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“Winning the Highly Commended Frontier Award is great recognition for our small but expanding company and we are really delighted,” said Managing Director Mark Thornton (right) at Cannes |
US. 2005 TFWA World Exhibition is sure to go down as the best show on record for US golf specialist Duty Free Golf. Maybe it had something to do with the numerous new contacts the team made? Or perhaps it was the attention it received for the new Bobby Jones golfing apparel? Well, it certainly had something to do with its Speciality Concept of the Year accolade at the Frontier Awards, in which the supplier was Highly Commended.
“It was an exceptional show for us this year,” enthused Duty Free Golf Managing Director Mark Thornton. “We had meetings with around 50 new contacts, which was just amazing. We also presented one of the category’s most luxurious clothing brands and to top it off we won an award – what a week!”
Commenting on the increase in new business interest, Thornton considered how the attitude towards the category was finally changing. “There is a distinct shift in the way retailers now view the sports category, in particular golf. The positive reaction we have had is a reflection on how the duty free industry is now ready to embrace the golf category and to increase the sports areas to make way for quality golf brands.”
Bobby Jones apparel launch
Together with the latest ranges from Callaway and Pebble Beach, Duty Free Golf also introduced the Bobby Jones apparel collection to the duty free market at the Cannes show. The range of premium clothing items includes jackets, shirts, and polo-shirts for men and women, as well as a range of fine accessories “Bobby Jones is one of golf’s enduring legends of the 1930s and the range of clothing and accessories was warmly received by both our existing clients and new contacts. We can see that this brand is going to be popular in duty free and we look forward to working with our retail partners to develop a successful offer,” added Thornton.
Frontier fever mounts
By mid-week, tension started to ripple across the Duty Free Golf stand in Cannes in anticipation of the Frontier Awards evening. Having entered the Speciality Concept category, Thornton was anxious to know the results. “I knew we had a strong entry because we could show how our concept has been introduced successfully in many key locations in duty free. Winning the Highly Commended award is great recognition for our small but expanding company and we are really delighted. But we are not stopping here; we are coming back next year for the big one!”
Comments from the Frontier Awards judging panel summed up the success of the innovative concept Duty Free Golf offers. One judge said: “Duty Free Golf has created a unique product offer and successfully created a niche category in travel retail. The offer has been well thought out for any size of space, from existing store fixtures to stand-alone stores. Coupled with selling margins of up to 70%, this makes it an attractive offer to the travel retail industry.” Another added: “This demonstrates a great flexibility in adjusting to the market place and regional specifics.”
Summing up his thoughts on the TFWA event, Thornton enthused: “It really has been a great event for us. We had great meetings with our existing customers and the feedback on sales results are very positive. We are in talks with several key retailers to expand the area dedicated to golf and now with many new business opportunities to explore, 2006 is going to be a very busy and exciting year for us.”
For details, contact Mark Thornton, email mark@dutyfreegolf.com
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