59CLUB PARTNER WITH COMESTO TO ELEVATE FOOD & BEVERAGE QUALITY & CHOICE


59club; the industry’s leading Customer Service & Sales Analysts and Training Provider, has today announced a partnership with Comesto; the UK’s most dynamic food & beverage wholesaler.

The partnership sees the pair unite to support golf clubs, resorts, hotel chains, restaurants, and bars to elevate food & beverage standards and customer experience, whilst maximising profitability across their entire operations.  

Offering an exciting range of quality food & beverage brands not available through traditional wholesalers, Comesto will afford the golf industry direct access to its wholesale procurement platform; promising more choice and a faster, more connected buying service, complete with tempting unique deals for 59Club customers.

59club will support the industry to ensure that customer service, upselling etiquette and brand standards within the dining experience are maintained. Mystery shopping and customer satisfaction surveys will provide intel to highlight individual venue performance, the industry standards and the best performers across the marketplace, with supplementary training and education services also provided by 59club to upskill employees and address any sales and service shortcomings.

Paul Walker, Commercial Director of Comesto said; “It’s been a pleasure to engage with 59club and witness their sentiment and passion towards quality; something we wholeheartedly share with the brands we represent. We welcome the opportunity to introduce our unique and exciting products, at the most competitive rates to golf clubs and resorts that our trade buyers are demanding in the wider marketplace.”. 

Will Hewitt, General Manager of 59club UK said; “Golf has often ambled on without access to the technologies that other industries rely on daily. We have developed an armoury of sales, service and operational tools that our clients rely on to ensure standards at their properties are maintained, whilst maximising their performance levels and profitability rates. We look forward to a successful partnership with Comesto, that serves to further advance the dining experience across our respective industries, as we welcome the UK’s FIRST EVER managed marketplace for sourcing quality food and drink into the 59club family. I’ll drink to that!”

Those wanting to benefit from a widened range of services & commodities, and an accurate view of what is available across the entire food and beverage/hospitality marketplace, can contact Paul Walker, Commercial Director on paulwalker@comesto.co.uk or visit www.comesto.co.uk

Hospitality providers wanting to take advantage of 59club’s global intelligence to elevate food & beverage sales and the dining experience across their respective properties, can contact Will Hewitt will@59club.com or visit www.59club.com for more information.

59CLUB LAUNCHES NEW VIRTUAL MENTOR EXPERIENCE


59club the leading sales & service analysts and training provider, have today released my59 Mentor, their intelligent virtual learning experience, safeguarding clients triumphant return to golf.

The new virtual platform features 59club’s acclaimed sales & service training programs – from membership sales and retention strategies, to perfecting corporate sales enquiries and advancing the overall guest experience – across golf & hospitality.

Venues can take advantage of the virtual mentor experience to expand their existing knowledge, educate new staff, upskill relief staff and providing personal development pathways for all aspiring individuals. Additional white papers, videography and supplementary contributor content from the likes of the infamous Gregg Patterson, are also accessible within the platform, available now 24/7 at staff member’s convenience.

The platform also acts as the perfect vehicle for venues to store and communicate all in-house company policies and training manuals direct with their team, also providing the technology to build online training courses, verify learning outcomes and track liability acceptances within one user-friendly, easily accessible and white-labelled virtual platform.

Simon Wordsworth 59club CEO said: “We recognised the need for organisations to have control over their online learning experience, so we built a platform that our partners can manage without any knowledge of coding. My59 Mentor has been developed with simplicity in mind; its clean, intuitive design makes the platform a user-friendly experience for admins and students across all devices.

“During this difficult time, we understand the challenge of motivating staff and the need to enhance personal development, and for this reason education has to remain a priority. Our entire educational content is waiting to be discovered within the platform, what better way to engage staff and build momentum, ensuring they are on top of their game and raring to go.

“There isn’t a single golf club, restaurant or hospitality venue on the planet that will, in the short term, continue to operate as usual. Each club or venue will have acute and significant challenges stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic – problems my59 Mentor can alleviate.”

Intelligent push notifications will link directly to a venue’s mystery shopping and survey performance data, directing the member of staff to the relevant lesson within the platform, as My59 Mentor instinctively acts to upskill staff and address any shortcomings.

