We caught up with President and Executive Creative Director of PXG Apparel, Renee Parsons to learn about what inspires her to play, why she believes more women should take up the game, and how she’s leading the charge with golf apparel and sport fashion.
Video Transcript
WHEN DID YOU START PLAYING GOLF?
I started playing golf when my husband and I began dating. I played a little bit off and on growing up, but really didn’t get into it until he and I met, and it was something we started to do together, once a week. We started off with nine holes and then eventually expanded into 18 holes and became a little bit more competitive, which is fun. We play at least once a week, usually on Sundays. If we have a bonus round during the week, if we can sneak out of the office, we do it. But we try to play at least once a week. We both enjoy it. It’s a lot of fun and we’re both pretty competitive, so we like to bet on the golf course, and it keeps it interesting.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE MEMORY ON THE GOLF COURSE?
There are a lot of favorite memories actually, but probably one of my finest moments is when I finally got a hole in one at Scottsdale National. So, I think that would probably be most everybody’s favorite moment, when they get their first hole in one, it’s super exciting!
ARE BREAKING DOWN GOLF STEREOTYPES AN IMPORTANT MISSION AT PXG?
Golf has a stereotype of being very stuffy and we’re trying to break that perception at PXG. I think another stereotype is that it’s predominantly men and we’re also trying to break that down and get more women involved in the game. It’s definitely something that both genders love. They’re super competitive. They can compete with each other. Whether you’re male, female, it’s one of those rare sports that you can actually do that, and golf is the ultimate leveling playing field and so it’s super fun. So, we like to keep it inclusive and try to get more and more people into the game. Whether they’re male, female, young, old, there’s something for everybody and we like to think that we cater to that at PXG as well.
HOW DID YOU GO ABOUT LEARNING THE APPAREL BUSINESS?
Learning the apparel side of the business was definitely tough. The tough and unglamorous parts, if you will, are the manufacturing process. The fit; having to get the fit right, is key. Going through the whole fit process, at the beginning, I was the fit model, which is actually funny because I am not a fit model and it’s actually very tedious work, but I did it and so it kind of taught me that even though I didn’t enjoy doing it, it was good because I actually started to understand everything that went into it and the fit is super, super important. Certainly, the fabrics, sourcing the right fabrics, manufacturing with the right partners and then the whole supply chain process from start to finish and it’s really a long period of time. We start designing for a collection almost a year out.
WHY DID PXG DECIDE TO EXPAND ITS APPAREL AND ACCESSORY OFFERINGS?
It was funny. We saw an opportunity for PXG Apparel at the end of 2018 and we knew that there was an opportunity to expand the brand, to offer apparel and accessories to the PXG customer. Some friends had been bugging me for about two or three years before that. “You should start an apparel company for golf.” And I was like, “Yeah, yeah, yeah. Right. That’s not happening.” But yeah, we saw a need, certainly for edgier designs, flattering silhouettes, performance driven. Everything you need in golf apparel, but make it fashion, make it fun, make it edgy, sporty. And so that’s what we set out to do for both men and women.
WHY SHOULD MORE WOMEN TAKE UP GOLF?
I think more women should take up golf just because it’s fun. It’s something that you can do…and I’m biased because of my age… but, I think it’s something that you can do into your later years. You can play golf with your children. You can play golf with your spouse. My mom was still playing at 75 years old. My dad still plays at 78. They play with their significant others. I play with them. They play with their friends. And so, it’s just a sport that you can play the long haul in your life and you meet so many wonderful people on the golf course. I’ve met some of my best friends in golf events and playing golf and it just enriches your life so much.
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