During my time as a golf professional and merchandiser, I have learned that displays tell the story of the golf shop and directly impact the member’s desire to make a purchase. Customers typically judge a product within 90 seconds of interacting with it, and about 60 percent to 90 percent of their judgement is based on color. The importance of selecting the right colors starts during the ordering process, and we always keep in mind how each line and color story will display in the shop. We also try to ensure colors work with the season; one of our favorite displays is creating a more neutral/natural color story for the fall and tying it into hunting and football. These are big draws in the south where we are, and tying our products into other activities away from golf is always a good idea.
When it comes to displays, we always start with the one front and center in the golf shop. From a customer standpoint, that’s the focal point – the first visual they see when they walk in – and we want them to feel engaged from the start. Altogether, there are four focal points in the shop, and when we get a new collection in, we feature it on the front/center display. As another new collection arrives, we move the previous one to one of the other focal points to keep things interesting. The shop needs to have a flow: sometimes it’s very linear, and other times it’s a circular pattern, encouraging them to mingle more, especially as we get into the holiday season.