A King’s Lament

 I’d be lyin’ if I told you everything was great for me here at Daphne’s Headcovers. Although for the most part, I don’t have any real complaints, there’s just one little thing that gnaws at my nerves.  I’ve always seen myself as King of Beasts…King of this here Jungle…kinda’ like Daphne’s own Elvis. Well, almost every animal here respects my lofty position of authority as King—everyone that is, except for that play-acting princess Shih Tzu and that yapping Jack Russell Terrier!  When you think about it, our Pride at Daphne’s is a bit unconventional with everything from beavers and beagles living with turtles and triceratops. We all know our places, except of course for the pretend princess and yip yap! I feel it’s my job to protect the pride and be the alpha animal. But when I brush out my mane to its full glory, you can bet the pretend potentate will be flaunting her fur. When I roar to assure my menagerie that they are safe, you can be sure the capper comes from that little Swoop Dog wannabe’s best impression of a yapper! When I’m a bit bothered, however, I focus on the fact that I sit atop the driver in the bag of Ernie Els, one of the top golf professionals in the world. In fact, many of our Daphne’s family members travel the world with the top players in all of golf. I’d like to invite you to put me in your bag, too.  Because when you really think about it…you’d be better off with a king like me in your bag. I mean, who wants the yips???

Golf is for the birds

“Nevermore! “Please stop asking me about it. I’m not the poet my ancestor was. I’m just a regular old Raven. Sure, some people think I might be a bit of a Ravin’ Raven, but you won’t find me making up any poetry even once upon a midnight, deary. I wouldn’t be caught pondering about a beak or a theory! “I’m a golf club headcover…and quite frankly, I’m very good at it. We animals have to pass a very stringent test to be chosen as a Daphne’s Headcover and thankfully it doesn’t include making up prose. No, we simply have to be good at protecting golfers’ expensive equipment, maintain a lifetime warranty, and of course be, ahem…very attractive. I think I’m doing my part quite well! “So, to sum up. If you’re looking for someone to remind you to purchase the best headcover available by gently tap, tap, tapping at your chamber door, you have the wrong bird. On the other hand, if you’re looking for a proud Raven to rave about a top-of-the-line headcover while perched atop your favorite golf club, I am your bird.  “Check me out at the Daphnes Headcovers menagerie at www.daphnesheadcovers.com.  “This it is…and nothing more.”  

The Hounds Around Town

Boy, oh Boy, oh Boy are we excited to have found our way back to Daphne’s!  After a little hiatus, both of us are proud to have sniffed our way back home and into the line.  After all, sniffing is what we hound dogs do. 

At the risk of appearing to be crass like our cousins the “publicity hounds,” we thought it a good idea to give you our qualifications to be in your bag.

• We sniff trouble from a mile away and we’ll try to help you stay out of the water and weeds. (However, we make no guarantees since you have to make the swing.)

• Basset Hounds’ tracking sense of smell is second only to the bloodhound so take me along and I’ll help track those balls that go ab-scent!

• Beagles are known for our stubborn nature and I will doggedly protect your driver.

Beagles and Bassets are at our best when we are part of a pack.  This is due to our loving and social nature…we love company! So instead of bringing just one of us home, bring us both or choose from one of our many other friends at Daphne’s. I’d be the last to know, but I’ve heard a rumor they may be working on one dressed in houndstooth check!

One thing is for sure, when you ride with the hounds, you’ll have a howling good time!

Blogging Headcover, blog’s on golf & life at Daphne’s Headcovers

I’m a Golden Retriever and I love my job here at Daphne’s Headcovers. We Goldens are a pretty special breed, if I do say so myself. I am here to bring smiles and fun to everyone who carries me on their bag and I think I’m pretty good at that (you know, if I do say so myself).  

My qualifications:

I am well trained–if you tell me to “stay” I will not move.

I come with all my shots. (You’ll be surprised how that helps with your shots!)

I will protect your driver day and night and keep it comfy so it is ready for that long drive when you need it.When people see me they say “Ahh he looks just like Buddy, or Noble or
Dino.” I always stare straight ahead and try really hard to look exactly
like the Golden Retriever they have at home. I also secretly hope that
they’ve taught “Buddy” not to chew as life as a headcover can become rather
uncomfy as a chew toy.I’m really proud to protect my golf club. But my most favorite thing to do is to ride on a golf cart. The wind in my face makes my ears flap, and I love that!�

I don’t mind leaving Daphne’s to be adopted by another family, because I
know that like a retriever if anything happens to me Daphne’s will always
take me back. Their life time guarantee makes it easy for me to go to my new
home and a keep my driver covered.

