Headwear, one of the most consistent performers in golf shops across the nation, continues to surge with updated fashion elements, technical innovations and new fabric/color combinations and decoration techniques that can set a facility apart.
“There is an increasing demand for true custom, private label products in the green grass golf market. It’s extending into most categories – including headwear,” says Shade Headwear Co-Founder James Thompson, whose company was recently launched as a fully custom, private label supplier. “Clubs, resorts and events are recognizing the value in their brand's equity as opposed to promoting the supplier’s brand.”
Limited-edition, fully custom product is the biggest story for Pukka Headwear, which recently came under the same ownership as Imperial Headwear. “It’s about creating something no other retailer has,” says Ryan Nolz, Pukka’s National Sales Director. “If you look at headcovers, belts and other accessories categories, everyone is looking for what nobody else has, whether it’s the logo or something else, that speaks to their personality.”
Pukka drives this home by continuing to involve PGA of America Golf Professionals and their staffs in the design process so they all have a more of a stake in selling these singular styles. Golf shops are also encouraged to use words and artwork that will be recognized by those who have been to their facility – part of the IYKYK (“If you know, you know”) philosophy – or what Nolz describes as “something that links people to that course; a kind of branding.”
In the meantime, Imperial Headwear heads in a “bold new direction” for spring with unique fabric techniques and embellishments and a “commitment to high quality, sustainability and purpose,” says Dan Parenti, SVP of Product Development.
“Customers now expect more from their headwear and apparel,” he continues. “The 2025 Collection is our latest effort to provide superior products that resonate with a broad audience, emphasizing quality craftsmanship and meticulous attention to detail.”
Creative ornamentation also continues to drive Ahead (pictured below), whose spring lineup include woven patches, PVC (rubber) patches, GelZ (a gel ink printed applique) and the Trailblazer, a laser etched faux leather application. “Ahead’s continued leadership in art and domestic ornamentation options allows customers of all sizes to create a fresh and exciting headwear presentation for the upcoming season,” CEO Anne Broholm says.
Exclusive designs are what has drawn PGA of America Director of Retail Caroline Basarab to Richardson, the No. 1 selling headwear brand at Reynolds Lake Oconee in Greensboro, Georgia. “The design, with a structured front and a mesh back, took 50 years to create,” says Basarab, a two-time national Merchandiser of the Year for Resort Facilities. “It is offered in 50 colorful ways with limitless designs. The most popular is the leather patch decoration with our logo in various designs.”
Another rising headwear company is Branded Bills, which was founded a decade ago and has been embraced by the industry for its sense of creative branding and product innovation, according to Account Manager Charlie Coil. “About 70 percent of new golfers are non-avid. When they buy a Titleist hat, it’s going to sit in their closet until they take it out to play,” he says. “We create a story – a moment – so our hats being worn off the course as well, including by some country music stars. We are in 2,300 golf shops; I’d say we’re booming right now.”