Venues can build their own in-house digital education programmes and customise the appearance of the platform. Host staff handbooks and support files to communicate knowledge & company policy direct to the team, while collating all existing digital and paper content into one media library. The platform also provides an efficient way for managers to communicate with their staff around their initial COVID-19 policies and procedures, and phased protocol thereafter.

Within my59 Mentor there is an integrated ‘Quiz’ function which tests knowledge both before and after courses to evaluate progress. Upon completion, individuals can download certificates to authenticate their achievement. This process will naturally lend itself to organise and communicate new COVID-19 operating procedures efficiently, demonstrating that all staff members throughout the operation have read and gained a clear understanding of any new policies as they come into force.

59CLUB DELIVERS FINANCIAL INTELLIGENCE TO GOLF WITH NEW METRICS PLATFORM


59club the industry’s leading sales & service analysts and training provider, continue to support golf clubs with a move to produce financial comparable data alongside their famed benchmarking tools.

Simon Wordsworth 59club CEO said: “my59 Metrics was always due to launch in the Spring, we have been working hard to provide the intel that the industry has been lacking around various monetary P&L data. Recent events have led us to adapt this technology to provide additional feedback to managers on the effect that COVID-19 has had on their club in quarter 1, and subsequently throughout 2020, providing short, medium and long-term analytics.

“This is live data that everyone needs right now, not only now in this crisis but forever. We want to support the industry to be able to make the right financial decisions going forward, based on real industry statistical evidence.

“For so long golf has had little data on which to make its decisions, we felt that this had to change. We have produced live customer service data for years and have now developed the intel within my59 Metrics to measure financials. We have always put confidentiality at the top of our to do list, this ethic puts us in the perfect place to reach across the industry and all the different stakeholders to deliver a product that’s needed, and needed now.”

My59 Metrics, is an analytical platform that provides comparable data around the industry’s operating rates, such as gross profit, turnover, membership revenue & attrition, purchasing rates, stock levels, average monthly sales, payroll, staffing levels – and many other variables.

All data entries remain anonymous to anyone other than your club’s sole key account holder. As with all 59club products, its intelligent applications contain a wealth of filters that generate comparable data against venues of a similar nature, allowing club management to make astute judgements and decisions around its financial operation. All venues will be able to filter the results by business style (private, resort, etc), by county/region, by venue size (number of holes) and by course style (parkland, heathland etc). Additional functionality is available within a premium licence.

59club has benchmarked customer service, staff sales performance and operation management, providing key performance indicators across golf & hospitality for over 12 years. Now as they launch my59 Metrics, they have completed the circle of data, helping golf clubs to measure and strengthen their financial operations.

Venue managers, industry suppliers and stakeholders have all been involved in shaping the first release of my59 Metrics, which includes the key headline measurements that will provide clarity around revenue, rounds played, costs and margins. Subsequent releases will allow golf clubs to delve deeper into those headline areas and truly understand greenkeeping costs, professional offerings and club salaries.

The first release will take place on 8th May for clubs across England, Northern Ireland, Scotland & Wales, with managers invited to complete the initial my59 Metricsdataset before the end of May. By completing 2019 data at the same time, you will realise the immediate effect COVID-19 has had on your club and the industry as a whole.

Monthly data entries will be co-ordinated thereafter, as 59club generate industry-wide comparable data like never before. 59club also plan to work with other technology providers to automate the process, with the ambitious goal that by the end of 2020, golf could have LIVE data. To take advantage of this opportunity and make informed decisions on how best to weather the financial effects of COVID-19, visit www.59clubuk.com

59CLUB PROVIDES COMPLIMENTARY EMPLOYEE SURVEY TOOLS, HELPING THE INDUSTRY IDENTIFY STAFF NEEDS DURING CHALLENGING TIMES


The customer service analysts and benchmarking firm 59club announced today they will also provide COVID-19 specific employee survey tools to golf and other hospitality venues free of charge amid the current crisis. The survey tools capture employee challenges, concerns and potential opportunities all in one easy-to-use snapshot.

