What do you get when you combine Starbucks with Pebble Beach? The answer is Golf Links Cafe, the franchise we predict will grow fast. We may not need to give you the numbers on the recession-proof coffee industry or the money in the golf industry, but let’s say it’s a lot. The only trend growing faster is people leaving traditional office space to work in more high-vibe places that provide the community that best fits an individual’s interests. So maybe it’s golf plus coffee plus business? I don’t know if we’re talking about addition anymore. Rather, it might just be multiplication at this point.
Although the first locations are still opening and proving themselves, the possibilities are very promising. Several of us here at the paper actively play golf or used to golf, and we all agree that we’d all golf more if the cost, weather, and long time frames weren’t a factor. With these indoor social situations without the weather, having the ability to hit balls with a simulator is an option we want in on.
We’re speaking to the numbers or the operation less than we are speaking to the concept. Could this be the next big thing? Only time and money will tell, but they have the right people at the helm. With a track record of building 187 coffee bars, Entrepreneur Magazine says it is “possibly the most advanced start-up in franchise history.”
By the way, do you think this is just a man’s athletic thing? Think again. From average adult women to the c-suite businesswoman, a sport has never been more geared to females than golf is right now. This makes it even more likely to succeed. With the latest grand openings in Arizona, we’re excited to see what happens next, and one of these is coming to Atlanta.
Let’s see if Tom Matzen and Simon Hedley can make many people happy. You can find them at linksgolfcafe.com.
To cover different events and add a variety of expertise to the news and stories we report, we have several staff writers who contribute to our publication.