INSIGHT
Why Golf Pride have created James Bond-themed grips
At first glance, this appears to be a collaboration out of leftfield. But, as Golf Pride’s President Jamie Ledford explains, it is an eye-catching way of drawing attention to a crucial part of the club that can often be overlooked by consumers
What have golf grips got to do with everybody’s favourite secret agent? Well, quite a lot as it turns out – and not just because the team at the game’s leading manufacturer of grips happen to be long-time fans of 007.
Golf Pride and EON Productions have entered what is known as a ‘collab’ to create some limited-edition 007-themed golf grip kit.
There is of course significant common ground between golf and James Bond – namely what remains, on what is the 60th anniversary of the release of the classic Goldfinger film, golf’s finest moment on the big screen. Namely the match between Bond and the eponymous villain.
Ian Fleming, the golf-loving Bond author, set the match at St Mark’s – clearly identifiable as one of his home courses Royal St George’s – in his book. For the movie, though, the iconic scene was shot in Buckinghamshire at Stoke Park, in front of the famous hotel building.
What better place, then, for Jamie Ledford, the President of Golf Pride, to unveil the kit of 14 custom grips and a specially crafted gold bar collector display.
“While we’re a performance equipment brand at heart, and this grip certainly carries the innovative and high-quality hallmarks of Golf Pride, we really wanted to have fun with this one,” he said.
“Golfers won't tell you that style matters, but it does, and so we've been pushing the boundaries of design and style in our platform, our medium, which is grips, and that's where this project came to life.
“There are a number of avid golfers out there who haven't really thought that grips are an independent equipment choice. Limited-edition grips are one way that we can elevate the grip as an equipment choice on its own”
Jamie Ledford
“It was the design challenge that got us first interested. But the real reason we did it is we just have a lot of Bond fans at Golf Pride including me, and it just seemed like it would be a ton of fun to try and figure out how to bring Bond and golf together. People might see it as a fairly basic design platform, but we had a tonne of fun doing it,” he said.
Amid the fun, though, Ledford was keen to explain the strategy behind creating a set of grips that are not actually legal for competition play.
“We’re looking at things that break through and create news to get people to think differently about grips,” he said. “People that are in our grip category, they regrip every year, they're very loyal customers. They know what they want. They're going to come back year after year. But there are a number of avid golfers out there who haven't really thought that grips are an independent equipment choice. Limited-edition grips are one way that we can elevate the grip as an equipment choice on its own. You see it happen in footwear. I think people just never thought of grips in that way. We like challenging convention, and you can do that with grips.”
Earlier this year, Golf Pride also launched a collaboration with basketball legend Stephen Curry, so it’s clear that they have ambitions to broaden the brand’s wider recognition.
“Whether it’s partnering with a legendary film franchise like James Bond, or a global sports icon like Stephen Curry, we want to offer golfers unique ways to connect to the game through their passions,” said Ledford. “The collaboration with Steph was one of our first athlete collaborations, and we learned a lot through that.”
Golf Pride – the market-leading brand that have not had the visibility the OEMs enjoy
Eric Gibson, Golf Pride’s Chief Commercial and Marketing Manager, outlines the company’s changing focus
“I would say that's what the chip on our shoulder would be. Yes, we're 75 years old, but for the first 60 of them we were a pure OEM-driven business. So, this push to retail, to golfers, is really only 15 years old in that respect. Yes, it's a chip on our shoulder, but there's so much opportunity there, that's what drives it. Arguably, we have the highest market share of any brand in golf – period. Arguably, more golfers touch our product more than any brand in golf and yet almost a quarter of our golfers have never bought a golf grip. For us, that's the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, and that's what fuels us.”
Golf Pride are themselves celebrating a significant anniversary, with the North Carolina-based operation having been founded 75 years ago in 1949. Until recently, though, their relationships were predominantly with the Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) rather than the consumer. Now, that has all changed.
“Now, 80 per cent of our revenue comes from grips that say Golf Pride on them, and so the value is what golfers think when they play Golf Pride grips,” said Ledford.
“More and more stock clubs from the clubmakers are coming out with Golf Pride-branded grips because it says something about the grip that's on there. When golfers order custom sets of clubs, they want the specific type of grip that they've got used to playing.
“The brand means something – 80 per cent of our revenue comes from golfers regripping their clubs. You might buy a set of irons every five to seven years but people regrip their clubs yearly. We don't necessarily sell a lot directly to the consumer, but we're really designing for the golfer, and our main mission is to help that golfer feel confident with that club in their hands.
About the James Bond grips
The tuxedo-inspired grip represents the best of Bond, a tribute to the character's impeccable style and refinement as he has evolved over the last six decades. A 007 embossed surface pattern with lapels from the Goldfinger era merges seamlessly with a diamond quilted design, evoking the white dress shirt of a modern secret agent. A black grosgrain bow tie and gold accents complete the look, mirroring the suave style of GoldenEye.
“A number of different bow ties are used in Bond films over time,” said Ledford. “We have the texture of the tuxedo shirt, the buttons here, the shape of the lapel, the 007 logo. We’ve never really done something quite like this before, and it was really exciting to bring it to life.”
The kit costs £189 and is available for pre-sale on 007Store.com
“Grips haven't necessarily been an expression of identity or style, but then we launched a concept called MCC teams, and that was an interesting experiment because people wanted to show the allegiance to the team they follow. We have started to see that golfers want to express themselves through the grips. This is us pushing the limits to see how far we can take design in a way that excites golfers and gets them thinking about grips in a different way.
“Part of our challenge is that a lot of people see grips as handles to a club, but when we design new models like this, it helps elevate the grip as its own equipment choice, almost like what shoes you wear. This is what links into the special edition grip – there's a style component. A lot of people weren't used to necessarily thinking about style and grips. We made a lot of black and round grips over our time, but style is absolutely part of it,” said Ledford.
ABOUT GOLF PRIDE
Since its founding in 1949, Golf Pride has become synonymous with the highest quality performance equipment in golf. Today, from its Global Innovation Center (GIC) in Pinehurst, NC, Golf Pride continues to lead in grip innovation and more than 80 per cent of the world’s highest performing golfers choose Golf Pride. Golf Pride is a division of Eaton, whose mission is to improve the quality of life and the environment using power management technologies and services. Learn more here
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