 P.S The owners created me to look like their Golden Retriever (although I
know it’s the other way around).  

Always check references when you hire your relatives.

 In our early days, as sales began to grow at Daphne’s my Mom, our company’s namesake, and I decided that we should “become international.” So we contacted my uncle Nick in England. Nick was an avid golfer, retired businessman and had a car that could hold plenty of headcovers, he was perfect for the job of our first international salesman!.   As our relative we knew he’d handle this opportunity with tremendous effort and we placed our trust in his success.  Of course we didn’t ask for his references, Nick was family. When my mom went home to England she brought him headcovers and catalogs and he agreed to become our representative. Daphne’s Headcovers was about to become an international company! After many weeks of waiting and imaging the stellar success Nick was having we realized that we hadn’t heard a word.  We gave it a bit more time and still, nothing! So, my mom and I got up early in the morning and called to ask Nick how things were going. “Oh, yes well you see I’ve been very busy going to golf courses but now that I am retired I have time to play golf. So when my friends see me they invite me to play a round of golf and I do. I haven’t had time to actually sell any headcovers although I’ve been giving them away as thank you gifts for these lovely invitations I’ve been receiving. They’re ever so nice, do you think you could send some more?” We decided to find someone who didn’t play golf but who knew about business. We reached out to my cousin Ann and she thought the idea was “simply spiffing.” Ann had a career in London but said she had “oodles” of spare time and knew just where to start.  We knew as our relative she’d handle this opportunity with tremendous effort and we placed our trust in her success.  This time we were sure to clearly explain that we expected sales to be made and that the samples were for the golf shops and not gifts for friends. We were back on track to becoming an international golf company! We sent Ann oodles of samples and catalogs, discussed our goals, and sent her off. After a few weeks we hadn’t heard a word. We gave it a bit more time and still nothing! So my mom and I got up early in the morning (sound familiar?) and called Ann. She was delighted to hear from us and share her success. She’d seen a golf shop near by and went in to check it out. When she got there she met a “very lovely, tanned American golf pro” who seemed very interested in her, and “oh yes the headcovers too.” Well that night Ann had a brainstorm. She brought all the samples to her “lovely American” as a gift!  She knew we wanted them in a golf shop and said he was delighted to get the headcovers at no charge! She went back the next day and they were all priced and already selling! She wondered if all American golf pro’s were this tanned and charming and could we possibly send some more headcovers? Our next great idea came when my childhood friend and his mates were coming to America for a break from their studies at Oxford. They were low on funds and asked if they could stay with us as they made their way across the U.S. Again we had a brilliant idea and thought that we’d pay them to be our representatives if they made sales along the way. We gave them firm guidelines that they were to sell and not give the headcovers away, etc. Although they weren’t family we thought “hey, how can we lose if we don’t send too many samples?”  When the guys landed in New York they bought an old Buick for $700.00 went to the first golf course they saw and made a sale! An actual sale, we were thrilled! As they made their way around the States we got phone calls about our “British threesome” from customers. The golf buyers were impressed and surprised by this sales tactic and it worked. The boys were happy too as we sent them commissions and they developed an affection for the drink cart girls. Sales were growing, feedback was great, we were shipping orders, the boys were getting cash (and some dates) and life was good! My roommates were delighted when they came to stay (I was finishing college at the time). The boys continued to sell headcovers around Arizona, provide beer money for my roommates and stayed and stayed. One day a bottle of Lime A Way appeared on my dresser and I realized this was a subtle hint from my fiancé. So off the boys went to California (with one of my roommates). They sold Daphne’s Headcovers up and down the coast, sold their Buick for $750.00 and went back to England. We were all delighted with the job they’d done and the fun we’d had along the way. We weren’t international yet but we’d learned a lot about the importance of getting references–especially from our family!  

