In this excerpt from C+RB’s special report on management companies, learn how Arcis Golf created a stringent set of extensive safety and security guidelines that were implemented company-wide across the 13 states in which it operates. “At the corporate level, we’ve actively integrated our leadership team into our clubs on a micro-market basis,” says Blake Walker, Founder and CEO.
While providing resources and expertise so their portfolios’ properties could navigate the pandemic, multi-club operators also made moves to prepare for the “new normal” and lent muscle to the country’s larger recovery effort. This special report provides updates on how the year unfolded for several of the leading U.S.-based management companies, focusing on how they marshalled their collective resources to not only support the needs of their properties, but also the larger recovery efforts for the club industry, the regions they operate in, and the country as a whole. The report can be found in its entirety in the latest Club + Resort Business digital issue (https://clubandresortbusiness.com/category/digital-issue/).
Here is the portion of the report dedicated to Arcis Golf:
Dallas, Texas-based Arcis Golf is a self-described “lifestyle company” that, after emerging from a small start-up at the beginning of the decade, now has 60 private, resort and daily-fee facilities located around major metropolitan areas in 13 states under its umbrella.
Like many companies, when the pandemic hit, Arcis Golf went into action mode and created a stringent set of extensive safety and security guidelines that were implemented company-wide. With operations in 13 states, flexibility was paramount, as was keeping on top of state and local regulations and CDC-recommended guidelines.
“During this crisis, our main priority has been to focus on our members’ and guests’ ever-evolving needs intently,” says Blake Walker, Founder and CEO of Arcis Golf. “At the corporate level, we’ve actively integrated our leadership team into our clubs on a micro-market basis.
“Be it the development of curated food-and-beverage programs, such as family meals to-go and online programming and cooking classes, or experiences like outdoor dining, concerts or drive-in movies, we have seen employee-led collaboration and incredible new ideas throughout our collection of clubs,” Walker adds.
To help sustain the momentum that has seen the management firm invest over $60 million in its properties in the past few years, Arcis Golf announced a new financial arrangement in October 2020 through which Atairos, an independent private company, acquired a substantial ownership position. At the same time, funds managed by affiliates of Fortress Investment Group LLC will continue to maintain a significant ownership stake in Arcis.
“Arcis Golf is an innovator and one of the most distinguished names in the golf industry,” said Rachael Wagner, a Managing Director at Atairos. “The company is reinventing the golf club experience by tailoring amenities to contemporary consumer lifestyles, while hiring best-in-class talent and creating family-friendly signature experiences.
Arcis Golf also contributed to industry-wide relief efforts in 2020 by being one of the first management firms to support the efforts of the ClubsHelp initiative. Each Arcis club adopted a local hospital or emergency services provider, assessed the most pressing needs, and then gathered, collected, and delivered necessary items and resources to be used to support those fighting the pandemic.
The Club at Ruby Hill in Pleasanton, Calif. was an Arcis property that had to adhere to some of the country’s most stringent and frequently changing guidelines. The club made effective use of social media—primarily Instagram and Facebook—to keep members informed, and used the virtual-content hub, “Life. By Arcis.,” to provide programming options that kept them connected and engaged.
“We made sure that our fitness and golf instructors were virtually featured, as it was important for our members to stay connected to their home base and continue to see familiar faces,” says David V. Syvertson, Arcis’ Senior VP–Operations.
Ruby Hill’s management team anticipates maintaining many of the initiatives created during COVID, such as online dining, going forward. “Whether at The Club at Ruby Hill or elsewhere across the Arcis portfolio, we’re committed to keeping everyone safe while providing a refuge to rejuvenate, relax, connect, and simply have fun,” says Syvertson.
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