Club Car 2004 launch of the Precedent golf vehicle has been even more successful than the company anticipated. According to Phil Tralies, Club Car’s president and CEO, the company’s initial expectations were incredibly conservative, “Although we were confident that customers would be excited about the enhanced benefits that are incorporated into the new design, what we didn‘t anticipate was how quickly their excitement would translate into orders!”
First-quarter orders for Precedent surpassed all of the company’s forecasts and were the leading contributor to a 25 percent overall increase in orders for all Club Car vehicles. Neil Woodfin, sales director for Europe, Africa & Middle East attributes this increase to the design improvements that set Precedent apart from its competitors.
“Club Car is recognised as a premium brand and that is reflected in the Precedent,” he said. “When we designed this car we could have looked at ways to purely reduce our costs, but we didn‘t. The driving force behind this project was to meet customer needs more effectively than anyone else in the market. With Precedent and the new Carryall 294 we believe we have achieved this.”
Precedent, which was in development for five years, has created some long awaited excitement into amongst dealers and distribution channels. Colin Baxter, managing director of Hydroturf, Club Car’s UAE distributor has been surprised by the immediate reaction to Precedent.
“For years people have said a golf car was a golf car, but they can‘t say that about this car,” he said. “It’s so different – visually and technically – that we have people calling us who want to be the first course in their area to get the car.”
Deliveries of the Precedent in Europe have already been made to some of the most prestigious names in golf including the De Vere Belfry, Quinta do Lago, Tower Links and The Emirates. Club Car will continue to produce the DS series car golf car with the IQ System as long as customer demand continues to create a market for the vehicle as Neil continued, “Our portfolio strategy is proving to be a win-win situation for customers and Club Car alike. We are a dedicated, focussed specialist vehicle manufacturer and our customers now have the ability to choose the right product at the right price to meet their needs.”
Club Car www.clubcar.com.
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