2010 PGA Show

The 57^th PGA merchandise show concluded a month ago and now number 30 is in the books for Daphne’s! It was another good one for Daphne’s with lots to be excited about for the year!  It is crazy how quickly the show comes and goes after months of planning and anticipating.  We spend many months designing the booth, making appointments and other arrangements.  In the blink of an eye we are on the plane coming home recapping our successes and laughing about various show stories. ( We do have a lot of fun while we are there too!  ) 

We were very pleased with the showing and support of many of our longtime customers! We were thrilled to meet and obtain a number of new accounts as well. We had consistent traffic with continuous order writing and kept busy signing up new customers and meeting with those already established.   We feel that this year’s show indicates the start of a positive year for Daphne’s.  We were able to not only have increased sales from the previous year but some of the contacts we made and things that were discussed will be exciting. 

Here is a recap of some of the fun things that went on at the show for Daphne’s.

The staff new to the show were excited to watch the famous march of the peabody ducks at the hotel. 

We were thrilled to share with everyone a new line of head covers we will be carrying this year called MXM.  We are happy to offer head covers outside our zoo of animals.

We were excited to have NBC sports and NBC golf anaylst Dottie Pepper stop by the booth to film a commercial that will air before a PGA tournament.  Keep your eye out for this fun clip to air in March!

Jane, President of Daphne’s was interviewed by the PGA, and igolf.

 Our Hawk made a friend!

The staff of Daphne’s topped off the show by celebrating in freezing temperatures in Orlando’s famous ice bar!  We think this is needed back home in Arizona when the summer temperatures reach 120! 

Hats off to another great PGA Show! Thanks to the PGA for all their hard work in putting together a wonderful platform for vendors like us to showcase our products!  We’re already planning for 2011 and hope to see you there!

30 Years

Has it really been 30 years since I made my first awkward sales pitch for my unfamiliar product? My mom, Daphne, and I decided to make golf club covers on a suggestion from a customer who thought our puppets would look nice on her golf bag. So, pumped up with a bribe from my mom (“if you sell enough headcovers Jane, I’ll buy you a car”), loads of enthusiasm and no experience, I went to the Arizona Biltmore and made my first sale.At that time our company’s creative department, packing/shipping, accounting and all other departments were manned (or wo-manned I might say)  by my mom and me. We had a blast inventing our business as we went. Our corporate meetings were held at dawn around the dining room table with mugs of steaming coffee, pajamas and wild ideas flowing freely.In the beginning, fabric manufacturers wouldn’t sell to us because we were too small so we’d go to factory sales to get what we needed. Our craziest fabric trip was to Buckeye, Arizona which at that time was as remote as remote gets. We’d arrive at 5 in the morning and wait outside the gates with other customers while huge bags of fabric were set out in the parking lot by the factory employees. When the gate opened, people ran to gather the huge and enormously heavy bags. My job was to get to a bag and drag it to another until I created a pile that was just large enough for me to lay on top and claim as my own while I fended-off the other patrons. Needles to say, it got kind of rough and I learned quickly that speed and agility trumped aggression in the gathering of heavy things. As a teenager, I muttered the entire way there and laughed the entire way home as we regaled stories of near misses with aggressive consumers. The first real shipment of fabric that came to our house arrived in a semi which didn’t thrill our neighbors. We had the truck back to our front door and we unloaded the 60 inch tall fabric as quickly as we could before someone called the cops. The driver threw the bolts out as he wasn’t happy to be in a non industrial neighborhood and I was bowled over by them more than once. As I lay beneath the large rolls of fur like a squashed fish, my Mom would walk by and say “Jane quit mucking about” with a mischievous look in her eye.We’ve been fortunate with growth and over the years we’ve gone from a two woman show to a global company. Our processes are more refined and I don’t have to fight anyone for fabric any longer. We’ve run multiple shifts, expanded to over 65 countries, have meetings in professional attire instead of pajama’s and seem to have a computer program for every step we take. The crew at Daphne’s is the best of the best and all contribute idea’s to help us improve.What hasn’t changed is the joy of creating something that makes people smile. Our customers still call us with wacky ideas that become best sellers and they still advise us how to become a better company. We now get feedback from professional golfers on fit and finish, as they put their Daphne’s Headcovers through the rigors of life on Tour. We’ve come so far and yet we still haven’t completely fulfilled our vision. Daphne’s is the leader in quality and service but there are still so many designs to create, customers to meet and goals to shoot for.All I can say is bring about the next 30 years; I am  ready to jump on the pile!

Time To Be Thankful

Here at Daphne’s over 50% of the employees are part of Facebook. (Some more active than others, but over 50% at least have an account.)   For those of you who aren’t with the times, Facebook is the most used social networking site.  Users have a personal profile and update things about themselves.  Users can find friends and send messages back and forth in an effort to keep in touch as well as follow their favorite artists, companies and charities on their pages.

