Tee Off in Style

(Post: English)
" It was on the course in April, 2004, that Jennifer Glaspie realized she just hated her golf shorts. "They were heinous," she says. When a friend suggested she start her own line, she responded, "You know, that's not crazy." "

She quit her consulting job at Bain, hired a designer from Chicago's International Academy of Design & Technology, pulled $50,000 from personal savings, whipped up some samples, and several months later took her Aphira line to high-end pro shops.

Glaspie, a graduate of Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management, generated $50,000 in sales in 2005. She hopes to hit $1 million next year.

The 33-year-old Bucktown resident spends a mere $50,000 a year on marketing, relying mostly on word of mouth. Still, she says her reorder rate is an astonishing 80%.

At Butterfield Country Club in Oak Brook, bestsellers include the longer Urban Short ($82) and polos with waist belts ($42).

"Ladies have only had the khaki short and the white polo shirts for so long," says Marianne Saso, merchandise manager for the club's pro shop. "They really appreciate this line."

Source: BusinessWeek