Criquet Enables Reps to Tell the Story of “the 19th Hole” Through Envoy B2B

Over a round of golf, best friends since elementary school Billy Nachman and Hobson Brown reminisced about the iconic and hard-to-replace polo shirts of the 1980s. At the time, the classy, Arnold Palmer-type shirts were something you could only find well-used at a thrift store. However, Nachman and Hobson wanted something of that caliber for everyday wear. It was at that moment that sparked an idea to create a brand that brought back this classic style with a fresh twist. Thus, Criquet was born.

Through mixing Southern Prep and East Coast Classic designs with their fun-loving Austin character, Criquet set out to reinvent men’s golf and lifestyle wear in 2010. Over time, they cultivated a rich brand story around embodying the spirit of “the 19th hole,” a time and place wherever and whenever their target market feels most at ease.

“Our brand story is at the heart of everything we do at our company,” said Billy Nachman, Co-Founder of Criquet. “The idea of the 19th hole could mean something different to each person. It’s personal. It could mean hanging out at your favorite bar, spending the day relaxing, or just doing whatever it is that brings you joy. When someone wears our merchandise, that’s what we want them to feel.”

Fast-forwarding to today, continuously improving and growing their business is one of Criquet’s main focuses. Currently, the majority of their business takes place online. With this, the realization of diversifying their market to continue to successfully tell their brand story on the golf shop floor through their wholesale channel became more prevalent.

“We’ve found that telling our brand story online is a lot easier than telling our story on the shop floor. On our website, we’re able to show engaging videos, vivid imagery, and compelling details about our products. But once our products are on the shop floor, it’s up to the golf shop and retailer to illustrate what our brand is all about,” explained Nachman. “However, adopting Envoy B2B is going to allow us to provide our sales reps with the tools they need to create a consistent brand message and educate our specialty retailers on our products.”

From recent research, 80% of retailers stated that they needed their reps’ assistance to learn about a brand’s products in order to better sell it. Without brand reps taking the time to train sales associates on products, the chances of that product being offered to a customer drop dramatically.

But with the adoption of Envoy B2B, Criquet now looks forward to features like Showroom, merchandising and visualization tools, clinics, and a one-stop-shop for sharing brand materials, digital catalogs, and marketing content. They are also looking forward to utilizing order placement features such as prebooks and quick replenishments. Using these tools will allow their reps to provide specialty retailers with the information they need to adequately share and embrace Criquet’s narrative. Ultimately, this will increase the chance of golf shops and retailers offering it to their customers while making it all the more appealing to their buyers in the end.

“Today, a polo-type shirt can be purchased anywhere. But for us, it’s all about creating an atmosphere where our customers can kick back, experience the 19th hole, and have a high-quality shirt that allows them to dress for their occasion,” stated Nachman. “Ultimately, that’s what’s going to make them choose Criquet over any other brand every time.”

“With reps being the primary connection between retailers and brands, it’s essential to enable them with tools and strategies designed to support their retailer partners with a human and personal experience.” explained Jon Faber, CEO of Envoy B2B. “By enabling reps to harness the power of visualization tools, Showrooms, and content destinations, we’re excited to partner with Criquet to assist in growing their wholesale channel and enhancing their brand through enabling their reps to provide highly personal support.”