PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT! – The McKennon Golf Bag Company

 

McKennon Golf Bag Company – A Refreshing Experience!

I’ve owned my own business for my entire career.  I have worked with a lot of people in that time.  And I would say one of my biggest surprises early on in my career was the shocking amount of people that I worked with that weren’t the least bit passionate about their job. The way I look at it is…that if you consider your job work it becomes hard to justify wanting to truly excel.

One other surprise was the large percentage of individuals/companies I dealt with that seemed to consider “Customer Service” as an afterthought in their overall business plan.  I can count on just my two hands the amount of individuals/companies that have far exceeded my expectations with not only their product but just as importantly how they deal with their customers.  It’s a dying breed that seems to be on the verge of extinction.

And customer service and pride is what brings me to Mike McKennon from the “McKennon Golf Bag Company“.  If “Customer Service” and “Passion for your career” are a dying breed and on the verge of going extinct…Mike McKennon looks to be on a mission to save the entire species! I have come away more and more impressed in every discussion and meeting we have had over the last couple months.  The ex-Nike Golf employee exudes passion for his new found career like few others I have had the pleasure of meeting.  And his customer service has far exceeded my expectations…and from what I hear that rings true with every single golfer that has received one of his new vintage styled golf bags.

Mike started the Mckennon Golf Bag Company in late 2009…shortly after leaving Nike Golf.  After doing some thinking he decided he wanted to stay in the golf business…but he wasn’t quite sure what type business that would be.  Well in the end…Mike decided on a career that believe it or not he had ZERO experience in.  His driving force…to make a product that even he would be proud to own.  And he decided on making some of the highest quality softest leather bags you’ve ever seen or felt.

Now you might think $699 for a golf bag would be a tough sell…especially with this sluggish economy.  But just like a Rolex…or any other product that’s made well…people will always appreciate products that are made with exceptional craftsmanship.  And I can say for a fact that these bags are definitely well crafted.  These bags are made by hand with some of the finest quality leather you will see.

So How Did He Get So Good At Making Bags?

So how did he get so damn good at doing something he had never done before?  Well the first thing he did was listen.  Many of his first customers got more then they bargained for with their single bag purchase when the company was just starting out.  That’s because he often surprised them with 5 to 6 extra bags in their mailboxes…FREE OF CHARGE.  He would consult with them about what they liked…didn’t like and then go back to the drawing board to get the bag exactly right. And in the mail a new bag would go. And I’m not just talking colors and stitching.  Mike would totally re-invent his bag designs every time he made a new bag for these first customers.  Everything from the balance of the bag to the weight of the zippers would go back to the drawing board.  Mike says there’s a perfect balance in regards to weight and feel with a bag like this…it needed to have the right weight leather and not be too heavy but heavy enough so that it balanced well on the golfers shoulder and with the clubs in the bag.  This meant entirely scrapping the type leathers he used…zippers, rivets, patterns, everything was changed until he got the design just right.  It took a lot of trial & error and a lot of it was learned on the fly. But in the end he now has a bag that like he said, he is even proud to own himself.  And so am I!

As Mike says, “As we continued to develop The McKennon Player’s Bag we carefully considered every single feature of the modern golf bag. We didn’t incorporate a damn one of them.”

His got his big break early on with an order of 80 custom bags that went to one of the most prestigious golf clubs around…which included many of the CEO’s of the major US golf companies.  After that the buzz factor about his bags has been on a steady incline.  Since then his bags have been popping up all over the place.  You might remember seeing some of the black and white Travis Mathew Bags of his that we featured during our PGA Show coverage as well.  He has also recently made bags for Rickie Fowler and Ryuji Imada.

After meeting Mike at the PGA Show I asked if he could make a bag for MyGolfSpy and he agreed.  When going through the process I asked him to come up with what ever design he would like.  I wanted to give him complete freedom to try and capture the essence of the site and our readers and I think he did an amazing job.  But like I stated earlier…Mike’s design exceeded my expectations.  He even threw in a couple spy features that were a nice touch for the MyGolfSpy theme bag.

Commitment To Customer Service

Mike McKennon is on a relentless pursuit to bring back some of the age old customer service qualities customers came to expect from years past.  It’s so often overlooked…although can often be the difference maker when dealing with the success of a custom boutique type brand such as the McKennon Golf Bag Company.  I can’t say that I have dealt with many other people in this industry that have taken customer service as seriously as Mike does with his new bag company.  The entire process of working with Mike has been a refreshing experience.

And if that isn’t enough he offers this guarantee:

Lifetime Guarantee:

If your bag isn’t delivered on or before the date we have promised…If our product is late for any reason the entire purchase is FREE.  We also guarantee all materials, hardware and craftsmanship for life!   We will return the product to you repaired & reconditioned at no charge. Period.

If you would like to to learn more about Mike and his works of art you can reach him at the link below:

LINK:  McKennon Golf Bag Company