CEO of golf supplies company overcomes handicaps, makes it big

Winning team. Turf Company and Toro officials (from left) Mario Lopez, The Turf Company president and COO; Cameron Russell, The Toro Company business manager-Asia; Andrew Price, The Toro Company Southeast Asia and New Zealand sales manager; Ernie Mozo, Sales Manager, Toro Equipment, The Turf Company and Noel Macatangay, assistant sales manager, The Turf Company.

One would think that the head of a golf supplies company who has been in the industry for over 25 years would be a pro at the game by now, but Mario Lopez, president and chief operating officer of The Turf Company, admits he doesn’t even consider himself a “good golfer.”

“I’m a late bloomer. When a customer would ask me to play, I would think, what’s the best excuse to say ‘no’?’” says Lopez, “But it came to a point when I couldn’t say no anymore. There are customers who would say, let’s not talk business here. Let’s go to the fairway. So what can you do? I started learning the game around five years ago, thanks to an accommodating pro who worked with me on my swing, and now I’m hooked.”

Lopez and the rest of The Turf Company recently celebrated their 27th anniversary in the turf management industry.

Starting as a supplier of golf products and services, the company has grown into a “one-stop shop” for turf and irrigation systems management and maintenance, not just for golf courses but for sports fields, commercial landscapes, resorts, hospitals and even residential lawns.

It is the residential and commercial landscapes which remain largely untapped here in the Philippines, Lopez says, mainly because people are still used to hiring gardeners.

“Most people believe that it’s cheaper to hire a gardener to maintain [their lawns or landscapes]. But little do they know that while the gardener is spending so much time watering their garden for eight hours, if you program it automatically, you can have it done in one and a half hours,” says Lopez, “So the gardener’s time is maximized for other things, such as weeding, trimming. If you have a yard, we can put fully automated sprinklers there; you can go on vacation and keep watering your lawn.”

So, for now, golf courses remain their primary clients, says Lopez.

Around 80 percent of The Turf Company’s business is centered on the distribution of Toro, the brand behind world-class golf course maintenance equipment and irrigation systems.

“There are still courses being built, and other courses are being upgraded all the time,” Lopez says, “And many businessmen still close a lot of deals on the course.”

“We are very committed to The Turf Company,” says Andrew Price, Toro’s sales manager for Southeast Asia and New Zealand, affirming the two companies’ solid partnership.

The 102-year-old company’s roster of clients include, aside from golf courses, Walt Disney World, the Wimbledon Championships, Rose Bowl Stadium, Real Club Madrid de Fútbol in Spain.

Mario Lopez

“The good thing about being married to Toro is, when you go to a golf show in the US and other brands see that you’re their local partner, they ask, can you bring our products into the Philippines as well? That’s how good the reputation of Toro’s distribution development is,” Lopez adds.

Looking beyond golf, however, Price says that Toro is now expanding into agricultural irrigation, especially with their factory in Xiamen, China, which was put up three years ago and is focused solely on creating such products—an aspect of the business which could prove to be very valuable in a highly agricultural country such as the Philippines.

“Drought happens only for four months every year, so why would one spend millions of pesos if I get rain for the rest of the eight months? But it’s those four months that are critical [to production],” says Lopez. “That’s where the importance of a decent irrigation system comes in.”

And much like his commitment to golf, Lopez promises that The Turf Company, as it continues to grow, will also remain committed to the turf management and irrigation systems industries—especially when it comes to aftersales support.

“We have proven our commitment to the industry. We’re here for the long haul, and the industry sees us as a partner for aftersales support. We will continue training our sales and technical staff so they can provide only the best support to our clients,” Lopez says.