In her 3-plus years as director of retail at Interlachen Country Club, Katie Gates has learned not to shy away from trying something new. Courtesy Interlachen Country Club
After studying fashion merchandising and business at Florida State University, Katie Gates took what she calls an “unconventional route” to golf shop merchandising.
First, she became national sales manager at W.Kleinberg, an Atlanta-based leather goods brand, where she oversaw specialty and department store accounts such as Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, and Gorsuch while also developing products for larger private-label brands, including Peter Millar and Brooks Brothers.
“Immersed in high-end men’s and women’s retail stores, I gained valuable product and merchandising knowledge,” said Gates, whose direction changed in 2020 while visiting one of her men’s specialty-store accounts in Minneapolis.
“One of the buyers was a member at Interlachen Country Club, …
