Arnold Palmer Design: Latest News: Archives
Arnold Palmer, Inc.
March 05, 2009
We all know that Arnold Palmer’s role in golf is legendary, but his impact on business has been as remarkable. Chris Rodell takes a look at the books and gets sold on The King’s global influence...About the only item you can’t purchase through Arnold Palmer Inc. is, well, Arnold Palmer ink. Scroll through 50 years of advertisements, files, contracts and promotions and you can’t find any juice for when your pen goes empty.
You can, however, get one of the many stylish brands of Arnold Palmer pens and use it to write notes on Arnold Palmer stationary or to keep score on one of more than 300 courses around the world designed by the Arnold Palmer Design Company. Use the pen to Arnold Palmer dog collars, card games, bed sheets or CD holders. Figure your handicap on an Arnold Palmer calculator, keep a Palmer mouse pad next to you computer and get around the kitchen in an Arnold Palmer apron. No kidding, you can get just about anything you want branded with the Palmer name except the ink (at least not yet). But the success of Arnold Palmer Enterprises—and the business achievements of the man himself—have to do with far more than just his popular name.
“Arnold Palmer has always been a step ahead, a man in front of time,” says Scott Curry, an APE marketing executive. “For example many modern golfing superstars now have private jets but they can’t fly them themselves. Arnold has flown his own jet for decades enabling him to combine golf whilst simultaneously extending the global reach of his name and his companies.”
Scott says this adaptability has led Palmer to work with many of the corporate world’s most prestigious companies; including Rolex, Cadillac and Callaway (just to name a few). But rather than get lost amidst the blitz of business brands, “He has always been recognizably his own man,” says Curry. “Try finding a picture of him sporting the logo of a sponsor, and you’ll discover the insignia on his shirt has always been the umbrella.”
The umbrella dates back to 1963, and it is a Palmer concept. Befitting Palmer’s personality it is bold but fun, with bright splashes of red, white, yellow and green across the panels. Most golfers use umbrellas to simply repel falling water, Arnold used his to attract another element: Money. Under the Palmer umbrella are more than 90 satisfied licensees spread across three continents who link to Palmer to help their robust businesses thrive.
Despite the large scale of his enterprise, Arnold Palmer’s business network seems downright intimate and friendly. Anyone who’s spent time at Bay Hill or met Arnie at an event won’t be surprised; there is perhaps no head of a large conglomerate so approachable.
Palmer’s easy-going, straightforward but elegant manner is represented in his fashion as well, as GQ magazine recently recognized by placing him in the all time Top 50 list of the world’s most stylish men. No surprise, apparel is a staple of Palmer’s enterprise. AP clothing goods are available on three continents in 33 countries. Young girls in Japan shop at AP stores for what are considered in Tokyo to be trendy fashions. It’s likely they have no idea that Arnold Palmer ever struck a golf ball, but the Renown brand of clothes that bear his name are decidedly cool, and rank alongside Polo Ralph Lauren and Tommy Hilfiger as classic American Brands.
Not long after their handshake deal effectively launched IMG—a business subject that merits a further article in its own right—Palmer and Mark McCormack (the IMG founder and touchstone pioneer of sports marketing) decided to take the Palmer name to the burgeoning markets of Asia. To generations of Japanese, South Korean and Chinese customers, Arnold Palmer simply means “America.” They snap up AP jackets, swimwear, pajamas, aprons, socks, lingerie, scarves, suspenders, neckties, hair bands, sandals and even dog apparel. Closer to home, Arnold Palmer clothes will be sold in more than 1,200 J.C. Penney stores nationwide beginning in February.
During a credit crunch it is always sensible to have some liquidity, and Ketel One is an excellent source of that. Mr. Palmer’s relationship with the brand is a perfect example of how his integrity—not just his popularity—drive the market for his name. There can be no doubting the truth in the Ketel One ad that runs: “We know you’re not influenced by what other people drink, however, we thought you’d like to know Arnold Palmer drinks Ketel One.” That ad has appeared in numerous top magazines, including Golf Digest, the largest selling golf publication in the world where, incidentally, Palmer is a marquee playing editor.
Of course, on the beverage front Palmer is most known for the family friendly non-alcoholic libation that he popularized and which bears his name. The “Arnold Palmer” (consisting of half lemonade/half iced tea) appears on menus around the world and was even mentioned during the final season of “The Sopranos.” Today, the AriZona Beverage Co. offers it in a new distinctive 20-ounce twist-off golf ball bottle.
