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ANNOUNCEMENT Live Chat: Chris Voshall with Mizuno Golf

SuperStroke
gkeller813 said:
Thanks for joining us Chris, greatly appreciated! I have a couple of questions:

1. Usually the innovation in a club is very visible, but Mizuno is such a beautiful club that sometimes the innovative technology isn’t as in your face as some competitors. How is Mizuno looking to combat the idea that they are not innovative compared to others?

2. For those who are passionate about golf, they know Mizuno and the quality they provide. How do you reach out to those who aren’t as passionate and maybe more of just the weekend golfer?

3. Favorite non-kale green?
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1) You're totally ride, We try to hide a lot of the tech and make things super clean. As more and more people demo and get fit before buying, we hope the performance will outweigh the fact that we didn't make everything "in your face"
Also, the consumer is much more knowledgeable know thanks to places like THP.
We know we have the tech, we just want to make you look like a player too :)

2) We are always trying to expand our recognition from those non-core golfers. That's where we struggle, but we are getting more our there on social, hopefully on tour as well. Overall, it's going to be a slow burn as we're not going to drop the millions of dollars on TV ads, we'd rather put that into our product and build and every growing group of passionate players who have tried our stuff

3) Does the green freeze pop count?
 
How has the marketing aspect of golf changed? With so many golf youtubers now getting deals with golf companies, how is that new avenue for getting information to the consumer changing the use of advertising dollars. What brings in more revenue, a brand loyal youtuber or a pro playing a bag of Mizuno clubs?
 
Vosh68 said:

You’re a Data guy…do you really think that “no one” does, or that you’re just in the other statistical percentage??
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I ate a kale salad last night..
 
Jman said:
What is one iron design that you wish maybe had been held back or tweaked some more? Not talking just performance but could also be aesthetic, story, timing, whatever.
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Cool question here, too. Personally, I loved everything about the MP-25 and thought the cool, no paintfil look would be awesome. Something about it ended up looking a little "unfinished" to me though. And the small badge didn't pop as well as I would have liked. So I'd say those.
 
Vosh68 said:
1) You're totally ride, We try to hide a lot of the tech and make things super clean. As more and more people demo and get fit before buying, we hope the performance will outweigh the fact that we didn't make everything "in your face"
Also, the consumer is much more knowledgeable know thanks to places like THP.
We know we have the tech, we just want to make you look like a player too :)

2) We are always trying to expand our recognition from those non-core golfers. That's where we struggle, but we are getting more our there on social, hopefully on tour as well. Overall, it's going to be a slow burn as we're not going to drop the millions of dollars on TV ads, we'd rather put that into our product and build and every growing group of passionate players who have tried our stuff

3) Does the green freeze pop count?
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The correct answers were

Masters Green
THP Green
Money
 
JB said:
Placeholder question.

What is your favorite iron ever, that you were part of the design team on?
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I go back and forth on this one, but nobody wants a noncommittal answer, so I’m jumping in!
I’m going with the JPX900 Tour iron. It was an iron that came out and completely re-invented Mizuno’s player’s market philosophy. For the first time, it JPX got significant play on Tour and it was iron wasn’t the super traditional mirror chrome, very old school looking Mizuno. It was Fresh.

Oh, and it won a $h!tL0@d of Majors…..
 
Vosh68 said:
We know we have the tech, we just want to make you look like a player too :)

3) Does the green freeze pop count?
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Love that you want to make me look like a player, and honestly I'm drawn to Mizuno because of that look!

Yes, for this discussion we will count it!
 
cbaker2882 said:
How difficult has the woods market been for Mizuno in terms of trying to catch the top? What are the next steps to make sure that Mizuno is competing, and more importantly, available to test at stores. Every store I’ve ever been in has mizuno irons, but rarely if ever have anything to do with the woods.
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My man! Let’s get to PGA National already, right??
The wood market is a crazy one, and to be honest, one that Mizuno simply dabbled in for a number of years. Essentially, we would buy in an amount that we knew we would tell though quickly. It was more a support a category vs. a growth category.

