Acushnet Company

The Acushnet Holdings Company is an American company that makes golf equipment and clothing.

Acushnet Holdings
Public
Traded asNYSE: GOLF
Russell 2000 Component
IndustryGolf
FounderPhilip E. Young
Headquarters
New Bedford, MA
,
U.S.
Productsgolf equipment and golfing clothing
Number of employees
~3000
Websitewww.acushnetholdingscorp.com

Acushnet is best known for its Titleist golf balls. It also produces clubs such as irons, drivers, putters (under the Scotty Cameron brand), other equipment, and apparel and accessories under the brands FootJoy and Pinnacle.

Prior to May 2011, it was a subsidiary of the Fortune Brands Corporation. However, Fortune Brands announced on December 8, 2010, that it planned to focus on its liquor business, and would spin off or sell other parts of the company — including home furnishings and hardware, and Acushnet (which includes Titleist, FootJoy, Scotty Cameron, and other golf product brands).[1][2][3] On May 20, 2011 it was announced that a Korean group associated with Fila Korea, Ltd. and Mirae Asset Private Equity would purchase Acushnet for $1.23 billion in cash.[4][5][6][7]

History

Founded in Acushnet, Massachusetts by Philip E. "Skipper" Young in 1910, the Acushnet Process Company focused on deresinating latex and supplying rubber to industry, and over time began to make their own rubber-based products including water bottles and bathing caps. Eventually, Acushnet Process became a manufacturer of golf equipment, principally, golf balls.

In 1932, the company sectioned into two divisions: Rubber and Golf, both of which became quite successful. The Rubber division was sold in 1995.

In 1935, the Golf division produced the Titleist golf ball, which has consistently been the company's most successful product.

In 1976, the company was purchased by American Brands (now known as Fortune Brands).

In 1995, Fortune sold off the Acushnet Company's Acushnet Rubber division, which was Acushnet's original business (circa early 1900s).

On December 8, 2010, Fortune Brands announced its intent to sell or spin off Acushnet and some other businesses.

Acushnet employs roughly 3000 people in Massachusetts, making it one of the largest employers in the region. It is headquartered in Fairhaven, Massachusetts alongside its Packing and Distribution Center about three miles (five kilometres) south of its original location.

They also have two golf ball manufacturing plants and an R&D Technology Center located in the New Bedford Industrial Park, as well as a Custom Golf Ball plant located in New Bedford.

Acushnet currently operates several facilities, many of which are in Massachusetts, as follows:

  • Ball Plant 2: Acushnet Company, 256 Samuel Barnett Boulevard, North Dartmouth, MA 02747
  • Ball Plant 3: Acushnet Company, 215 Duchaine Boulevard, New Bedford, MA 02746
  • Ball Plant C: Acushnet Company, 700 Belleville Avenue, New Bedford, MA 02746
  • Ball Plant 4: Acushnet Titleist (Thailand) Ltd. Hemaraj Eastern Seaboard Industrial Estate/Free Zone, 500/40 Moo 3 Tambon Tasit, Amphur Pluakdaeng, Rayong 21140
  • Distribution: Acushnet Company, 333 Bridge Street, Fairhaven, MA 02719
  • R&D Center: Acushnet Company, 181 Samuel Barnett Boulevard, North Dartmouth, MA 02747

Brands

Acushnet Company's primary brands are Titleist, FootJoy, Scotty Cameron, and Pinnacle.

FootJoy

Company Slogan: "The #1 Shoe and Glove in Golf."[8]

FootJoy is a golf clothing company based in Massachusetts and founded in 1857. Footjoy was acquired by the Acushnet Company in 1985 from General Mills.[9] Currently, FootJoy is the number one seller of golf shoes and gloves in the United States.[10] A popular shoe series is the Dryjoy Tour which Footjoy is extremely waterproof, comfortable and provides stability in a golfers swing.

Scotty Cameron

Scotty Cameron is a golf club designer who specializes in high-end putters. Cameron currently resides and has based his company, Scotty Cameron, in California. Cameron made his first putters using his mother-in-law's garage as his factory.[11] After working with several golf companies, Scotty would accept a deal with Titleist. Later, Cameron created a "Custom Shop" where users and collectors can customize their putter by ordering a custom paint fill, engraving, shaft band and grip along with other options. Players can also bring in their older Scotty Cameron Putter and have them repaired. Cameron's putters, the most storied of which are inspired by Karsten Solheim's (PING) original designs (Anser, Zing, B60) are named after popular California beach towns (Newport Beach, Laguna Beach) and Northern California counties renowned for their golf, wine, and leisure tourism (Sonoma, Napa, Monterey). His original designs, usually mallet putters, are often named using ad hoc wordplay. Cameron is a master of prestige branding, going so far as to trademark (under the Acushnet name) the acronym "G.S.S." or German stainless steel. "G.S.S." is simply 303 stainless imported from Germany and used in Cameron's more exclusive releases. It is molecularly identical to other 303 steels.

Pinnacle

Company Slogan: "Distance Doesn't Have To Be Hard."[12] Pinnacle is a golf equipment company located in Massachusetts that produces golf balls. These balls are marketed on their low price and the company's claim that it gives the player more distance. These golf balls include: Platinum Feel, Platinum Distance, Gold FX Soft, Gold FX Long and the Ribbon.[13] Adding to their reputation as a distance driven ball Pinnacle sponsors a long drive team.

References
  1. Aaron Smith, Jim Beam, neat, is company's new strategy, CNN Money, December 8, 2010.
  2. Fortune Brands Announces Intent to Separate Company's Three Businesses, The Wall Street Journal, December 8, 2010.
  3. Fortune Brands to split into three companies Archived 2011-07-16 at the Wayback Machine, Lake Country News-Sun, December 9, 2010.
  4. Fortune Brands to Sell Titleist Golf Unit to Fila Korea for $1.23 Billion, Cotten Timberlake and Lauren Coleman-Lochner, Bloomberg, May 20, 2011.
  5. Acushnet to be sold to Korean group led by Fila, Gene Yasuda, Golf Week, May 20, 2011.
  6. Fila set to buy Fortune Brands' golf unit for $1.2B Archived 2011-05-23 at the Wayback Machine, Dow Jones Newswire, May 20, 2011.
  7. Fila takes swing at golf biz with Titleist buy CBS News, May 20, 2011.
  8. "FootJoy - Golf Shoes, Apparel, Gear & More". www.footjoy.com.
  9. "Company History - FootJoy". footjoy.com.
  10. "Answers - The Most Trusted Place for Answering Life's Questions". Answers.com.
  11. http://www.scottycameron.com/studio/scottybio.aspx
  12. "Pinnacle Golf". 19 November 2008. Archived from the original on 19 November 2008.CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (link)
  13. "Pinnacle Golf". 19 November 2008. Archived from the original on 19 November 2008.CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (link)
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.