If you were to log into a Facebook account between now and Thanksgiving, you would find members posting their status daily as “something they are grateful for”.  In continuing with this “theme” and with Thanksgiving right around the corner, we wanted to share with you some of the things we here at Daphne’s are thankful for.

Jane and Steve - Owners

Jane is thankful for an awesome team, the greatest customers on the planet and for chocolate. 

Steve is thankful for a great team to work with, the new designs and that Jim now holds the rock.

Jim, Bruce and Terese - Regional Account Managers

Jim is thankful that he was the recipient in the office of “the rock” that has lead him down the straight and narrow path of life.

Bruce is thankful for his family and for their love of who he is.  

Terese is thankful for faith and family and that since Lori joined the team, she is not the one who talks about her dogs the most anymore.

Jennifer and Lori – Office Manager and Front Office Associate

Jennifer is thankful for her health and the health of the ones she loves.

Lori is thankful for her job and her two golden retrievers

Allison,Charlene,Sammy,Loan and Sophanny – packing and shipping

Allison is thankful for the backbrace that Charlene gave her to use on container days.

Charlene is thankful for her family, her five kids, 1 grandchild and 1 on the way.

Sammy is thankful for her scholarships and an opportunity for an education. 

Loan is thankful for her family and her job.

Sophanny is thankful that her husband is back at work and for her family.

Janina - Embroiderer

Janina is thankful for 25 years of working for Daphne’s!

We wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving!  There is so much to be thankful for and we are all thankful to be a part of the Daphne’s team!

Please follow us on Facebook and become a Fan of Daphne’s.

Daphne’s Headcovers, First Book and Toothbrushes

I am voracious reader and I come from generations of voracious readers which is why partnering with First Book should have been my idea…but it wasn’t.

I try not to talk about business to my kids all of the time but Steve and I do share the “interesting stuff” like when the dumpster caught on fire or when Aspen (our Golden Retriever that comes to work with us) nearly vomited in a guests lap–you know that kind of stuff that really grabs a kid’s attention.

When I told my kids that we wanted to help some charities that were important to all of us at Daphne’s, they were intrigued. When they read the list of potential organizations they latched on to “First Book” like Gila Monsters.

In our house, my kids have carte blanche on two things- books and tooth brushes! If they ask for either, the answer is always “YES!” The more we learned about First Book and their mission to get books to kids in need, the more we were interested.

My daughter gathered her old books to donate and my son kept asking “are there really some families that don’t have any books?” This was said while eyeing our over flowing book shelves.

So, I reached out to First Book ( www.firstbook.org) and asked if we could help. As a result, we were lucky enough to partner with the twenty year-old organization. The people at First Book were unbelievably nice, even though they didn’t have the slightest idea what a golf club cover was or why it would resemble an animal.

Together, we share a love of reading and the joy of watching a child discover a new friend via a book. First Book has delivered more that 65 million books to kids in need.

 My Mom and I started Daphne’s to buy a sailboat and it’s led to a 30 year career. Teaching my kids to read was one of my greatest accomplishments. I never dreamed it would lead them to guide me to First Book.

I wonder where the toothbrushes will lead us? I will let you know.

Fall+Fun= Football Season

This is a great time of year. The weather is starting to get cooler, even here in Arizona – the Holidays are coming up and it is college football season!   

I am a big college football fan.  I loved going to the home games to support my team. Even now, although it’s a long trip, I make it back to Mizzou for a game every year.  There is something really special about being in a stadium full of fans dressed in team colors cheering on your team.  I know I am like many others, and we are always finding ways to show our spirit anyway we can.  From the stickers on our cars, key chains, bottle openers that play the fight songs to floor mats, there is no mistaking where we went to school. Even our dogs (mine included) support our teams with their collars and leashes. Yes I know some of us may take it a little too far! But I don’t think so. 

Daphne’s lets us support our teams in one more way - on our golf bags! What better way to support your team than on the golf bag!! With Daphne’s you can show your true colors, whether you are a Colorado fan (Go Buffs), a UT fan, (Go Longhorns) or an Oregon State fan (Go Beavers), you can support your team. As a former Missouri golf team member and Mizzou alum, the tiger is a perfect fit for me!