Adidas acquired TaylorMade on 1999 and merged with Maxifli in 2002. Three famous brands have joined hands to shine in the golf market. Adidas is very popular in clothes and bags, while Taylor made has an advantage in golf clubs. R7 No.1 Wood has occupied the first place in sales volume and record for several years in a row, and Maxifli brand golf balls and accessories are well known. After the integration, Adidas performed well in the market.

Adidas is determined to win the golf market in China. Last year, Telmay-Adidas ended its ten-year agency era and directly entered China to establish Adidas-Telmay (China) Company. It has been brewing in China market for ten years, and accumulated considerable contacts and distribution resources, which can be said to be well prepared. However, it is an arduous task for Adidas to establish a perfect distribution system and an effective anti-piracy system in such a huge market and promote the popularization of golf with the help of excellent young players.

"It is difficult to accurately estimate how long it will take to gain a foothold. It can only be roughly said that it will take five years. " Dennis Allen, vice president of Asia-Pacific region of Adidas-Taylormade, believes that "China is a huge market, with developed cities such as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, as well as many small and medium-sized cities. The rational allocation of human resources and a sound marketing structure take time to adjust and realize. "

He said that TaylorMade will not consider setting up a ball store for the time being, but will explore the China market by expanding distribution channels and improving the distribution system.

Compared with other regions, the golf foundation in Chinese mainland is relatively weak. There are many Japanese companies in Taiwan Province Province, and golf is very popular. Hongkong also has a good golf atmosphere. This is also an important reason why Taylormade put its Asia-Pacific headquarters in Hong Kong.

"In China, we adopt a globalization strategy, just like in the United States, Europe and Japan, so as to maintain stable brands, products, customers and consumer groups. The general strategy is the same. Of course, there will be some differences when implementing in a brand new market. " Dennis said.

Serious product piracy is one of them. Dennis felt sad about the proliferation of pirated products. It is said that when he came to China not long ago, he found that 70% of Taylormade's products were fakes, and he was furious. In an interview with this magazine, he said many times that Taylormade should not only play the role of a golf equipment manufacturer in China, but also play the role of an educator in the golf industry.

At present, Spanish Sergio garcia is the number one player sponsored by Taylor Mudd. Adidas-Taylormade sponsored the budding Liang Wenchong in 2003, but there was no new sponsor in China. Dennis said, "For the sponsorship of China players, we are in the process of operation and can't disclose it for the time being. I think there will be a large number of powerful stars in China. It depends on the popularity of golf in China. Twenty years ago, China made very good achievements in Olympic swimming, because swimming had a good mass base in China. Now, we also hope that golf will become more popular in China with a huge population, so that our own top players will appear sooner or later. "

Although we encountered many difficulties in China, Dennis said, "We will not give up, but we are confident to grow with the golf market in China." As for the new ball products that the outside world cares about, he only said that there will be a series of new shots released in the middle and end of the year, so he can't disclose too many details for the time being.

Acushnet

Acushnet, which owns four brands: Titleist, Footjoy, King cobra and Pinnacle, is one of the few giants in the global golf industry. I entered the mainland market through an agent ten years ago, but I didn't renew my agency contract at the end of last year, but chose to officially enter China this year 1 month.

Acushnet is not in a hurry to test the water for the first time in mainland China. "China is a brand-new market, and there are many resources to be invested. It may take several years to see the effect. " Zhao, president of Acushnet Asia Pacific, recently said, "There are not many difficulties in the China market, and the industry tax has just increased, which is the biggest obstacle."

Compared with the agency era, Zhao believes that sales are definitely better, especially in terms of service level, and new products will be launched much faster. Of course, I also hope that the distribution pipeline will be smoother. He didn't deny the influence of fake goods. But frankly, we will face it positively and carry out anti-counterfeiting actions. "

For the huge China market, well-known brands often cannot escape the fate of being copied. However, Zhao's assurance is obviously well-founded.

Last year, Acushnet, together with other big brands, complained to the relevant departments of the China municipal government about the proliferation of counterfeit golf clubs, which led the industrial and commercial departments to take action and smashed the black spots where a large number of counterfeit golf clubs were sold in China.

In addition, Acushnet also takes high-tech measures to prevent it. For example, use digital anti-counterfeiting technology on each ball to protect the interests of yourself and 14000 authorized dealers. It is understood that this newly launched "Golf Trademark Safety System" marks all 48 million balls produced by five factories around the world every year. They specially treated the dye so that the mark could not be seen or copied by the naked eye. These signs are not only used for anti-counterfeiting, but also can be traced back to the destination.

Acushnet employees can now tell whether the ball in their hand is made in their own factory by holding a red scanner. The scanned data are recorded in the database, and Acushnet can accurately know the time and place when each ball is transported according to the digital trajectory. If the ball is transported to an unspecified place, Acushnet can track the reason.

Besides, different from other brands, Acushnet's brand strategy focuses on helping to promote the development of golf in China. "I hope to take some measures to help China's professional players, top amateur players and young players improve their level, such as introducing foreign coaches and establishing a special club fitness center in China. At present, these are in full swing, but the specific situation cannot be disclosed for the time being. " Zhao said to him.

Although the inside story of the project has not been announced, Acushnet is already in action. The China Youth Team went to the United States for training for two weeks from February 3rd to19th this year. The first stop was the Titleist Global Testing Center. It is understood that in order to equip each member of the training team with the most suitable golf equipment, Titleist specially arranged for members to receive professional tests from wooden poles and irons to putters in the testing center. During my training at IMG College, I arranged two Sino-American youth friendly matches.

At the beginning of April, at CITIC South China Station of CITIC Amateur Tour, TITLEST presented a brand-new TITLEST Pro V 1/V 1x golf ball to each player on the signing day. These are strong signals: Acushnet's all-round March into China has become a reality.

Callaway:

If there is a rule for foreign brands to enter the China market, it should be like this: First, take the form of general agent and make use of the resources of local powerful agents and distributors to make up for the lack of their own market promotion and cultivation; Secondly, when the market cultivation stage ended, the local market began to operate independently after gradually mastering the characteristics of local consumption and even controlling some dealer resources. However, after Callaway terminated the general agent relationship of Tianying Company in China, there was no direct transaction. This shows that Callaway is not completely ready to control the China ball market perfectly.

However, Callaway will not give up the expanding golf equipment market in China easily, but actively develop new marketing strategies in order to gain a firm foothold. During the 65,438+00 years of Tianying's agency, Callaway gradually established its own brand image in China. However, due to the proliferation of imitations, fakes and smuggling sticks in the market, Callaway still hopes to use other players to complete the early market cultivation and promotion, and further improve the entire market strategy and sales network. At the same time, Pan Xi, Singapore's number one ball maker, also wants a piece of China's big cake. So the two sides hit it off, and the scepter of Callaway's general agent in China fell into the hands of Panxi.

As Pan-West has not fully grasped the China market, at the beginning of taking over, it ate a sap because of import duties and lost millions of goods. Not only is it facing problems in the construction of sales channels, but Panxi must also be prepared for the market competition of Callaway's Hong Kong and Macao agent Sportsmark. In this regard, Albert Wee, the new general manager of Panxi Golf Products Co., Ltd., once said in an interview with the media: "Any good brand will encounter many difficulties in the face of market shocks, but I believe that Callaway's loyal users will continue to support our brand."

Indeed, Callaway's Fusion Series, X Series and Big Bertha Series launched in 2005 caused great repercussions in the market, especially its tour stars mikkelsen and Sorenstein won several championships with the help of Callaway Club. It is reported that Callaway will appear more in golf shops and driving ranges in 2006, and just like their marketing focus, Callaway emphasizes the technology of products and will make more efforts on young players in product development and promotion.

Nike Golf:

Golf, tiger and Zhang add up to Nike. Nike, originally the name of the goddess of victory in Greek mythology, is a sportswear and equipment company with annual sales of $9.5 billion on earth in 2/kloc-0 century. As the overlord of the world sports industry, after Nike retired from the NBA Jordan, Tiger Woods took over the banner of spokesperson. Since 2005, it has been a surprise year for Nike Golf, which has not only achieved great success in sales, but also won praises from all walks of life for its efforts in the development and research of golf equipment in recent years. Moreover, the frequent exposure and brilliant achievements of the stars it chose to sponsor all cheered Nike Golf. Besides himself, the biggest beneficiary of Tiger Woods' successive victories on the court is Nike. Last year, Nike stole the show by cutting 16 holes in the final round of the American Masters. The ball marked with a small hook stays in the hole for a few seconds and then falls into the hole. This classic shot is not only continuously played by major TV stations, but also listed as one of the most successful marketing cases by major companies, and has been repeatedly studied.