This addition comes shortly after 59club had made equivalent survey tools available to target the golf & hospitality industries customers, members and guests. These complimentary offerings will remain available throughout the current crisis.

“Many clubs are asking themselves if surveying their employees is appropriate during this time,” said Will Hewitt, General Manager, 59club UK. “The long-term implications of mismanaging employee needs are insurmountable, and there is data available that shows employee feedback and direct communication is not only appropriate, it’s necessary during this crisis. Top-performing companies consistently search for ways to make themselves and their employees better.”

59club’s proprietary survey tools enable managers to identify both employee and customer needs, strengthen retention levels and recognise a clear direction on ways to improve their overall experience. The smart dashboard analyses data in a clear and concise manner and provides demographic filters to further segment information, creating a comprehensive, manageable and immediate snapshot of their opinion and attitude.

Managers and decision makers can use these COVID-19 question templates to build their personal survey, with the freedom to include additional custom questions within a template, they also have the ability to create a survey entirely of their own making, to better fit their needs and goals using the software.

“Effective feedback, both positive and negative, is critical knowledge at any given time, it may be more important now than ever during these ever-changing times, said Hewitt.

“Top performing clubs remain the best performers because they consistently search for ways to make their best even better. Managers who deliberately ask for feedback will gain valuable insight that can address any weaknesses or oversights within their business. With so much uncertainty, staff and customers need to be nurtured now more than ever, that process starts with asking the right questions, at the right time”.

Click here to gain complimentary access to 59club COVID-19 Survey Software

59CLUB EXTENDS THEIR COMMITMENT TO HELP, WITH ADDITIONAL COMPLIMENTARY SURVEY TOOLS AND MEMBER COMMUNICATION APP TO SUPPORT THE INDUSTRY


Customer service satisfaction and benchmarking firm 59club have announced today that they will further extend their complimentary offering amid the global COVID-19 pandemic, as 59club help the golf & hospitality industry to make the right choices and provide the right options for its customers, members and staff.

59club’s ‘We are in this together’ Campaign, has seen newly released survey templates that reflect the current situation facing the industry, and the interactive Golftell Member Communication app added to their existing complementary offering, all free of charge throughout the current crisis.

“The ability to appreciate what customers and staff need, what their future intentions are, what they are willing to do right now and how they will react amid this ever-changing time, is data we could all use wiselyand never has there been a more pertinent time to glean this valuable information than today – right here, right now”! said Will Hewitt, managing partner of 59club UK.

“We want to make sure the golf and hospitality industry have valuable tools available to them so they can make informed decisions during these trying times.”

Specific COVID-19 survey templates have and will continue to be added as part of 59club’s complimentary offering, covering all aspects of general member surveys, golf professional services, including retail, custom fitting & coaching and staff wellness surveys.  The survey tools assist managers to glean feedback from its customers, members and staff amid the current crisis at specific times when the facility continues its limited offerings, at times when the offering/operation is forcibly closed, during a clubs renewal process, when dealing with membership cancellations and in the run-up to the club/facilities reopening.

The templates contain a bank of pre-set questions, enabling managers to build their survey with the ability to create custom questions of their own. 59club’s proprietary survey tools enable club managers to identify both employee and guest needs, strengthen retention and recognise a clear direction on ways to improve the overall experience at their respective properties.

The smart dashboard allows management to analyse data in a clear and concise manner and provides demographic filters to further segment information, creating a comprehensive, manageable and immediate snapshot of their customer, member and staff opinion and attitude.

The interactive Golftell Member Communication app creates a new channel for members to privately communicate directly with club management, with the ability to provide as much or as little feedback as the member wishes to supply. During times when the club is closed, the app can be used to reflect on previous experiences, to make future suggestions, to communicate on any matter relating to the club and their membership, and when normality resumes – they can continue using the app to provide instant feedback when visiting the club.

The app channels member feedback within the following areas: course condition, food quality, general facilities and customer service levels, applying an average rating of great, good, average or poor which contributes towards the clubs own satisfaction rating as well as adding into the industry-wide data pool.

