Meet Tyler Johnson: the dad whose toddler golf bag stole the spotlight at The Masters
Meet Tyler Johnson: the dad whose toddler golf bag stole the spotlight at The Masters
Discover how a day at the range with his son sparked a thriving family business
Hey folks,
Welcome back to Everyday Empires, where we share stories from everyday people building ventures that transform their lives.
Today, we're sharing the story of Tyler Johnson and his venture, Charlie Golf Co.
Last summer, Tyler was golfing with his 3 year old son. Noticing his son’s clubs strewn about, he searched for a golf bag that would fit him, but found all existing options too big. So, he dreamed up a toddler-sized golf bag. Just a few months after launch, he’s sold several thousand bags, seen his bags featured during this year’s running of the Masters tournament, and has a line of toddler golf clubs on the way.
Follow him @tylerjohnson_59 on X/Twitter where he shares behind-the-scenes stories and photos of the journey. His use of X/Twitter is worth studying, but more on that later.
In our interview, Tyler shared:
How he acted fast to go from idea to product overnight
The importance of storytelling rather than selling to people
The value of just starting and learning along the way
How selling in drops has accelerated demand
From Idea to Action
Hey Tyler, thrilled to have you here at Everyday Empires! To start off, I’d like to take us back to last summer. After noticing your 3-year-old son struggling without a proper golf bag at the driving range, you wasted no time. That very night, you began designing a toddler-specific golf bag and started searching for a manufacturer.
Could you take us through the process you followed that evening from idea to design? How did you approach finding a manufacturer, and did you have any prior experience in product design or manufacturing?
I first began searching for a toddler golf bag but didn’t find any that fit my eye. There are a couple out there but I thought they were overkill. We didn’t need a bag with 2 straps, many pockets, a stand, etc. The bag was going to be for a 2-5 year old. So, I made a mock up with dimensions and started reaching out to manufacturers. There were a few manufacturers that responded very quickly and I went through answering questions and explaining the details to a few manufacturers and eventually selected a few to buy samples from.
Editor’s note: Tyler’s quick action stands out to me. I’ve heard similar stories of incredible speed from idea to prototype from other founders of physical goods, including Chase Heckendorn of Swap Top and Kate Gaffney of Avryn Co. Open their stories in another tab and take note of the similarities:
I'm curious how you actually found manufacturers. Was it as simple as a google search?
I used Google Search a lot and also used Alibaba to have conversations with overseas companies. It was challenging but I found a couple of good ones that would respond quickly and that were willing to work with my idea. The most important thing was to get samples from multiple suppliers to see quality and understand how responsive and how quickly they were able to get the samples out. I was able to get on the phone and do a video call of the facilities as well.
Building Buzz and Growing the Waitlist
A few months later, in October, you had a waitlist with 150 folks. It would soon quickly grow into the thousands. How’d you get those initial customers on your waitlist, and where’s the rocket ship growth come from since?
The initial people on the waitlist came from X/Twitter. I was focused on telling a story about me and the brand rather than trying to tell people the amazing “features and benefits” of the product. In my opinion, people don’t want to be sold to. So, I focused on telling a story through my posts and began building the brand in public. People can relate this to this. It shows authenticity.
The growth has come from a few areas. Early on, it was Twitter/X. There was a day in late October where I had a post that went viral. It added nearly 800 people to the waitlist in one day. That was the start of it.
I also focused on using Instagram as my other social media channel. We continued posting on there and would try to put out 1 reel a week. It was slow at first but recently we have had a few reels really take off. I like to think of Instagram as more of a long tail, meaning, after you post, it can continue to deliver for months. Whereas, Twitter posts are really just 24 hours.
The Journey from Concept to Customer
How long did it take from having the idea to fulfilling your first orders, and can you walk us through some of the key steps you took to go from an idea to a product in customer hands?
The idea came to me in July 2023. I put up a very simple landing page. In fact, I’m not sure I have touched the landing page since haha. We drove traffic to that landing page to capture emails for the waitlist.
Once we received the initial samples, we made some modifications to it. We had the perfect size model at home with our 3 year old kid at the time. We communicated the changes to the manufacturer and they shipped us a new production sample.
I placed my first production run of 150 toddler golf bags in late August 2023. That was a large order for me at the time because I had no clue if they would even sell. At that time, I think I had 47 people on the waitlist. I knew I had to continue to focus on growing the waitlist after I placed the order so I continued to consistently post on my social media channels.
The bags arrived in early November 2023 and we launched in mid November. I had a lot of help from my family that first weekend to package and ship the bags. We learned a lot and have gotten much more efficient from then. You learn a lot as you go.