Recently, the executive director of MDC, the general agent of Nike Golf in China, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, mentioned in an interview that golf is still in the development stage in China, and major international brands are impacted by counterfeit goods in the market, which makes it difficult for them to promote it. However, the success of the star strategy undoubtedly made it occupy a favorable position in China's vast market space, although it was considered crazy to sign a contract with Tiger at the price of 40 million dollars at that time. Unlike ordinary golf clubs, which are suitable for beginners, Nike aimed at the needs of high-level players from the beginning; At the same time, they don't start clubs and then promote them. All they do is sign a star player and then make a club according to his needs.

But obviously, Nike Golf's ambition does not stop there. The golf market in China is still to be developed. Whether it can stand in the leading position depends on its strategy. In China, Nike Golf has become a well-known brand in the eyes of China consumers. In the future, they will develop more diversified peripheral products and constantly increase brand exposure. In particular, Nike Golf will set up a golf store in China, which is undoubtedly an effective way to combat counterfeiting. Besides advertisements, Nike Golf will also actively hold demo sessions for major communication targets and sales groups to enhance the brand memory of Nike Golf for existing and potential consumers.

it should be

Top Ten Golf Equipment Brands in the World

First place Dunlop.

Since its establishment, 19 10 has been one of the most famous brands in the world. Arnold palmer, Seven Ballesteros, tom watson and Fuzzy Soler are all loyal fans of Deng Lupu brand. The good performance of Deng Lupu Club helped them win many honors.

Second place Taylor Mudd

TaylorMade-Adidas-Salomon AG (hereinafter referred to as TaylorMade Golf) has been a pioneer in the development of golf technology since the establishment of 1979.

Third place Adidas

In the world of sporting goods, Adidas has always represented a special status symbol, which some people call "three lines of victory". Since the establishment of 1948, Adidas has helped countless athletes achieve good results and made many great achievements.

Fourth place Beaverton

Nike, headquartered in Beaverton, Oregon, USA, is a world-famous sporting goods manufacturer. The company produces all kinds of sporting goods: clothing, shoes, sports equipment, etc. In fiscal year 2002, the company's operating income reached a record $4.98 billion, an increase of 2% over fiscal year 2000/kloc-0.

Fifth place ben hogan.

Since the establishment of 1953, ben hogan has been the representative of high-end golf products. Over the years, the best golf equipment, such as clubs, competition balls and accessories, has always been closely linked with the ben hogan brand. As the company entered its glorious 52nd year, ben hogan made great innovations and launched a series of new products.

Sixth place Etonic

In 1950s, Etonic began to produce golf shoes. In 1980s, Etonic was regarded as a highly professional brand leading the technological trend. In 2002, Etonic produced the first pair of sports shoes. Etonic DRx products meet the needs of fashion and sports comfort.

Seventh place Wilson

Wilson, founded in 19 14, is an American sporting goods company with a long history, and one of the earliest companies to produce tennis rackets, racquets and two kinds of tennis shoes. 1970, Pepsi buys Wilson, 1984, Michael Jordan signs Chicago Bulls to join Wilson think tank.

Eighth place McGregor

MacGregorGOIf was founded in 1897 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. It is the oldest supplier of golf equipment in the world. She is a global brand company with a long history and rich experience. During the development of golf equipment on 108, she kept innovating and had a brilliant success record, including winning 59 games.

Ninth place Callaway

Ely Callaway, founder of Callaway, founded Callaway Golf Company on 1982. At that time, it was not Callaway but Callaway Hickory Stick USA, Inc. At that time, their main products were push rods and sand wedges, but the most special place was the shaft, because it was not made of iron at that time.

The tenth PING

Since Carsten solheim invented heel-toe balance in 1959, table tennis has been good at challenging tradition. The Specify series continues to develop putters with the appearance, feel and weight suitable for players at all levels.