investment SOMETIMES. Nike stays lean and mean for the most part and does not try to sign everybody under the sun because they can afford to pick and choose because of Tiger. Whereas Taylormade and Titleist are known to take just about anybody. Titleist pays more players than anybody with TM following.

I do not believe that Jeff Quinney has ever sold a golf club. Obviously that is my opinion. He gets virtually no TV time and nobody gets to see the clubs in his hand. I think they should have went back after Nitties, but that was just me. I think if they spend their money on retail penetration rather than the Tour right now it helps them short term and in turn will help them get back on tour.

Many companies have made it without paying players. Not always club companies, but so many companies have done so. The future is iffy for a lot of the smaller companies, so we will just have to see.
 
Thanks for the explanation JB. There's no doubt that Nickent absolutely needs to get their equipment into many more stores. That's the biggest problem you hear about on these forums. I guess I didn't stop to think about the collateral costs associated with sponsoring a PGA Tour player. You make a good point there.
 
WSE,
I had NO IDEA about that until this last week.
 
worst_shot_ever said:
Thanks for the explanation JB. There's no doubt that Nickent absolutely needs to get their equipment into many more stores. That's the biggest problem you hear about on these forums. I guess I didn't stop to think about the collateral costs associated with sponsoring a PGA Tour player. You make a good point there.
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Last weekend, I was chatting about this with the Head of Golf at our club. He said the pro shop doesn't carry Nickent, because it's not well known and there isn't much demand for it. We can always special order it...

So, how do you go about creating demand? Demo days? Reach out to stores/teaching pros directly? Create some sort of not-too-expensive, repeatable special event?

What marketing I know is all self-taught and focused on service, not product, but Nickent needs to get creative and do something to set itself apart. Without spending exhorbitant amounts in the process.
 
Agreed Claire. They need Northeast and Southeast penetration badly to get into stores and pro shops. Most around us sell all of it, but many of the stores around FL do not carry it. The problem with all of these companies, is that it is up to the reps to get it in there, and stores are just not picking up a lot of new lines. My club is going to start carry the hybrids only because all of the pros there have starting playing them.
 
ClairefromClare said:
Last weekend, I was chatting about this with the Head of Golf at our club. He said the pro shop doesn't carry Nickent, because it's not well known and there isn't much demand for it. We can always special order it...
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I hear golf shops say they can "special order" stuff all the time. What exactly does that mean? You mean you can go on the internet and order it just like I can and then jack the price up? Awesome! What great service! :clapp:
 
Grogger,
My thoughts too, however sometimes when you work with a fitter, they will order the stuff for you and get it at the same price as most stores. Plus as a member at our club we get 10% off purchases, so it can save money sometimes.
 
I agree, Claire. A much bigger retail presence would likely do wonders for Nickent right now. If they could get their foot back in the door at a place like Dick's - and get reps to the stores to SHOW the difference so the employees steer people towards their clubs - that could open them up to a huge number of sales.

With a PGA player sponsorship, if your player(s) aren't getting face time on the broadcasts it's basically wasted money. Just look at Nike. Prior to signing Tiger Woods, did anyone know about their clubs? Look at them now, one of the biggest golf manufacturers in the world. If Nickent were able to sign a truly big name, it would be worth it but having "no-names" that don't get exposure serves no real purpose.
 
Here is my 2 cents...........

I love Nickent. I use pro 4dx irons, 4dx evolver, 4dx hybird, bag and several Nickent hats ;)

I applaud Nickent for this decision. They made the correct choice IMHO. They could of easily laid off people to keep their tour presence but they made a good business decision instead of letting pride or egos rule. They need to re-think and refocus their marketing. I would love to see Nickent get into Dick's/Golf Galaxy. The teaching pro at my local GG loves Nickent ( has a few 4dx hybrids in his bag ) but can't pimp them cause they don't sell them.

I'm with JB, Quinny, give me a break, there has to way better ways to spend your money. Golf sales is so image driven it makes me sick. Some players may sell to some people but most just want to have something that is cool ( being pimped every commercial break on golf channel or during a golf tourny ). That comes a high price and results in 1k iron sets and $500 drivers. No thanks, give me something that works, at a fair price point, and I'll pump my ego when I give a beat down on the course :alien2:

Until Nickent can get more places to give them some push they will struggle. I have had several people call my clubs "nice knock offs", even the assistant pro at really nice course in Orland made a similar comment. Only one retailer carries Nickent around me, yet 70% of the people that come to me for advice on clubs end up buying Nickent in some form. My league partner if the perfect exception. He is a 18 handicapper and is a complete Callaway clone. He wants a new driver and has hit my 4dx several times quite well but he is going to go buy a Callaway iMix driver this week after hitting it off a mat into a net a golf galaxy. He'll get a great driver, for twice the price, and still be an 18 handicapper................
 
Osahar said:
Nickent were able to sign a truly big name, it would be worth it but having "no-names" that don't get exposure serves no real purpose.
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I dunno ... I see Nitties mug all over the place these days. A key part of any business is good decision making and the ability to spot talent. I think Nickent missed the boat on that one (since I saw him sporting a ridiculous all white hat yesterday ... NOT a good look):

FBR+Open+Round+Three+D858vkNowJel.jpg
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Nitties would have been worth keeping. If they could ever get in with either one of the youngsters that is getting huge press or one of the guys that's been around and is consistently winning it would be a major coup. Imagine if Nickent could have someone like Mickelson pimping their clubs? :D
 
Nitties was not their choice. HE CHOSE to go to Callaway and sign a deal. This from an interview in the last week I believe.

Q. So why haven't you got some sort of equipment deal or sponsorship deals with guys like Titleist or Callaway?

JAMES NITTIES: I'm with Callaway bag, ball, and club, I wanted to keep my set -- I didn't want to sign -- there's a lot of guys that come out on Tour and sign for like -- just the dollar signs.

I'm like, I'm not worried about -- it's not like -- I actually was in debt the start of this year, but I knew -- I'm not going to sign just for easy money if it's going to jeopardize the way I play.

I just wanted to keep my whole set, the set I've been using, because I know if I play well, that side of it will sort itself out. Obviously with the economy, there wasn't a lot of guys -- I came out of Q-School. No one -- I haven't done that much apart from here and there. You can't blame guys that aren't going to offer me big dollars because I'm just on the PGA Tour. It's not like it used to be.

So with the economy and -- Callaway, I was pretty happy with the deal they gave me, and I only went to the ball because I found it really good. And I'm with Oakley for clothes apart from hat, and Oakley is awesome. I want to take the old man out with golf a little bit and bring the sort of edgy side back into it, and Oakley is definitely -- great team of people and awesome clothes. It's really good.
 
what kind of clubs is he (Nitties) using?
 
This is just my opinion but until Nickent gets their clubs into the hands of well known tour winner & actually wins a couple events with those clubs, they will struggle. Golfers are so fickle when it comes to club purchasing, many folks are driven by who plays what. How many folks buy Nike clubs simply because Tiger does, or Callaways because of Mickelson? Doesn't matter if those clubs are totally wrong for their game as it's all about the image.

Who wants to go to the course & be seen with a bag full of clubs nobody has ever heard of? That's almost as bad as playing with Acuity's or Maxfli's.
 
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