John White talks about the type of work he will do in his new business, Golf Stop.• Name: JW Golf Stop
• Location: 6216 Dayton Blvd.
• Owner: John White
• Contact: 402-0294 or on the Web at jwgolfstop.com
• Services: Professional golf club repair service, such as regripping, reshafting, club refinishing and custom stamping. The business is a Mitchell Golf Equipment certified repair shop.
• Products: Performance shafts from UST, Miyazaki, Matrix, Aldila, Fujikura, Mitsubishi, Graphite Design and more
• Age: Opened Monday
• Getting started: White spent 11 seasons working for minor league baseball teams, including clubhouse and equipment manager for the Chattanooga Lookouts from 2007 to 2010. White said he wants to capitalize on his new-found love for another sport, golf, by focusing on club repair. "This is the only club like it in the area," he said. "We value quality craftsmanship, and timely turnaround on a player's club." White said as a local business focused upon repairs, he can repair, regrip or personalize clubs far faster than other shops. "All the club repairs I will do in-house," White said.
• Motivation: The golf repair shop is the first business venture for White. "After being away from Chattanooga the past couple of baseball seasons, I really miss being here at home," White said. "I initially planned on doing the repairs out of my garage, but I decided to open my own shop to take it to the next level."
• Certification: Certified technician and fitter by Mitchell Golf Equipment Institute and SeeMore Putters
• Target market: Nearly 30 million Americans play golf.
• Initial investment: Nearly $15,000
• Hours of operation: Weekdays 10 a.m.-6 p.m. and 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday