Building and Facilities News have chosen leading company Tolhurst as our Sporting Goods Company of the Month.
Displaying a wealth of industry experience throughout its 40 years of business within Sporting Goods and Promotional Items industry, Tolhurst was first founded as a Sports Goods Wholesale company, specialising in established and own label brands.
“I spent much of my time sourcing Sports Goods in the Far East and building long term relationships with reliable factories. The Divot Bag business began about twelve years ago and was aimed at the local Irish market. It has grown from that humble beginning to exporting to at least fifteen countries. Many of our overseas customers discovered our Divot Bags while playing golf in Ireland & ‘borrowed’ a bag from their host club,” said John McCabe, Founder.
Starting its journey in 1980 based in Bray, Co. Wicklow, Ireland, Tolhurst has seen many changes throughout its years including moving to its new location in Gorey, Co. Wexford, Ireland.
Alongside its services, the company provides its innovative flagship product, the Fairway Friend Golf Divot Bag which has made waves in the golfing industry. Highly renowned for its quality and durability, Fairway Friend Golf Divot Bag is made of 600 Denier Nylon with aluminum eyelets and a strong woven strap and has been used across the globe. A great addition for enhancing and displaying your brand, the company’s expert embroidery and personalisation services enable their customers to customise their bags to be produced in their choice of colour and display their clubs crest.
“How else could you get a fourball in Florida talking about your home Club for as little as the price of a cup of coffee?” John stated, “Companies have also discovered the opportunity to expose their brand to business decision makers by sponsoring the Divot Bags.”
In terms of recent developments for the company, Tolhurst has created its new bag, known as the Carry Bag. “This new bag is slightly smaller than its ‘Trolly’ counterpart and has a tie string opening plus a quick release clip.” John explained, “This innovative new bag prevents sand and seed mix from being spilled when the bag is placed on the ground, for just €3.00.”
After the uncertainty surrounding industries during the COVID-19 pandemic, John told us that, “At first COVID-19 looked like a disaster for my business. The Golf Unions did not want players sharing Divot Bags. This problem was recognised by the Clubs and many of them decided to give a Divot Bag to each member for their own personal use. We were unique in that we could print individual names or numbers on the Bags for as little as €0.50c.”
A great investment for a Club, Tolhurst’s Divot Bags provides a great solution for lessening the burden and expenditure on divot repairs. “Three hundred Divot Bags will cost the club €900 and in no time the members and guests will discover a new respect for their course. Divot Bags are a saving not a cost.” John continued, “When I did the Green-keepers show they seemed to be taken back by the stats which I gave them regarding the number of divots taken per annum on a course and the cost of repairing them. It contrasts well with the much lower cost of using Divot Bags. We certainly get the attention of Club Treasurers with these stats.”
With a growing global presence, John stated that, “I am planning to expand my export business. At present I am considering appointing distributors in our major overseas markets.”
For any further information, please see the details featured below.
T 00353 87 28 58 088
john@tolhurst.ie
www.tolhurst.ie