2006

Ryder Cup 2006 Report The K Club

The Ryder Cup is over. Long live The Ryder Cup!!!

As the 36th trans-Atlantic golfing clash goes into its ‘after-party clean-up’ mode, Ireland has yet to come down to earth from a feast of golf that offered over a billion viewers worldwide a feast of entertainment.

High emotion, lush landscapes, competitiveness, drama, heartbreak, heaving crowds and heroic sporting achievements were all on offer in big portions.

And we were there…



Glenmuir made a bigger commercial impact for this year's Ryder Cup than any other in its 19-year sponsorship of the European Team. The Irish were unfailing in their hospitality and they also dug deep in the Official Merchandise pavilion to stock up with Glenmuir shirts and tops to remind them of the greatest golf event ever to come to the Emerald Isle.

By the Saturday it was apparent that to avoid disappointing the thousands of Ryder Cup faithful that would eventually still be streaming through the doors of the Official Merchandise pavilion until past the closing ceremony, new supplies would need to be ordered in.

In addition to sales the company reports positive engagement with the media, players, club members and even the charity Enable Ireland, that the company helped to gather a large donation in exchange for tickets to the International Pavilion on the final day.

As well as supplying outfits for the European Team, Glenmuir crested shirts were the apparel of choice for hundreds of support personnel, from the European Tour to referees, media centre staff, official physiotherapists and the Ryder Cup personnel themselves were clad in Glenmuir as well.
    

"Our focus going forward from this is to maintain the excitement and emotional connection that many of the public gained for the game and channel it through to the trade," affirms Bough. "Through the winter months and beyond the prospects for apparel brands such as Glenmuir are exceptional. Orders for Autumn Winter and Spring Summer 2007 are up because retailers understand that club golfers will invest in looking like a Ryder Cup champion, because at least they can look and feel good while they're learning to play like one. You can get into less trouble with a Glenmuir performance top than you can with a Tour flex outsize driver, so retailer stocks will be high from here on in.

"There has never been a Ryder Cup that can compare to this for us," concludes an exhausted Andy Bough from Glenmuir. "The fact that we sold out our entire stock is a bonus that sits above massive awareness and goodwill generated, as well as the feeling that the Ryder Cup 'high' will just go on and on and on."

The entire European and Scandinavian golf community will be reveling in this for a long time to come, Andy predicts – emotionally and commercially.