The golf industry has seen a surge in demand during the pandemic, with the PGA Tour Superstore reporting a 55% year-to-date increase in total sales.
Demand is so great that suppliers are struggling to keep up, said Dick Sullivan, CEO of PGA Tour Superstore, on CNBC’s “The Exchange” on Friday.
“We hear factories buying additional factories overseas to keep up with this incredible demand,” said Sullivan.
“The demand was unprecedented,” he said – and unexpected.
“There are no factories in the world that predicted such growth,” Sullivan said.
“In many cases it was assumed that once we are vaccinated and people can go back in, there will be fewer people out, and we don’t see that,” he said. “We continue to see that people want to be outside.”
The PGA Tour Superstore is also facing the same supply chain challenges as others in the retail industry, as congested ports, container shortages and Covid-19 outbreaks are slowing deliveries.
“We are not immune to what we see everywhere in all industries, but we work with all of our suppliers and unfortunately the lead time of just a few days turns into weeks.” said Sullivan. “But I was in California this week working with suppliers to see how we can speed up lead times to make sure we meet that demand.”
