It's been some years since I have been involved in a startup that is a personal investment but every now and again, there is an idea for a business that is too good to pass by.
How it started
I have a love for golf like many people who have been overcome with the addiction after one good round. After playing adhoc with friends or in the odd charity game, I decided to be a little more serious in getting to know this sport a bit better.
Xmas came around, and the golf gifts were flowing. My new love for golf was something friends and family embraced as I have always been a difficult person to buy for. From The Dummy's Guide To Golf, to books on Tiger Woods, Subscriptions to golfing magazines and golf lessons at Sanctuary Cove - I was equipped with everything the modern woman could hope for to start a new hobby.
Having already invested in a set of Callaway Golf Clubs, new outfits, a new bag and balls that they tell me are faster than all the rest, I started my lessons with a bullish attitude.
The reality is some days I was ok and other days I was downright terrible. Nevertheless, this has not detered me from playing or practising because I have this burning desire to be better.
To practise, you have to play, but I soon found that being not quite up to scratch with my male counterparts and the fear of embarrassing myself, I desperately wanted to play with other females.
In that lies an issue. Which of my female friends play? Fortunately, my closest 2 friends play, but they live interstate. I really have no-one in Melbourne to play with that is female and willing to play on weekends and early mornings.
I searched the internet to see if there was a solution. Some type of social group that I could join.
Of course there are different social golf groups online but there are few and far between.
The other issue I was faced with is which club to join. There are many clubs around, but which club is best suited to me as a woman. I don't really want to join a 'boys club' and it would be nice if there were alot of women at whatever club I joined - hopefully in my age group.
The more I thought about playing golf, the more issues that arose. It's winter, where do you buy clothes. Now there are some great clothes that you can buy for women but to be honest, I am not 50 - yet! I have looked high and low for pants that suit a woman in their 30's and have come up with nothing. I have looked (and I am not kidding) in over 30 shops - to no avail.
Then it came to me. What if there was one place that you could go and find out everything about women's golf. A site where you find the latest fashions, second hand golf clubs (for those who don't want to invest in something that could possibly be a fad), hookup with other female golfers who want to play a round, chat to people who love golf, find a date (now that really is just for me given I am 35 and single - and quite frankly, cannot find a date!), and read stories of interest.
The highlight of www.womensgolflife.com.au is however the features on the top golf courses to play for women.
Back to business
First I registered the name and picked one that I could have a dot com as well as a dot com.au version, then I registered it and then it was all systems go.
A business plan was developed within a week, the logo designed by Marketing Eye and the website developed.
I am launching the site on 1 August 2009 and am currently contacting all golf courses in Australia to give them a free listing on the site.
I have decided to fulfil a lifetime dream and design a golf range for women, but am also contacting suppliers to sell their brands on the site.
I am madly reviewing golf courses - so yes, that means playing alot more than ever before, which is fun and interesting. No two golf courses are identical.
It's a mad dash to make the deadline for the launch, but I am determined that we will achieve it.
I have a few casual staff working on the launch and have hired a Marketing Eye in my business. It's all systems go and I would like to share the journey with you on a day to day basis.
If you are interested in finding out the life of a startup, then follow this blog. It's going to be a warts and all account of a startup business.
www.womensgolflife.com.au
www.marketingeye.com.au
About Me
- Marketing Eye
- Welcome to Marketing Eye! After 18 years experience in marketing and advertising, I found that small-to-medium sized businesses quite often find agencies too expensive, are reluctant to hire a freelancer and are looking for how they can have marketing without hiring someone full-time. Marketing Eye was established to help these businesses in their transition of growth by providing them with senior marketing managers that are skilled and continually trained to add value to their businesses. I am very proud of the team we have built at Marketing Eye as many of our consultants have incredible skills and expertise in marketing and communications that will no doubt be very valuable to a growing business. They are also passionate about the value that Marketing Eye brings to an organisation, and are great ambassadors for highlighting the importance of a good marketing strategy to a businesses growth. I look forward to seeing many success stories of businesses growing and developing significant brand awareness through using Marketing Eye services. Yours sincerely Mellissah Smith Chief Executive Officer