More than just being known for the drink, Arnold Palmer actually drinks it. Same with Ketel One. In fact, Mr. Palmer has always been adamant about standing behind the products he endorses. When his hearing began to fail he started using and sponsoring Starkey Hearing Aids, powering them with Palmer-endorsed Rayovac batteries. His appreciation of fine engineering and top quality means that as long as he’s endorsed Rolex, there’s been a Rolex on his wrist. His relationship with that company is so appreciated that, years after Arnold’s first meeting with then-Rolex chair Andre Heineger in 1961 in Japan, it’s still being celebrated. As Rolex’s current Managing Director Patrick Heiniger (son of Andre) said during a July 2007 event honoring Palmer and other sports legends, “What we share transcends our association through sport and is rooted in the timeless values that each one of you celebrates in your daily life, be it through your philanthropic work, your business activities, your passions, your hobbies.”
When it comes to standing behind a product you endorse, use of an aircraft might be the best show of support yet. Palmer’s long history with Cessna is certainly that. For many of the 50 years he’s had a pilot’s license, Palmer has had a close working relationship with the aircraft manufacturer. Since 1996, he’s flown the excellent Citation X, among other planes. And when he lands, there’s Wyndham, the high quality global hospitality provider he endorses, and which gives back to the game (they’re the title sponsor of the PGA’s Wyndham Championships, which Palmer attended in 2008).
On the subject of golf courses, Arnold Palmer Design
Company has built some 300 courses around the world,
including numerous PGA Tour stops and The K Club, host of
the 2006 Ryder Cup. You can also have your course managed by
Arnold Palmer Golf Management, a division of Century Golf.
Naturally Mr. Palmer’s reach within the industry of golf is huge. You’ll find Palmer-recommended Callaway golf gear, Lampkin grips, EZ-Go golf carts, and Jacobsen maintenance equipment. Off-course, you can read Arnold Palmer books or watch shows on the Golf Channel, an enterprise Palmer endorsed and actively supported when critics were sniffing that no one in their right mind would watch a channel dedicated solely to golf.
There’s more, of course. There are Encore Banks in Texas and Florida; a superb Arnold Palmer Restaurant in La Quinta, California; Arnold Palmer Motors in his Latrobe hometown and Arnold Palmer Cadillac of Charlotte; and let’s not forget Latrobe Country Club and the Arnold Palmer Invitational sponsored by MasterCard at the fabulous Bay Hill Club and Lodge in Orlando. (This year it was March 23-29).
Then there is this very magazine, Kingdom. The magazine started as a way for “The King” to keep in touch with you and the members of all the APDC designed courses. Now people collect these luxurious keepsakes and signed copies are sold for hundreds of dollars.
Yet for all his personal financial and business success it is
the money that Mr. Palmer has raised for charity that brings
him the most satisfaction. The Arnold Palmer Hospital for
Children, The Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women and Babies,
the Eisenhower Medical Center, and Arnie’s Army Battles
Prostate Cancer, to name but a few of the charities Mr. Palmer
has been involved with over the years, have all helped improve
and save countless lives.
A famous golfer, yes. But Arnold Palmer, Inc. is so much more—even if it’s not in the business of ink itself.
Posted: March 5, 2009 04:19 PM
APDC Update
February 03, 2009
Whether you're a cowboy or a jet-setter, you’ll find an Arnold Palmer Design Company course to suit your game. Saddle up and hit the road for these great APDC destinationsAt Home
One of the most beautiful—and most interesting—courses to open recently is APDC’s course at Newport Dunes Golf Club in Port Aransas, Texas. The privately owned club is currently open for public play, and it’s well worth booking a trip to Texas’ Gulf Coast to take advantage. Step onto Newport Dunes and you’re transported out of Texas to, believe it or not, Scotland. This linksstyle course winds through the natural dunes of the Texas coast and comes complete with fast greens, deep sod stacked revetment bunkers, oversized water hazards and plenty of native rough. Newport Dunes is certainly the only course of its kind in Texas.
Newport Dunes (Hole #12) in Port Aransas brings links golf to the Texas gulf coast.
A world away in terms of the style of golf, but not far away on the map, White Oak Golf & Equestrian Community is getting ready to open. The exquisite Arnold Palmer Signature course is located near Tryon, NC, on land first deeded to a local family by King George II in 1743. This residential community will feature horse trails, waterfalls, lush meadows, fishing areas, tennis facilities, an Activity Center with pools and a spa, and even a Celestial Observatory. The Palmer course will hold a great game, while the hills above it will hold a vineyard. With approximately 600 homes planned and a mild four-season climate, White Oak Golf & Equestrian Community is a great place to have an address—no wonder three time major winner Padraig Harrington will call it home.
On the other side of the state, the team at North Carolina State University is closer to practicing on a new course that will be all its own—finally. Up until now, the team has had to practice on public courses but APDC is setting them up well—perhaps they have a vested interest: APDC Architect Brandon Johnson and Executive Vice President Erik Larsen both graduated from the school. Good news for the team, Johnson says the course is close to finished.
“They’ve basically grassed the entire course,” he says. The heavy rain hasn’t helped, but Johnson says the course should be open mid- to late summer next year.
