The Tartan Curling Club – they get it!

We have had amazing response from club manager’s and board members about the corporate curling stuff that was in the Business of Curling blog two weeks ago. I have permission to share with you a letter from Scott Comfort, the manager of the Tartan CC in Regina, SK. I asked Scott for permission because he really gets it; he really gets the concept of diversifying our business so that our buildings can prosper without the sole reliance on membership fees. Check out the club’s web site and link to their corporate page; you’ll be impressed! Danny Lamoureux Note: text in blue italics is mine; everything else belongs to Scott Hello Danny I checked out your blog and was very interested in “Corporate, charity, group curling – who knew!”. Everything in your article reflects curling in Regina and one of my main goals is to address all the things you have mentioned. I have gone to trade shows to try and attract companies and groups for our Saturday night socials and got the same response as in your article (“who knew curling clubs did this”!). At the trade shows all I heard was, “I used to curl but…”  Most of the people did not know they could rent the ice for a one-time event.  Most of them assumed you need to be a member and be (at the club) 20 weeks in a row. I have been working to educate the public through word of mouth and come October, we plan on launching a major marketing campaign focused on attracting groups and casual rentals.  After the season starts and the member recruitment season is over, I plan on focusing all my spare time on attracting groups of all kinds (sports teams, families, friends, university societies, companies, etc…). I have found success approaching large companies and convincing different divisions of the organization to challenge other divisions to curling.  Also, I am currently working with the University of Regina Rams to organize a curling fundraiser modeled after their annual golf tournament (remember, everyone seems to have an annual golf day). I plan on using that model to attract other groups looking for charity fundraisers.  Our new caterer also works at one of Regina’s top golf courses and we plan on approaching her summer clientele in hopes of attracting them to the rink. I have finalized a Facility Rental Package to send out to past, future and potential renters. You can view it here. It is similar to the Calgary Curling Club you have posted (click here), but I have added a large section on how to organize and run the “shortie” (one or less than one day events).  I have found most of the people that organize these events have no clue how to run it.  I offer to help and have a large list of different games you can play on the ice, a checklist for the organizer, fundraising ideas, and other suggestions on how to run a successful event. I will be posting it on our website when it is finalized and will keep you posted so you can add it to your blog if you want. For now you can check out our Facility Rental Page which highlights all of our rental opportunities including summer / general building rentals in addition to the curling related rentals. (click here) Another NEW program we will be running this year to attract former non-curlers is GLOW IN THE DARK CURLING.  We are in the midst of purchasing black lights, glow stickers, neon ribbon, disco balls, a better on-ice stereo system, etc. to create a new atmosphere in the rink.  When we have our first event I will send you some pictures and some information about the event in case you want to share it with other clubs or want to use it in your next business of curling seminar.  I plan on running the first event myself but will potentially offer it to outside groups as an option for their events. Our August Newsletter has a long list of new programs we are running this season to bring curlers of all ages back to the rink or in for the first time. It is about time curling works to attract more people to the sport rather than fighting over the few curlers there are in Regina, Saskatchewan and Canada.  (What a great comment and way to go Scott!) Sincerely Scott Comfort Manager Tartan Curling Club [email protected] www.tartancurling.ca