October 23, 2014

Clubessential Acquires Clubsoft

The acquisition of ClubSoft by Clubessential will pair the leader in club accounting/POS with the dominant website and reservation provider.

Clubessential’s goal is to unify not only the technology of the two companies, but also the service and support. Both companies have a reputation for providing excellent “White Glove” support and this will continue with a single US-based point of contact for the entire suite of products.

The merging product suites are an ideal match, with little overlap and excellent offerings in every category. Technically, the products have a similar architecture, using the same operating systems, languages and database management systems. Both companies have “state of the art” systems with only one release in the field. This means the combined development team, not hindered by old legacy releases, will continue to be very efficient, driving the industry forward rapidly with new features and products.

Clubessential believes in “Open Systems” and has industry standard interfaces to over 60 other vendors’ products, including ClubSoft’s. Clubessential will continue to support those interfaces. However, by incorporating ClubSoft’s accounting/POS applications and its “Links” functionality directly into Clubessential’s comprehensive suite, Clubessential will be able to introduce a new level of real-time integration never seen in the club industry before.

The new company will be led by Dr. William Ivers, Chief Executive Officer, Tom Ivers, Chief Information Officer, Bill Ivers Jr., President and Ray McDonald as Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing. These four will be joined by John McConnell, owner of McConnell Golf (including nine clubs), on the Board of Directors. The combined team has over 140 years of software development experience.

Together the two companies already partner with some of the most highly regarded clubs in the world, including Pinehurst, Boca West Country Club, The Club at Admiral’s Cove, Cherokee Town and Country Club, and Congressional Country Club. More than 50 percent of BoardRoom Magazine’s Distinguished Clubs of the World are clients.

“All too often, software company acquisitions are based on financial considerations instead of staff and technology. ClubSoft had the right people, the right mix of products and a technology infrastructure very similar to Clubessential’s. Best of all, both companies have a culture of delivering excellent support,” said Bill Ivers Sr. “This merger presents clubs with the modern integrated product suite they have been seeking for years,” said Ray McDonald. “It represents a great opportunity for clubs today because they will no longer have to choose multiple ‘best of breed’ vendors – all the best individual products will be in a single integrated suite. Add to this Clubessential’s full service in-house design agency, and all the bases are covered.”

Said McDonald: “The companies fit together perfectly and this merger offers a greater opportunity for employees of both organizations.”