Managers and decision makers can make use of 59club’s complimentary offering throughout the current crisis to gather data from one’s own customers and employees. Complete with the ability to make direct comparisons amid the current situation facing the industry, as 59club continues providing help, clarity and vision on a global scale, at a time when it is needed most.

“These are extraordinary times. Many managers are trying to figure what, if any, services should still be available, and what people will want when you re-open” said Simon Wordsworth, founder of 59club.

“Customers will remember those who took the time to touch base with them, to ascertain their needs and wants during the unprecedented time when they knew you were simply hoping to remain open, and latterly during the challenge of being forcibly closed.

“Navigating unchartered waters and relying only on substandard communication tools like social media and non-reply emails does a disservice to the manager, staff, their members and guests. We want our friends and colleagues in the tourism and hospitality industries to have everything they need to weather this storm.”

Please visit www.59club.com and follow the COVID-19 actions to instigate your FREE license, any additional support can be directed to your local 59club division who are waiting to help!

59CLUB PROVIDES COMPLIMENTARY SURVEY TOOLS, HELPING CLUBS IDENTIFY MEMBER NEEDS AMID CHALLENGING TIMES


59club, the Industry leading Customer Service Analysts and Training Provider firm, 59club announced today they will offer complimentary use of their proprietary survey tools amid the current COVID-19 crisis. Golf clubs and other hospitality venues may use the survey tools to communicate directly to their membership and identify member and guest needs for free through till 31st May 2020.

“Obviously, the tourism and hospitality industries have been greatly affected by the pandemic,” said Will Hewitt, General Manager, 59club UK. “We want to help these clubs communicate with their members and guests so they can be best prepared to accommodate special circumstances until things get back to normal. We’re in this together. We want to do our part and help as much as we can.”

59club’s proprietary survey tools enable club managers to identify member and guest needs, strengthen customer retention and recognise a clear direction on ways to improve the overall experience at their respective clubs. 59club will provide specific COVID-19 survey templates as part of their complimentary offering of the survey tool. Managers and decision makers can use this service to pick and choose from pre-set questions already available within the platform, and/or choose to add custom questions of their own. The ability to gather data from one’s own members and make direct comparisons based on the current situation facing the industry will provide clarity and vision on a global scale when its needed most.

“These are extraordinary times. Many managers are trying to figure out if their club should remain open or what, if any, services should still be available,” said Simon Wordsworth, founder of 59club.
“Clubs themselves are navigating unchartered waters trying to determine what their members actually want or expect from their club. Relying only on substandard communication tools like social media and non-reply emails does a disservice to the club, its members and guests. We want our friends and colleagues in the tourism and hospitality industries to have everything they need to weather this storm.”

Go to www.59club.com to sign up for your complimentary 59club survey tools.

LEADING SERVICE PROVIDERS HONOURED AT 59CLUB’S 10TH ANNUAL INDUSTRY OSCARS


High-profile venues across the UK and Europe recognised for service excellence in glitzy ceremony at the Forest of Arden Marriott Hotel & Country Club

The golf industry’s very best clubs, resorts and individuals descended on The Forest of Arden Marriott Hotel & Country Club, on Thursday March 12, 2020, with the hope of claiming an industry ‘Oscar’ at 59club’s 10th annual Service Excellence Awards.

A day which started with a series of inspirational educational seminars, ended in a glittering awards ceremony honouring the finest customer service providers for having achieved the highest standards of excellence across 2019.

59club’s illustrious accolades are determined by scores collected from their impartial mystery shopping audits, which evaluate the experience afforded to visiting golfers and prospective members, in accordance with 59club’s objective benchmarking criteria. On the night, 59club presented 64 awards across 27 categories, recognising ‘service excellence’ across all areas of the businesses – sales, service, operations, retail, golf course, food & beverage and management. With 59club continuing to reflect the very best performances, regardless of a venue’s size, scale or profile, by segmenting several individual accolades based on a venue’s average green fee rate, of either above or below £75 per person.

Stoke Park and The Belfry Hotel & Resort picked up the highest prized awards of the evening, The Ultimate Members’ Club, and The Ultimate Golf Resort respectively, withThe Belfry retaining their title for a second consecutive year and Stoke Park having claimed The Ultimate accolade previously in 2015.