Another great facility in North Carolina opened this year. On June 7, the beautiful Seven Falls Golf & River Club near Hendersonville celebrated the opening of its practice facility and par-3 course. Featuring top-drawer residences and great golf on the banks of the French Broad River, Seven Falls will eventually offer one of the first Palmer Premier golf course developments. It will also offer great fishing and other recreational opportunities. Until the whole thing gets rolling the practice facility, which comprises a 20-acre driving range and 25-acre practice course, gives a taste of the good life that’s on the way.
“It’s more of a par-3 plus,” says Layton. “That was at the request of the owner. He wanted to be able to practice every shot you’d encounter on the golf course. You can hit every club in the bag, starting with a lob wedge and going all the way through to a driver. There’s even a 450 yard, par-4 in there.” Seven Falls’ full course should open in 2009.
Also if you missed it this summer, the APDC course at Balsam Mountain Preserve opened June 6 in nearby Sylva. As much an experience in nature as it is a residential golf development, 3,000 of the development’s 4,400 acres are protected by conservation easements, ensuring everyone who lives at Balsam Mountain Preserve will feel right at home for years to come. An onsite Nature Center and naturalist will help residents appreciate the community, while plenty of trails for hiking and mountain biking will ensure they get out and enjoy it.
U.S. courses in South Carolina, California and Florida are also in development and should be looking green relatively soon.
Tropical Game
Head south from Texas, and you will find Garabu, a new Signature course in Costa Rica under development. David Couch, the lead architect on the project, says “it’s beautiful, we’ve already completed the master plan and feel really good about the routing of the golf course” he says. “It’s going to be big” Couch says. The tropical course will provide a fairly friendly experience along with breathtaking beauty while still challenging the very best players. Additionally, Garabu will have a world class practice facility, and a short game area. Muy Bueno!
Further to the south, APDC Architect Eric Wiltse says a new course in Brazil is going to be fantastic, not least because of the amazing views. “It looks like Kentucky a little bit,” he says, explaining that the property, just outside of Sao Paolo, is on a horse farm, complete with rolling hills and white fences. “It’s really nice,” he says. “It will probably end up being the highest-end development in Brazil for a while.”
Off the continent, the West End development in the Bahamas is well underway. It’s more than halfway done, but likely won’t be grassed until the beginning of 2009. Wiltse says it should be playable by the end of next fall, and that it’s going to be great. “There’s one hole that’s right on [the water], and it’s probably the closest we’ve ever built to the water,” he says. “So you know it’s going to be a nice golf course.”
Another course is underway in St. Lucia, but we’ll have to wait for details. Don’t forget the sunscreen.
Passport–Worthy
On the other side of the world in China, a course in Kunming is progressing well.
“They’re in the middle of it,” says Johnson. “They’re working pretty diligently, pushing to get a March deadline completed. It’s very ambitious.”
Johnson says the team on the ground in China has been pushing hard to get the course done—and we’re happy about that. Not exactly down the street, this course is going to be amazing if not a little difficult, as Johnson explains. With elevation changes of 300 feet above a large mountain lake in Kunming, there are canyons, gorges and lakeside play—meaning challenges aplenty. In addition to the beauty on course, Johnson says the clubhouse will be something to see as well; built in a kind of Balinese style, with wide doors open to the wind that will allow incredible views. Should be great.
Another great Chinese course, Beijing Cascades (near Beijing, of course) features giant waterfalls, 7,000 newly planted trees and an amazing amount of hard work behind the 7,272 yards. It’s built to be the finest in the country, and it’s already been recognized as just that; Golf Magazine China awarded Beijing Cascades “Best New Course in China 2007–2008.”
Further south in Cambodia, APDC vice president John Hamilton says a 36-hole development at Hong Chu is going to set the bar for Southeast Asian golf. Currently in the design phase, the development is set in a national park just three hours south of Phnom Penh. Tigers, elephants, carnivorous plants and all manner of exotica could factor into play—no kidding.
Also in Southeast Asia, Hamilton says courses are planned for Vietnam: an 18-hole course at a casino resort complex in Da Nang, and a 36-hole development in Ho Chi Minh City that will offer both links-style golf and a resort-style course. All the more reason to keep your passport up to date.
Along the Way
Between China and Texas, APDC is planning an exciting new course for the island of Mauritius, off the west coast of Madagascar. Recently underway, Wiltse says the routing is basically finalized. “The whole place is being built from scratch,” he says. “There’s nothing out here but scrub; just coral and volcanic rock.” With a 1,000-foot mountain on the island and plenty of volcanic terrain, this should be a unique—and beautiful—place to lose a few balls among the rocks.
Other places soon to feature APDC courses include Russia, the United Arab Emirates, Ireland and Portugal. We’re guessing there’s plenty more on deck for the U.S. as well, and with our frequent flier miles piling up, we can’t wait to see where the next course will open. Catch you on the road.
Costa Rica's Garabu will be a stunner
Posted: February 3, 2009 04:04 PM
