When a relatively unknown American, Chez Reavie, sank his final putt on 18 at this year’s Canadian Open Championship there were at least two very ecstatic fans in the gallery.
Chez Reavie wins Canadian Open
The winner was not the likes of Weir or Ames. The Canadian media did not get their much coveted front page story nor did the partisan crowds find the ending they were hoping for.
Yet there was still a very real link to this country and it came by the way of a small upstart apparel company and two young fashion conscious entrepreneurs who are attempting to change the way golfers look at fashion.
On the day that PGA rookie Chez Reavie captured his first PGA Tour win the logo on his ball was Titleist, the label on his shirt read Quagmire. Who is Quagmire you might ask? Well, simply stated, they are a burgeoning Mississauga based apparel company owned and operated by Geoff Tait and Bobby Pasternak.
The tag line reads, ‘not fit for the fairway’ which on the surface seems a little strange seeing as this is in fact a golf apparel company. But then again this is a lifestyle brand and being a little different is all about, well, being a little different.
So the history goes, the two (Geoff & Bobby) met four short years ago on a golf fantasy trip. Geoff was the teaching pro and Bobby the councilor. On that trip they toured the state of Florida with thirty kids, played the likes of Bayhill, the TPC at Sawgrass etc. and more importantly took notice of the fact that the kids on the trip were all wearing regular brands to and from the golf course – skate, surf, leisure, not golf.
So the two, armed with a little anecdotal evidence, ambition and passion, decided why not create a golf brand that kids could wear on and off the golf course. “The sort of stuff that we’d feel comfortable wearing,” offers Geoff. And so, past be prologue, goes the genesis of Quagmire Golf.
Targeted originally and specifically at the younger generation, the brand and company has grown, and perhaps ‘grown up’ over the past four years, tripling its sales each year in the process, while catering to the market demands. “The sizes got a little bit bigger, the colours got a little bit tamer, and rises got a little bit safer and the line is now able to cater to a larger demographic,” adds Geoff.
“People often ask us what our demographic is, but it’s hard for us to put an age on the line, so we just say it’s for the young and the young at heart,”continues Bobby.
Year one saw fifteen styles, an Ontario focus and fifteen shops which included deals with the likes of Hamilton Golf and Country Club, St Thomas and Rattlesnake to name a few. With sales coming in and a little credibility under their belts they tested the western market in year two where the response was phenomenal. By year three they were nationwide and are now, via the recent addition of twelve reps, beginning to make inroads into the US market as well as a recent course account in Ireland.
“Guess you could say we’re global,” quips Geoff jokingly. [laughter] They both smile. And it’s easy to see that these are two guys enjoying what they are doing, doing it well and realizing their success along the way.
The company expects the growth rate to continue into 2009 as the after effects of the Open victory, the number of sales reps, new infrastructure placement as well as access to big corporate programs begin to show results. (these are the guys who outfitted the Coors Light Maxim Tournament this year)
Geoff Tait, Chez Reavie and Bobby Pasternak
Their endorsement deal with Chez Reavie continues through 2010 which will place Quagmire ‘fittingly’ onto the hallowed, albeit extremely traditional fairways of Augusta as well as a visit overseas to the British Open. It also means that Chez will be back at Glen Abbey in defence of his win and for a local brand the location of a tour player’s first win could not have been more perfectly coincidental. What’s that phrase, you have to be good to be lucky.
The cost to have PGA Player’s endorse products is for the most part restrictive when it comes to smaller budget brands, yet in this case the fit seemed to work both financially as well as philosophically. “The resume is important, obviously, but we also needed to make sure that the player fit with the brand and that our relationship would be a good one,” suggests Bobby. “Hence, we made sure that we had an in depth phone conversation with Chez prior to signing the deal.”
Although I chatted with Geoff and Bobby on the phone throughout the year, I didn’t meet them in person until the week of the Canadian Open. We played some golf, went out for some meals and I was able to learn a lot about the company and I am sure they could not have dreamed that a couple days later I would win the National Open. It was an unbelievable coincidence and I even remember seeing people wearing Quagmire clothes when I was playing and they saw me wearing it so I think they got a real kick out of that.
> Chez Reavie
Reavie’s deal, which is a base plus incentive package, was reported to be in the five figure range and after his win was capped for the season but could, should he have a successful 2009 campaign, end up costing Quagmire next year. But with wins comes exposure and with exposure credibility. All of which should translate into sales.
Interestingly, the two handled the contract negotiations themselves and like all things they learned on the fly. Geoff begins, “they just sent a contract down, we read it, we signed it and … adds Bobby, “we didn’t know he was going to win a tournament!” [more laughter]
“This whole business is learning on the fly. We have people we can lean on and talk to for advice, but really we just learn as we go,” continues Bobby. “We discuss things thoroughly before we get into something so we’re not taking on things that we can’t follow through with,” adds Geoff.
As for what each brings to the ‘sewing’ table, Geoff is a graduate of golf management as well as operations management. He’s designed beach pants in Australia and has the creative flair. Bobby is a McGill business graduate and was involved in a few other businesses prior to this. It’s a good mix of skills as Bobby handles more of the business aspect, customer service side, while Geoff works on design and marketing and they both work with sales.
As for the post Canadian Open after party, the company has had a lot of great feedback. “We haven’t had a real spike in sales, but we didn’t expect that. All of the Sunday winning shirts are gone off the shelves and stuff like that. What we really believe it gave us is credibility. And as we are now slowly starting to roll out this new line people are congratulating us on the Open win – people we never thought would have seen it or heard of us are now saying, wow, those guys won,” offers Bobby.
“We’re going to gauge it more after the buying shows because once people see it again, they’ll think oh yeah, Chez. And hopefully, this will be on their minds when they start placing their orders,” adds Geoff without missing a beat.
The two practically finish one another’s thoughts and sentences and the synergies between the two personalities become quite evident. Where one pauses – another answers. The popular golf sports phrase ham and egging comes immediately to mind here as the two work well together playing off each other’s strengths to get it done.
And they are doing just that over at Quagmire, getting things done. From a simple observation four years ago, Geoff and Bobby have taken an idea, created a company and, with a PGA Tour win under their belts, are now making serious inroads into a very competitive marketplace.
Along the way, they are successfully changing the mindsets of an industry and bringing a ‘cool’ factor to the racks and shelves of golf shops and non-golf shops everywhere. They are growing every year and, most importantly, they are having a good time doing it.
To see what they are up to visit http://www.quagmiregolf.com/
