GolfStar, Northern Europe’s largest “Multi-Course Owner Operator,” runs 13 Swedish golf clubs and 19 golf courses with over 50,000 customers.
GolfStar decided to expand its operation abroad. The first country is Spain. They have already established their Spanish subsidiary, GolfStar Cambrils. Their first Spanish client is Cambrils Pitch & Putt.
The facility is approximately one hour’s drive south of Barcelona and easily accessible from Cambrils, Reus, Salou, and Tarragona.
GolfStar will start the operation and operatorship of Cambrils Pitch & Putt starting in 2024. The facility has a 9-hole Pitch & Putt course, a driving range, practice areas, and a clubhouse.
Hotel Mas Gallau – a 4-star hotel – with 40 rooms and its locally well-known restaurant is also directly adjacent.
Stefan Brikell, Market Director and incoming CEO of GolfStar in Spain, says
“Our focus is to build a Golf Academy to make the game of golf more accessible than it currently is to the local population. Here in Spain, golf is generally an expensive sport to practice compared to back home in Sweden.
Most often, golf clubs focus on attracting green fee players from other countries rather than developing golfers in the local area. Our ambition here in Cambrils is to do both.”
GolfStar will invest in new range mats, balls, ball management systems, lighting and goal areas out on the range. They will elevate the golf experience on the course and around the clubhouse environment, which will receive a major facelift, both inside and out.
GolfStar will rebuild
- the reception,
- and the shop,
- and build a bar and a new terrace.
Everything to contribute to the social interaction both before, during, and after the game, in the same way as the local padel clubs do here in Spain.
Spain Economic & Golf Tourism Outlook
- Spanish GDP growth forecast in 2023 is maintained at 2.4%, and the forecast in 2024 is revised down to 1.8%. Source: BBVA Research
- International tourist arrivals have returned to the levels of 2019. Overnight stays in hotel and non-hotel accommodations in the first four months of 2023 exceeded the number recorded for the same period in 2019 by 2.2%. Source: CaixaBank Research
- Spain attracts annually cca. 1.2 million golf tourists.
- Golf tourists have invested €4.2 billion in Spanish property, purchasing more than 280,000 homes. Source: study by IE University and the Spanish Golf Courses Association
- Staycations are slowing down while international travel is flourishing, growing 88% in 2022. Source: Euromonitor International