This piece was contributed to the GRAA by Alan Phillips, the owner of the Sports Center of Connecticut, located in Shelton, Conn.

Alan Phillips on the importance of creating an aesthetically pleasing practice and play environment:
Reinvesting in your facility continually shows your customers that you are concerned about where they are spending their entertainment dollars. At the Sports Center of Connecticut, we are in the business of beautifying our facility each and every year so that each customer receives a first class experience. On the practice tee, new mats and targets are installed each year, in addition to circulating 150,000 new range balls. The miniature golf course receives lush plantings, fresh paint on the fences and every four years, new carpet is installed on the course. By not sitting back and waiting for things to fail or for equipment to go bad, we protect the infrastructure of the facility. This allows us to continue to offer a tremendous product to our customers. A $7 bucket of range balls should look like a $7 bucket of range balls, not look like a bucket of balls that have been in circulation for many years.

Alan Phillips on the business impact of creating an aesthetically pleasing practice and play environment:
We are about creating a facility for families at the Sports Center of Connecticut. Keeping kids attracted to our golf opportunities remains a huge priority. Providing a clean, fresh and welcoming facility helps maintain a tremendous atmosphere for the next generation of golfers. Staying on top of the facility saves large amounts of money down the road when equipment is beyond repair. Spending a few extra dollars each year to keep the facility at a high standard allows us to reinvest over the long haul in our programs, facilities and staff. This environment also keeps our moms, dads and kids coming out to enjoy all of our sporting options. If they see a tremendous facility for golf, they are more likely to cross over to ice skating, laser tag or bowling. Our range facility is second in revenue across the facility, and we like to think it has to do with our commitment to offering new and high-quality equipment.