Bwick is coming with it. Wait a year or 2 and read this post again. They have lots going on.
Best
Fatboy
Brunswick sold to Escalade
- Thread starter gerryf
- Start date
Best
Fatboy
We'll see if Brunswick as a brand restarts sponsorship. I think they halted all pool sponsorship five or ten years ago. About the same time they stopped going to the Trade Show. ..... Just checked and 2012 was the last time Brunswick was at the Expo (BCA Trade Show). That year their booth was about 1/3 the size of the Predator Group booth. Industry leader? Not for quite a while.
From the official book on the history of Brunswick (by Rick Kogan, well worth having and not expensive):
From the official book on the history of Brunswick (by Rick Kogan, well worth having and not expensive):
boogieman
It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that ping.
To be fair B'wick only has their history. Lack of innovation and basically just a badge to put on tables. They were great once but for decades it's just been a name for some unrelated company to sell products with the branding.
I mean in all honesty what has Brunswick done for pool in the last decade other than sell home tables?
I'm not sure of the exact timing, but they did buy Valley. I was told it was to maintain leadership in number of tables sold. It didn't work out and a few years later they sold back to the original owners, IIRC.
boogieman
It don't mean a thing if it ain't got that ping.
Interesting, thanks for the info.
The GC 5-6 are pretty nice tables. In Japan they are the main pro tables. Priced too high imo but well made. Just wish they were made here again. Doubt that happens.
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Nothing is what they have done.
What’s coming is a lot, I heard that from a very reliable source and saw a few things with my own eyes. They are and will be innovative again. Commercial I know for sure-on the home side of the biz, I haven’t seen anything as I don’t have any connection to that part of Bwick.
But it would seem logical that with this transfer of ownership they would try and blow wind in all sails not just commercial, when the home biz is huge. Especially with the “flight to the burbs” where people have room for a table.
The goodwill of the brand “Bwick” is strong-even tho they have been dormant for a very long time. But Life Fitness makes so much $ on their core brands that Bwick was a side gig at best for them.
If it’s the core focus of the new owners it can’t get worse than the last period of time 10+ years.
Best
Fatboy
And yea I really hope they get into the sponsor part of marketing and put $ in players pockets and create audiences/content and maybe draw in new pool fans. That would be the best!
Here is an AZB post from 2010 with some info about the Valley purchase and resale. I don't know where the text originated, but it looks legit to me.
As Valley Co., the original company was founded by Bill Rickett in 1947 in Bay City, Michigan, where it remained under the auspices of a series of controlling companies including Kidde Inc., U.S. Industries and Fenway Partners with Rickett still the majority shareholder. In 1999, then known as Valley Recreation Products, Valley absorbed and merged with both Tornado Table Sports and Dynamo Corp., and centralized operations at the Dynamo facilities in Richland Hills, Texas[1] (a Dallas-Ft. Worth suburb).
The increasingly market-dominant enterprise was bought for US$34.5 million by, and was made a subsidiary of, Brunswick Corporation in 2003, as Valley-Dynamo LLC. Brunswick moved Valley-Dynamo's manufacturing operations to Reynosa, Mexico in 2006. In 2009, Valley-Dynamo "was acquired by a limited partnership controlled by Kelye Stites," owner of Champion Shuffleboard Ltd., "and other businesses in the Dallas/Fort Worth area."[1] The sale amount was not disclosed, but was rumored to be surprisingly low.[2] Stites, the son-in-law of Valley Co. founder Rickett, decided to move pool and air hockey table production from Mexico back to Texas.[3] Under the new partnership, in which Stites is the majority owner,[3] Valley-Dynamo absorbed Champion's shuffleboard brand rather than vice-versa, with Stites citing Valley-Dynamo's widespread brand name recognition.[2]
Where did you see 32MM? I did not see that anywhere. Thanks.
they can make complete rec. centers as they have the brands and goods.
also to take over any pool venues they choose.
could even start a new revolution of pool rooms/ recreation centers like brunswick with bowling and pool rooms by supplying the equipment on time payments and setting them up completely.
also to take over any pool venues they choose.
could even start a new revolution of pool rooms/ recreation centers like brunswick with bowling and pool rooms by supplying the equipment on time payments and setting them up completely.
Like gigantic outdoor ping-pong. Incredibly annoying to listen to if you walk past a row of courts.
Brunswick Billiards in Bristol to be sold for $32 million
Brunswick Billiards, the game room and billiards business based in Bristol in Kenosha County, is being sold to the Indiana sporting goods company that markets Bear archery equipment, Arachnid and Accudart dart products and Onix pickleball gear for $32 million.
I remember the first time I was told I needed to help build four Pickle Ball courts in the resort where I live. I was embarrassed to let friends know what I was working on
Now after five years it has gotten so popular we do not have enough courts or parking so it is expanding. Crazy how many folks have gotten into the sport. I read last summer that it is the fastest growing sport in the US.Cuebuddy>>> still snickers at the name.
What do you guys think? Would you personally invest? ESCA is the ticker. I might fool around with it with a small investment.
https://www.ppatour.com/tour-payouts/ Not bad for ping-pong on 'roids. Pretty well organized it looks:https://www.ppatour.com/introducing-the-2022-ppa-tour-schedule/I remember the first time I was told I needed to help build four Pickle Ball courts in the resort where I live. I was embarrassed to let friends know what I was working on
Cuebuddy>>> still snickers at the name.
Great!I remember the first time I was told I needed to help build four Pickle Ball courts in the resort where I live. I was embarrassed to let friends know what I was working on
Cuebuddy>>> still snickers at the name.
Pickle ball Jim from Vail, I love it.
I used to play keno but we never blocked the pockets on the board, if a ball went in the pocket too bad it got spotted.
You are one of the friends I could not bring myself to tell.
I would love to start meeting up again for some lessons on "pocket apiece".
100'' OF SNOW IN 3.5 WEEKS has got me working way to much.
Can't wait to play down there again.