cadiDuring the PGA Show I was invited to Orange Lake Resort(OLR) to be introduced to a new way of checking out quality golf clubs to improve your game without the hassle of a salesman or golf pro trying to sell you something that is not right for you or your wallet. Or even worse, trying to buy the right club over the internet where you have no idea whether it works or meets your expectations. The Cadi kiosk is set up on the driving range at the Legends course at OLR. It is basically a self-contained vending machine for golf clubs.

Instead of going to a golf retail store where you typically hit into a net with clubs provided or recommended by the store clerk, you go to the driving range, walk up to the Cadi kiosk and pick from the latest clubs from Titlist, TaylorMade, Callaway, Cleveland or Scotty Cameron, brand names with proven track records. You select your preference on a club, simply swipe your credit card for a minimal fee, and its yours to practice or play with. In fact, you can rent it for 48 hours if you care. If you don’t like the club, you can go back to the Cadi kiosk and exchange it for another within the time limit of your rental.

I was very impressed with the simplicity of the patent-pending Cadi. The kiosk at Orange Lake holds 50 clubs to choose from. If you got to have that club, you can purchase it right there or order one to your specifications and the Cadi folks have it delivered to your home. I actually witnessed a purchase by one of the golfers staying at the Resort after he had practiced with a club and then played a round with it on the Arnold Palmer designed Legends course. How cool is that! No wait. He fell in love with how the club worked for him, and was a ‘happy player’ knowing he bought something that was tried and true to his game, and with a very competitive price point. And no hassle.

Tyler Gottstein is the idea man behind Cadi and is doing his due diligence at Orange Lake daily, explaining the concept to golfers practicing on the range and making sure the Cadi meets or exceeds his and the renters’ expectations. Both Founder and CEO, Tyler says, “I recognized an opportunity in the golf industry. Introducing unattended automated retail could provide the ultimate demo and purchase experience for the golfer while connecting them to the club manufacturers like never before. There was an opportunity to improve the customer’s golf equipment purchase experience.” From what I can tell, the Cadi does just that.

It is a win, win, win deal. The customer gets to actually try the clubs and purchase with satisfaction, the course makes a percentage on the rentals and sales of clubs, increasing the golf practice range experience for the golfers, and Cadi has a successful business renting and selling clubs satisfying the needs of golfers.

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