Stuart Collier, Stoke Park Director of Golf, said; “It’s a huge honour for the entire team at Stoke Park to be awarded the prize of Ultimate Members’ Club at this year’s 59club annual awards dinner. We have worked very closely with 59club since 2011 and this has enabled us to review, develop and improve the overall member and visitor experience at the club.

“At Stoke Park we are blessed to have world class facilities but we feel the interaction with the staff is the most important element of any visit and we rely on the 59club to provide us with real feedback to monitor, manage and improve this”.  

In addition to being crowned The Ultimate Golf Resort, The Belfry’s celebrations continued, as Chris Reeve retained his Golf Manager of the Year title (>£75 category) with Jacques Hobson crowned Food & Beverage Manager of the Year (>£75 category).

Upon collecting numerous awards personally and on behalf of The Belfry Hotel and Resort, Chris Reeve, Director of Golf, said: Having received crowning glory from 59club once is truly an honour, to maintain the highest prized accolade 2 years in a row across our entire operation amplifies the teams solidarity for delivering the greatest experiences in golf, cementing our position as Europe’s Ultimate Golf Resort. 

“It was fantastic to see Jacques Hobson crowned Food & Beverage Manager of the Year, and retaining the Golf Manager of the Year title is a personal highlight in my career – as we continue to deliver the unforgettable member and guest experience that The Belfry is synonymous with, we all have a lot to celebrate”!

59club’s Industry Benchmark of excellence, it’s Gold, Silver and Bronze Flag Designations, are always a highlight of proceedings. These highly prized accolades recognise member clubs’ and resorts that provide excellent facilities for golfers to enjoy, as well as having achieved the required standard of customer service throughout 2019.

This year, 59club presented 14 ‘Gold Flags’. The deserving winners were: Celtic Manor Resort, Club de Golf Alcanada, Forest of Arden Marriott Hotel & Country Club, Foxhills Club & Resort, Gleneagles, Golf Son Muntaner, Los Naranjos Golf Club, Monte Rei, Mount Juliet Estate, Rockliffe Hall, Roehampton Club, Stoke Park, The Belfry Hotel & Resort and The Grove.

The Foxhills Collection were left revelling on the night having been awarded Golf Group of the year, with Foxhills Club & Resort achieving Gold Flag status, Golf Operations Team of the Year (>£75 category), and Golf Membership Sales Team of the Year. Further celebrations saw Sophie Whitmore honoured for her Leading Individual Golf Membership Sales Performance, and Sean Graham crowned Golf Retail Manager of the Year (>£75 category).

Marriott Golf also boasted numerous successes on the night, with Forest of Arden seeing Fraser Liston crowned Golf Manager of the Year (<£75 category), with 2 further team awards recognising their Golf Operations and  Golf Sales departments, the latter having been retained for the 4th consecutive year, as well as the venue retaining their Gold Flag status. Tudor Park provided more reason to celebrate after Rachel Palmer was honoured for her Leading Individual Group Golf Sales Performance. St Pierre continued the winning streak having scooped the Golf Membership Sales Team accolade, with Hanbury Manor achieving Silver Flag Status.  

Of this year’s awards, Simon Wordsworth, CEO at 59club, commented: “Forest of Arden was the perfect host for our 10th annual awards ceremony, and my unerring congratulations go to our nominees, tonight’s winners, our supporters and everyone involved with 59club for their commitment to perfecting service standards across our industry. 

10 years ago tonight, we celebrated our first award winning performances, and as I look back at that wealth of data, I am privileged to have witnessed 59club quite literally reinvent member and guest experiences across Golf & Hospitality using technology & data to measure, train and support our clients to achieve service excellence.

Our promise to our clients, and to those just embarking on their journey with 59club – as 12 Franchises take hold around the world servicing golf, leisure, spa & hospitality providers – has always been to continue supporting their customer journey, with new tools and more intel, to equip our most ambitious companies in their pursuit of excellence. The first half of 2020 sees ‘Business Metrics’ and our ‘Education Platform’ launch simultaneously, with many more progressive tools waiting in the wings”.

