Starting a Golf Business in Singapore ?

If you search www.google.com  on subject such as “Turning your hobby into a profitable business”, “Making golf my business”, you will probably find endless list of articles telling you how good it will be if you were to do a business that you truly enjoyed.  The passion for golf, I think, is the main reason why there are always brave souls out there who are willing to enter this notoriously competitive golf business in Singapore. Likewise for me, when I started my small golf business 8 years ago, I have never done analysis. I came in solely because I love the game. The fact that I was holding quite a comfortable job then was perhaps another factor. 8 years into the business and I have seen numerous golf businesses went belly up every year. I was fortunate enough to stay afloat and learnt from the mistakes these failed businesses made. 

As we all know, Singapore has a small population of slightly above 5 million. The last statistics which I got shows that there are about 75,000 active golfers here and 13 golf clubs with full 18 holes courses. It’s a small pond filled with big and small fishes! Just because you enjoy a hobby doesn't mean that your enthusiasm for this activity will translate into a viable business. Before you take the plunge to start this hobby business, I think the most fundamental question to answer is “What are your comparative and competitive advantages to win the race?” If you do not have a clear answer to this question, it is best that you re-strategize before starting your hobby business. I am quite certain the hobby will turns into a nightmare if it continuously bleeds despite your hard work.

There is no lack of brave souls out there to enter this notoriously competitive golf business in Singapore. Picture above is a new golf store opening at Far East Shopping Center soon

A SGX public listed company with a chain of golf stores in Singapore and Malaysia last year announced that they are scaling down their investment in the golf retail division, while another golf chain here, incidentally also public listed, also reported that while the focus is still on golf and lifestyle business, the company is constantly looking out for opportunities to diversify. Indeed, it has diversified into property development and apparently, that yields better return. Ironically, despite being public listed with sizable shareholder funds, the company seldom attained a profit exceeding 2 million a year, reading from the annual reports. That shows how difficult this business is!

Having said all these, is there a future for golf business in Singapore? Yes, I think. Ultimately there are 75,000 active golfers here and this number is constantly increasing as we become more affluent. Remember our target population size is 6.9 million in 2030. These golfers need golf equipment, accessories, apparels, shoes and repair services and somebody needs to serve them.

If you are planning to start a golf business and are discouraged by what you have read so far, you may find some comfort reading my other blog post

http://www.empowernetwork.com/tohsk8/blog/golf-direct-the-rising-star-in-singapore-golf-retail-scene/ .

By adopting a low cost, low price and high volume strategy, Golf Direct is able to grow fast, win the competition and create a major threat to the incumbents. We too, regardless of financial strength and size, can create a niche if we do a proper analysis before stepping in. Sometimes, borrowing ideas which we learnt from business schools, SWOT, BCG, Porter 5 Forces, whatsoever, will help in formulating our thoughts into a concrete action plan.

If I am new to golf business and if I were to start, I would first equip myself with sound knowledge on Internet Marketing and e-commerce rather than golf.  Internet is the future for businesses. Businesses without internet presence will probably disappear from this planet in no time. Internet is going to remove the constraint of market size that most Singapore businesses are facing and solve partly the manpower shortage problems. The way business is going to be conducted will look drastically different. Social media will probably be the mainstream marketing tool and online buying will become the norm. When our internet savvy next generations grow up to become the major spending group, businesses without an internet presence will lose out a huge part of the pie.

I have been working in the information technology industry for the past 20 years and always arrogantly self-proclaimed an expert in e-Commerce. Not until I met this young “internet marketer” (a very cool job title indeed) who reminded me how outdated I am. E-commerce sites, Facebook, Twitter, blog, mobile devices are now sophisticatedly interlinked, creating ample opportunities for businesses to ride on and create low cost and yet effective marketing strategies.  Having an internet presence is no longer about hosting a web site, it about reaching out to customers and potential customers which we traditionally find hard to. There are many good resources out there pointing you to the right direction.

All businesses need a strategy and unique winning formula to stay ahead of competition. For me, I will make Internet my winning formula. Aspiring golf business owners out there, what is yours?

South Korean Women Golfers Hitting The Spotlight At HSBC Women's Champions 2013

The HSBC Women's Champions 2013 will be played at Singapore Sentosa Golf Club from 28 February to 3 March 2013. Among the list of golfers include big names like Michelle Wie, Yani Tseng, Ai Miyazato and In-Kying Kim. Like all major LPGA tournaments, we can see a large number of Korean golfers participating. That leads me to wonder what actually make the Korean ladies such a dominating force in the LPGA and whether there is a possibility that our own Singaporean golfers will one day dominate the fairways like the Koreans.

For the South Koreans, they have worked hard on this for decades. In Korea the golfing community is a small tight nit group. The South Koreans love playing golf for recreation. However for those who take the sport to a higher level, golf is treated the same way work or schoolwork is. They take it very seriously. The strong work ethic and moral foundation makes the South Koreans extremely competitive which is why South Korean golfers have excelled in the sport. Due to limited resources and opportunity in South Korea, children are taught early on to excel in whatever they decide to pursue. Recently fifteen-year-old Lydia Ko won the CN Canadian Women’s Open. This was a feat not accomplished by an amateur since 1969. So, it is pretty interesting yet understandable why the the women of South Korea are taking over the women's golf circuit in the United States. They are as good as you would think they are.

Also the South Koreans push their children to excess, something the rest of the world may frown upon. In one instance a young lady was not allowed to marry until she won four tournaments. In another case a young South Korean golfer was forced to sleep in a cemetery if she played a bad round. In South Korea this is acceptable, it's expected and a way of life. In South Korea it is taught that you get what you sew. Work hard and the results will come. This sense of entitlement may very much be why South Korean women golfers now make up thirty of the top fifty women golfers in the United States.

 

Michelle Wie Receive Sponsor Invitations For HSBC Women's Champions 2013

In recent news on the South Korean golfing front, Lydia Ko says she anticipates she will turn pro in the next couple years. She says she will focus on her mental game as well as her putting. She is just one of the new and upcoming wave of young golfers sweeping across the US golf circuit. Born in South Korea the fifteen year old recently placed third in the Australian Open. She is one of the upcoming South Korean youngsters to watch in the coming years. A great link to see the theory behind the success of these young women golfers be sure to check out this link! http://www.economist.com/blogs/gametheory/2012/01/korean-golfers

Comparing the environment in South Korea and ours, will we be able to produce world class players ?