Executives from Fortune Brands offered up details about the company’s golf segment at the recent J.P. Morgan Diversified Industries Conference. The company's golf unit, Acushnet, which consists of Titleist, FootJoy, Pinnacle and Cobra, generated $1.2 billion in annual sales last year.
Sales outside the U.S. have grown by 54 percent over the last five years and now account for approximately 42 percent of segment turnover. While China and India are the next key international markets for the group’s golf brands, Korea has shown particular strength over the last three years.
Golf rounds played in the U.S. have been down in 2009, but have been fairly flat in Western Europe. Participation in the sport is “relatively stable,” says the company, although discretionary spending on big-ticket clubs has been impacted. But golf balls, where the company has more than 600 active patents, are seen as the segment’s least discretionary product category, and other consumables such as shoes and gloves are doing better than equipment.
The Pro VI ball is still gaining market share, and several irons by Titleist were said to be growing even this year.
Bruce Carbonari, the president and chief executive of Fortune Brands, said that he expects golf participation to continue growing as baby boomers age and then retire – a prime time for concentrating on the sport. He also praised the inclusion of golf in the 2016 Olympics.