Other prestigious award winners on the night included Matt Aplin of Goring & Streatley who retained his Greenkeeper of the Year title (<£75 category), with Scott Fenwick & Craig Haldane from Gleneagles crowned Greenkeepers of the Year in the over £75 category.

Jonny Dye of Rockliffe Hall was hailed Golf Retail Manager of the Year (<£75 category), whilst the Food & Beverage Manager of the Year title (<£75 category) was presented to Glenn McNaughton of Long Ashton Golf Club.

Five-time winner, The Vale Resort was awarded Leisure Membership Sales Team of the Year, and Alice Cox-Cooper from The Mere was recognised for her Leading Individual Leisure Membership Sales Performance.

8 ‘Silver Flags’ went to Golf Club Castelconturbia, Frilford Heath Golf Club, Hanbury Manor Marriott Hotel & Country Club, La Manga Club, Le Golf National, The Duke’s, St Andrews, The North Berwick Golf Club and Woodhall Spa.

A further 7 ‘Bronze Flag’ Awards were presented to Dalmahoy Hotel & Country Club, Gullane Golf Club, Porters Park Golf Club, Royal Automobile Club, Royal Dornoch Golf Club, Sandy Lodge Golf Club and Slaley Hall.

To recognise venues which have shown continued commitment to engage, analyse and enrich their member and guest experience, utilising a collateral of survey tools across 59club’s software platform, 13 ‘Service Excellence’ designations were presented on the night. Recipients included Aldenham Golf & Country Club, Branston Golf & Country Club, Celtic Manor Resort, Cotswold Hills Golf Club, Edgbaston Golf Club, Goring & Streatley Golf Club, Long Ashton Golf Club, Macdonald Hotels & Resorts, Moor Park Golf Club, Mount Juliet Estate, North Middlesex Golf Club, The Scandinavian and Vale Resort. Radyr Golf Club and Stoke by Nayland Hotel, Golf & Spa received distinction in this category achieving the Ultimate Service Excellence honour.

Celebrations continued the following morning as guests re-assembled for the 59club golf day, sponsored by Golf Genius which teed off on the Arden Course, and saw the winning individual Phil Rowsell of Asbri Golf – 59club’s most recent industry partner – claim the Claret Jug, with an individual score of 40 points. The winning team consisted of Eryl Williams, Richard Dinsdale both of Asbri Golf, Chris Dowrick of Foxhills Club & Resort and Will Hewitt, 59club who led a 3-point team victory.

For more information on 59club, visit www.59club.com

Full list of award winners can be seen in the table below.

59club ‘Service Excellence’ Award Winners 2019/20:

The Ultimate Members’ Club: Stoke Park

The Ultimate Golf Resort: The Belfry Hotel & Resort

Golf Group of the Year: Foxhills Collection

Gold Flag Designations: Celtic Manor Resort, Club de Golf Alcanada, Forest of Arden Marriott Hotel & Country Club, Foxhills Club & Resort, Gleneagles, Golf Son Muntaner, Los Naranjos Golf Club, Monte Rei, Mount Juliet Estate, Rockliffe Hall, Roehampton Club, Stoke Park, The Belfry Hotel & Resort and The Grove.

Silver Flag Designations: Golf Club Castelconturbia, Frilford Heath Golf Club, Hanbury Manor Marriott Hotel & Country Club, La Manga Club, Le Golf National, The Duke’s, St Andrews, The North Berwick Golf Club and Woodhall Spa.

Bronze Flag Designations: Dalmahoy Hotel & Country Club, Gullane Golf Club, Porters Park Golf Club, Royal Automobile Club, Royal Dornoch Golf Club, Sandy Lodge Golf Club and Slaley Hall.

My59 Ultimate Service Excellence Award: Radyr Golf Club and Stoke by Nayland Hotel, Golf & Spa

My59 Service Excellence Award: Aldenham Golf & Country Club, Branston Golf & Country Club, Celtic Manor Resort, Cotswold Hills Golf Club, Edgbaston Golf Club, Goring & Streatley Golf Club, Long Ashton Golf Club, Macdonald Hotels & Resorts, Moor Park Golf Club, Mount Juliet Estate, North Middlesex Golf Club, The Scandinavian and Vale Resort.

