Larry Gulko built Gulko & Company, ran marketing for Cybex and founded the CEO Brand Leadership Roundtable at Harvard Business School, now in its 14th year. His advice for clubs: stop trying to be a better version of the club down the road and give people a reason to choose yours. I asked Larry about his work with Greg Norman and The Biggest Loser, what a club with a small budget should do first, and why a brand starts with the people inside the business.
Key Takeaways
- Why having a brand name does not make you a name brand.
- How he brought Greg Norman into the Cybex story, including 100 letters to country club general managers.
- Why a club's reputation is built from the inside out, through its people and culture.
- What happens in a nine hour BRAND: NEW DAY session.
- Why waiting to see if a competitor tries your idea first can cost you the idea.
- What tennis, pickleball and padel clubs can learn from golf events and programs.
- His first piece of advice before a facility opens: get a focus.
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