Before Charlie Golf Co., were you actively looking for a business idea, or did this opportunity just find you? What made you decide to jump head first into this with such conviction?
I have always had ideas of coming up with a business idea. I would always jump into something but it would just fizzle out. This time was different. It was something I was very passionate about. I love golf and I wanted to introduce my kid to the game of golf just like my grandpa did with my dad, and my dad did with me.
Love that. Out of curiosity, what are some of the ideas you tried that fizzled out?
Mainly just ideas that I tried but they were a handwritten note app and designing websites for small golf courses. Nothing too exciting!
The Art of the Drop: Driving Demand with Scarcity
You sell your bags in drops, with each drop selling out in a matter of minutes. Can you explain this process in simple terms for those unfamiliar? Is it as simple as sending a single email to your waitlist whenever you have a new bag, or is there more to it?
The original plan was to never do “drops”. On our launch day, we were completely caught off guard and sold out of the bags. We definitely weren’t expecting it. But it did a couple of things for me. 1) it allowed me to share a story on social media 2) it helped generate more demand.
The process is fairly simple. I would communicate details directly with the waitlist and provided a 10% discount code to everybody who joined the waitlist. 24 hours before the drop, I will send out an email with very specific details - ie, the time, the day, how many bags will be available, how people are on the waitlist, etc. I would then schedule another email for the specific time of the drop with a link to the store. At that specific time of the drop, I will update inventory numbers of the products in Shopify.
I would always have to wait for more inventory to get into my hands before I could schedule the drops. Any new products I would share on social media and to the waitlist beforehand.
Now that Charlie Golf Co. has been operational for a few months, can you share how the business is doing financially? Are there any customer feedback or stories that have particularly resonated with you?
We are a bootstrapped company. I didn’t want to take any loans, lines of credit, or outside money, even from friends and family. We continue to invest all of the revenue from the sales into more inventory. All of the money is tied up in inventory to try and catch up with our waitlist and the demand we are seeing.
There aren’t any particular stories but I love seeing when parents or grandparents send us pictures of their kids with the bags. The kids have such ownership of their own golf bags and parents tell me that the kids ask to play golf all the time. That’s what it’s all about.
Building a Brand from the Ground Up
Reflecting on your journey so far, what are two or three actions or decisions you believe have been crucial to Charlie Golf Co.’s rapid growth?
The first was to build an audience on social media and start collecting emails for the waitlist well in advance of any product release. I have found out that people are willing to wait for something they really want. When I started in July 2023, I had no following whatsoever. I just stayed consistent with it and continued to tell my story.
And secondly, it would be to just do it. It’s amazing how much you learn from solving problems and just figuring it out on the fly. It will never be perfect. There are many ups and downs. But it is very rewarding and fulfilling to solve problems and move forward every day.
What are the biggest challenges you face right now, and how are you tackling them? Is there anything specific that keeps you up at night as you plan for the future of Charlie Golf Co.?
Capital is an issue right now but I am holding strong and sticking to my original plan of bootstrapping. I know it is slower growth and I can’t buy as much inventory as I would like but people understand this as long as I communicate it clearly with them. Your customers will rally around you and cheer for your success.
The other thing that keeps me up at night is the supply chain. I always think about it. I am always trying to strengthen it.
I also think about competition. I know there will be more competition soon but I keep telling myself that it will just validate the market even more. And I also love competition so it keeps driving me.
Is there anything we haven’t covered about your journey that you think would be interesting or important for readers to know?
I think the biggest thing I can tell people is to tell a story or learn how to tell a story on social media. It’s best if you use a personal social account if possible. I use my personal Twitter account and then use Instagram as a brand page. All of the people on our waitlist were completely organic. If you learn how to tell a story and not sell features and benefits, it will create a very strong community of supporters that love to share the story with others.
If you learn how to tell a story and not sell features and benefits, it will create a very strong community of supporters that love to share the story with others.
Lastly, how can readers keep up with you and Charlie Golf Co.?
If you like golf and have a toddler, you can join our waitlist at:
https://waitlist.charliegolfco.com
Our main website is:
My personal Twitter is:
Our Instagram page is:
That’s a wrap
A massive thank you to Tyler for sharing his time with us!
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See y’all next time,
Ken
Happy to hear you enjoy it, Rose! Yes, success can be many things. As you say, it doesn’t have to be making six figures monthly. It might be as simple as earning some extra income, or more ownership of how you spend your time. We hear about the massive companies with wild growth stories everywhere, and while they’re inspiring, they’re not the most relatable. Here, I’m seeking out and sharing the everyday stories all around us with the goal to show people what’s possible. To inspire them. And to help them take that first step.
I love this!! Keep ‘em coming (please 🙏)! ☺️