Golf Manager of the Year (<£75 green fee): Fraser Liston (Forest of Arden Marriott Hotel & Country Club –    Aylesford Course)

Golf Manager of the Year (>£75 green fee): Chris Reeve (The Belfry Hotel & Resort)

Greenkeeper of the Year (<£75 green fee): Matt Aplin (Goring & Streatley)

Greenkeeper of the Year (>£75 green fee): Scott Fenwick & Craig Haldane (Gleneagles – Kings Course)

Food and Beverage Manager of the Year (<£75 green fee): Glenn McNaughton (Long Ashton Golf Club)

Food and Beverage Manager of the Year (>£75 green fee): Jacques Hobson (The Belfry Hotel & Resort)

Golf Retail Manager of the Year (<£75 green fee): Jonny Dye (Rockliffe Hall)

Golf Retail Manager of the Year (>£75 green fee): Sean Graham (Foxhills Club & Resort)

Golf Operations Team of the Year (<£75 green fee): Forest of Arden Marriott Hotel & Country Club (Aylesford Course)

Golf Operations Team of the Year (>£75 green fee: Foxhills Club & Resort

Leading Individual Group Golf Sales Performance: Rachel Palmer (Tudor Park Marriott Hotel & Country Club)

Golf Sales Team of the Year: Forest of Arden Marriott Hotel & Country Club

Leading Individual Golf Membership Sales Performance: Sophie Whitmore (Foxhills Club & Resort)

Golf Membership Sales Team of the Year: Foxhills Club & Resort & St Pierre Marriott Hotel & Country Club

Leading Individual Leisure Membership Sales Performance: Alice Cox-Cooper (The Mere)

Leisure Membership Sales Team of the Year: Vale Resort

Stay up to date with all 59club development on social media at @59club1 on Twitter, @59club on Facebook and Instagram at @59clubuk

59CLUB ACCELERATES EXPANSION WITH LAUNCH OF 59CLUB MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA


59club cements its position in the Middle East and Africa with establishment of local office and formation of dedicated ‘MEA’ division amidst international growth

United Arab Emirates, 13th October, 2019: 59club, the world’s leading specialist customer service & sales analysis and training provider, has enhanced its rapidly accelerating global footprint with the opening of a dedicated office in Dubai, signalling the official launch of 59club Middle East and Africa.

Already, 59club has established and developed relationships with 14 well-known golf resorts in the region, including Dubai Golf, Aldar properties in Abu Dhabi and resorts in Mauritius and Seychelles. Today’s announcement cements 59club’s commitment to the region and recognises its success there by creating the structure for an unrivalled, on the ground service for existing and new clients. It follows the launch of 59club Asia in November 2018 with additional offices set to open in emerging destinations worldwide as demand for 59club’s expertise and intel reaches an all-time high.

As well as a local presence, the development of new spa, F&B and Hotel products will allow 59club MEA to enhance performance within the ever-growing, high-end leisure market the region is famed for. Its market-leading software and assessment criteria provide the resources to improve and maintain ‘sales & service’ etiquette, increasing customer satisfaction, revenue and profits in the process.

The 59club MEA team will consist of Neal Graham and Mark and Sally Bull, who collectively boast more than 30 years’ experience working in the region. During this time, they have established important relationships with key stakeholders within the Golf, Spa and Hospitality industries, which will be pivotal to future success.

Of the launch of 59club Middle East and Africa, 59club CEO, Simon Wordsworth, said: “I’m delighted to announce the launch of our Middle East and Africa division and hugely excited to have Neal, Mark and Sally on board at the helm.

“Boasting some of the finest leisure destinations worldwide, 59club’s growing profile in the UAE and Africa presents the opportunity for operators to enhance their offering even further and ensure the region’s reputation for service is extended. For our clients, this also means business growth and I anticipate an immediate impact under the leadership of our 59club MEA team.”

59club Middle East and Africa Co-Director, Neal Graham, added: “We are excited to enhance the service and offering to our current and potential new clients within the region. The expansion of our products into the Spa and Hospitality areas represents an exciting development and will enable us to utilise the powerful management tool to identify areas of concern and assist clients with training and support. 

