Walt Pendleton

Background

About Walt Pendleton

My work experience, outside playing professional golf, started in Atlanta. My first job out of college was an account executive, where I worked for one of the largest commercial office supply dealers in the country called The Ivan Allen Company. The company was started by Mr. Allen Sr. in 1900. Ivan made a name for himself selling Atlanta’s first, “metal/fire proof trash cans,” along with thousands of other products like typewriters. However, as fate would have it, Ivan Sr. became infamous for providing Atlanta businesses with trash cans that doubled as a water pales for smokers, and a sputons for chewers. After four generations of Allens, Ivan IV sold his great grandfather’s business to Staples Office Products for hundreds of millions of dollars. Just goes to show you, “exceeding consumer’s expectations can make you wealthy.” As the Allen family business continued to grow, annual sales grew to over 130M dollars in the 80’s, employing 170 sales reps across 5 states. The Allen’s built a dynasty on common products like pencils and paper. However, my story was just starting at IACO. Before I would leave in 87’ I had become Ivan’s number one salesman with sales over 7.6M. Learning how to sell a brand was an invaluable learning experience. As times changed in the industry I moved on, becoming a commercial furniture manufacturer’s representative for Knoll Furniture. There I learned the art of project management, creative negotiation, the art of closing a contract, and how to exceed a client’s expectations. Knoll’s product line was unsurpassed in commercial furniture. Their brand is still legendary today; blending value, quality and attention to detail in ever product. Life was good in the year 2005 but reps in the street could feel a rumble in their shoes that times were changing! Banking had become loose with money, over-extending credit and by 2008 The Great Recession had begun. I left Atlanta prior to 08’ to comfort my mother as her health had started to fail her a few years earlier. Soon after returning home I got married to my wife of 34 years, had 3 kids & opened a golf teaching school called Jones Creek Golf Academy. As finances became a priority, I invested in a wholesale landscaping company and started selling to golf courses like; The Augusta National, Daniel’s Island, Augusta C.C. Eastlake G.C. & Fripp to name a few. Shortly there after I started building an electronic putting system that could be remotely upgraded by phone as players improved. That’s a project smarter than both of us and still in progress today. God has been good to me.