Vineyard Vines, the Connecticut-based sportswear brand best known for its increasingly familiar Puffy-the-whale logo, very nearly made a major splash in the women’s golf world when rookie Stacy Lewis jumped to the top of the leaderboard after the third round of last week’s U.S. Open.
That’s because Lewis, the 2007 NCAA champion who was making her professional debut in the Open, was wearing Vineyard Vines’ logo on her solid pique knit shirts.
Lewis shot a final round 78 but not before Johnny Miller suggested, based on her talent and accomplished amateur resume, that she might have game enough to one day rack up Sorenstam-like results. That’s an awful lot of hype to pile on the slim shoulders of a 23-year-old, but through Saturday’s third round Lewis wasn’t backing off. And in fairness to Miller, Lewis is not only a four-time All-American and winner of 13 intercollegiate events, but she capped her amateur career in early June by going undefeated in five Curtis Cup matches.
While Vineyard Vines has sponsored Brett Quigley since last year, Quigley has not yet won on Tour. In sponsoring Lewis, Vineyard Vines jumps into the deep end of an entirely different pool. With the sponsorship, it gains entry into a new showcase for its women’s sportswear, but in so doing it invites a level of product and design scrutiny heretofore unseen.
Founded by brothers Ian and Shep Murray, the company has grown impressively in its 10-year history and last reported $37 million in annual sales. Inspired by the boating, beachfront, prepster-from-Plymouth Rock lifestyle of Martha’s Vineyard, Vineyard Vines designs and markets spirited, at times heavily logoed sportswear and accessories to better men’s specialty stores. They also have about 300 golf shop accounts. And they introduced a limited offering of women’s sportswear, much of it derivative from the men’s, in late 2005 and early 2006.
What they haven’t offered, and what might appear to put them at a disadvantage in golf, is a technical or performance polyester golf-specific product. More established design-driven brands with enormous resources at their disposal, including Polo Ralph Lauren, Nike and Adidas, have successfully built a bridge between fashion and performance. What’s more, several other women’s golf lines, including Lija by Linda Hipp, Trigelle and J. Lindeberg, have long worked to develop feminine, golf-specific product for women. Even Bobby Jones has come a long way on the women’s front in the last season.
While it’s not yet apparent that Vineyard Vines will place a premium on bridging that same divide, what’s indisputable is that Vineyard Vines’ cotton-driven core products have built a loyal customer following. On Saturday, Lewis wore a cotton capri pant (with 2% elastane), and a short-sleeved navy polo. On Sunday, she was wearing striped cotton Bermuda shorts and a slimmer-fitting polo that was 95% cotton, 5% spandex. If that sounds like a rather basic offering, Vineyard Vines can hardly be faulted. Lewis turned professional this month and as an accommodation those slightly oversized whales were custom embroidered on short order.
Lewis’s deal with Vineyard Vines is for the balance of 2008, but her representative, Jeff Chilcoat, told us it was clearly made with the intention that it could lead to a longer arrangement. (Lewis wore an adidas cap during the Open. That’ll be replaced by equipment sponsor Mizuno beginning this week when Lewis plays in the LPGA event in Rogers, Ark.)
Still, the relationship would seem to be ideal for Vineyard Vines. Lewis may be a cutthroat competitor, but her apple cheeks and girl-next-door looks meant NBC’s cameras followed her even as she was faltering. That she’s a college graduate who has overcome a serious medical condition (scoliosis) only adds to the public’s ability to connect with her.
If Miller is even half right about Lewis’s professional potential, the golfer will garner considerable attention. Furthermore, with a number of women’s fashion companies pressed to meet the requests and expectations of the LPGA professionals they dress, Vineyard Vines will likely do far more than dress Lewis in basic cotton polos, shorts and capris. — Robert Lohrer