Sense I changed my role, and Jeremy Galbreth took over his role, we have push a strategic push towards growth on the wood side. We’re made it a priority to invest more in the product, and push it harder. Hopefully that has been visible from the social media side and the Tour side.

Regarding distribution, that’s something that we have to earn. With each cycle and each launch it feels that we are getting in more and more stores and in bigger quantities. The awesome thing is that we are hearing demand from the retailers that do NOT carry our woods, so expect it to continue to grow.
 
donny475 said:
I had Kale IN my salad last night, along with Veggie Chicken as the protein
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I had it alongside a plate of meat cooked on the grill..
 
You get a chance for a quick 9 at Augusta, or 18 anywhere else in the world you want. Which are you taking?
 
What is your favorite competitive golf format?
 
BigDill said:
Chris,

How popular was the copper finish on the MP-20s? I really love the look and would love to see it offered in a wider array of options.
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The copper finish is awesome. The special edition set (that was supposed to ship this week, but will ship shortly thanks for this virus junk) sold out completely in less than 24 hours. (sold our retailers, but you could likely still get some).
We're not done with copper yet...it's am amazing material.
 
What's in your bag?
 
Vosh68 said:
My honest answer here, is that you should combo. Where you need the most control, get the blades. Where you need the most forgiveness, get the HMBs, where you need something in between, get the MMCs. The set was designed to mix and match like that.

Regarding the finish, that's one thing i love to talk about. We take so much pride in our quality that we make many things in shiny chrome. It's the finish that requires the most attention to detail. It hides ZERO defects (unlike satin, or dark finishes). We like to show that off on our product and that's why you don't ever really see too many variances from that idea.
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so to piggyback on this......MP20 line.....or JPX919 Tours......
 
Vosh68 said:
Cool question here, too. Personally, I loved everything about the MP-25 and thought the cool, no paintfil look would be awesome. Something about it ended up looking a little "unfinished" to me though. And the small badge didn't pop as well as I would have liked. So I'd say those.
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I have a set of the MP-25's i ordered with KBS C-tapers....LOVE THEM and they are the one set i have not gotten rid of, still pull them out.
 

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Vosh68 said:
The copper finish is awesome. The special edition set (that was supposed to ship this week, but will ship shortly thanks for this virus junk) sold out completely in less than 24 hours. (sold our retailers, but you could likely still get some).
We're not done with copper yet...it's am amazing material.
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I'm ready for Mizuno blue MP-20.
...or more copper
...or black
...or etc haha
 
obedt said:
Has the proliferation of combo sets made it a little more difficult in terms of inventory management for retailers? Is that a discussion that has become a bit of an issue, particularly smaller brick & mortar types?
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Awesome question. There was definitely a learning curve starting with the MP-18 on how to manage inventory and order raw heads.
From the Brick and Mortar stores, we fully encourage them to carry MINIMAL inventory, but have a fitting cart. Let the one on the wall be a show piece and LET US take the inventory on to build out your custom sets and give you more inventory turns. It's a win/win.
 
How do you continually reinvent the brand and offerings with more forgiveness or workability without losing that Mizuno feel? We saw tungsten being added across brands and models most recently, where do you think forgiveness will head in the future?

What did the decision process look like when Mizuno decided that putters will be brought out this year and how did the brand choose the three offerings? Follow suit of what works and what is desired in the market? Will there be additional putter designs launched?
 
OldeDude said:
I am intrigued with the MP-20 HMB irons, will probably test them if I ever get a chance. For a higher handicapper like myself (usually 17 - 19), do you see them as a potential fit?
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Absolutely give them a shot! The are surprisingly forgiving for their size and launch the ball nice and high. As always, GET FIT and let me launch monitor tell you which irons give you the best numbers.
 
How often do you refresh your JPX line, and what criteria do you use as new features and benefits
 
Canadan said:
I'm ready for Mizuno blue MP-20.
...or more copper
...or black
...or etc haha
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doesnt sound like black or dark grey are on the horizon
 
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