Circana, formerly IRI and The NPD Group, has agreed to acquire Golf Datatech, the independent market research company that tracks and delivers insights into golf retail sales, inventory, pricing, distribution, and consumer behavior in the U.S., the U.K., Sweden, France, and Germany.
Golf Datatech’s complementary data assets and team of industry experts is expected to augment Circana’s sports tracking capabilities and insights, broadening its coverage of the U.S. golf market to include the major channels of retail sales, including golf specialty, green grass shops, mass retailers, sporting goods, and e-commerce.
“We are thrilled to enter into this agreement with Golf Datatech to expand Circana’s sports tracking business with deeper insights into the golf market,” said Kirk Perry, president and chief executive officer of Circana. “Golf Datatech’s market leadership, combined with Circana’s existing capabilities, will provide clients with a more comprehensive view of the market and unmatched insights to drive their growth. This acquisition supports our strategy of providing clients with a complete view of the customer, store, and wallet across categories and geographies.”
Tom Stine, a founder and one of the three principal partners at Golf Datatech, said, “We are pleased and excited to join the talented team at Circana, advancing a shared vision of accurate and timely insights that empower companies to make informed decisions. When Golf Datatech was founded in 1995, there was very little on-/off-course data available. Over the last nearly 30 years, we have carved out a unique place in the global golf industry, providing unbiased insights, and we look forward to bringing our expertise and proven track record of success to Circana to be able to offer more valuable insights and solutions to clients around the world.”
The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and expected to be completed by March 2024. Under the terms of the agreement, Golf Datatech will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Circana. Circana plans to integrate Golf Datatech’s data assets into its Liquid Data technology platform.