“For the first time, it will provide operators with the tools to benchmark their standards against competitors, the industry and some of the leading venues worldwide, which is going to have a tremendous impact on performance.”

Over the past ten years, 59club has taken the industry by storm by providing data-driven solutions and industry benchmarks to address issues of sub-par sales and service performance, to which many leading venues have aligned their principals. 59club’s overarching influence within the Middle East and Africa will drive standards, advance experience and generate greater profitability for each and every commodity within the service industry.

For further details and enquiries, please email: enquries@59clubmea.com

59CLUB BUSINESS INTERFACE NOW AVAILABLE FOR CONCEPT CUSTOMERS


Concept has partnered with 59club to provide its golf, leisure & spa clients with new service analysis intelligence to measure customer satisfaction levels within their businesses via its high-end operations software suites.

Concept users can now benefit from 59club’s expertise, mechanism and freedom to independently deliver customer satisfaction surveys using their industry specific benchmarking assessment criteria, flexible survey templates and automated software.

The new partnership enables the auto-generating functions to remain switched on for mutual affiliated clients – meaning that each time member and guest data is entered into their operations software, 59club will auto-invite the customer to complete the venues bespoke satisfaction survey based on their recent encounter – for example after having joined the club, paid to play, visited the spa or F&B outlet or having relinquished their club membership. The functionality can even track a customer’s experience at significant landmarks during their journey, auto-generating a series of questionnaires, in sequence at set intervals as programmed by the venue, measuring a new member’s experience over a set timeframe as a guide.

With a wealth of survey templates that cover all areas of the hospitality industry and as a result of the two software giant’s new pairing, club staff can now save valuable time delivering surveys, avoiding additional data entry, and elements of human error or resistance are eradicated.

The new interface will go live at one of the most prestigious properties in The UK; The Belfry – with other leading Golf Groups such as Dubai Golf and premier clubs and resorts that includes the likes of Old Thorns, Celtic Manor, Stoke Park, Ramside Hall and Dalmahoy also set to win as a result of the new pairing, with concept looking to roll-out the update to all of its clients very soon.

Chris Reeve, Director of Golf at the Belfry Hotel & Resort, said: “The 59club surveys have been a huge success for us and we are just about to introduce a link between our EPOS [Concept] system which will talk directly to 59club’s software [my59] and provide a survey to anyone that plays a round of golf at The Belfry with a few key questions. This is going to open new doors for us and gives us even more insight into what our customers are looking for and allows us to retain our number one position as the best golf resort in the UK”

The new partnership has been forged to assist venues to improve and maintain sales and service quality, in addition to comparing their internal customer satisfaction levels against 59club’s benchmark; the industry average and the best performing venues globally. Ultimately venues stand to capture more consumer insights than ever before.

Simon Wordsworth, 59club CEO, said: “Our recent partnership with Concept is hugely exciting for 59club. Linking our customer satisfaction survey software with the complete enterprise solution for the world’s leading resorts couldn’t be a better match. Both companies have a focus on being in control; whether that’s assisting clients managing memberships, reservations, POS or business intelligence.

“The addition of ‘real-time’ customer service analysis sees the essential day to day operation of golf, leisure & Spa venues worldwide get a whole lot smarter. As 59club continues to grow with new operations in America, Asia and Europe, I’m looking forward to seeing our collaboration with Concept continue to advance service excellence standards across the industry globally”.

Concept, a Shiji Group Brand, offers its users with leisure software for spas, clubs, resorts, and golf courses. The Concept Golf product is a complete enterprise solution for the world’s leading golf resorts and venues and caters for all software needs for golf operations.

Malcolm Rennie, Commercial Manager of Concept, said: “This new relationship and integration with 59club is so exciting for us. The cross-over between our mutual clients is staggering and we were delighted to see so many of Concept’s customers being recognised at 59club’s annual awards ceremony. We can’t wait to rollout this integration to new and existing clients and see the positive results.” 


For more information on 59club, visit: www.59club.com
For more information on Concept, visit www.concept.shijigroup.com