Who We Are

Warren & Gill Vining
Founding Directors
In 1981 Warren and Gillian Vining opened the doors at Golf City, and entered the golfing industry by building Palmerston North's newest family entertainment complex. From a bare piece of land near the local airport, this ex car dealer and ex bank teller took a risk and set out to build a 9 hole public golf course that would one day become an 18 hole golf course, mini golf, driving range, pro shop, cafe & bar, and hold the title of Palmerston North's number 1 family entertainment complex.

Warren and Gill, along with their 2 sons Sheridan and Callum, worked 7 days a week for 22 years to create a business, a reputation, and a brand that would make an impact on the golfing world.

Many of Warren's critics told him that what he was doing was not a wise move, and that it won't work; but that didn't matter. Warren and Gill knew what they wanted, and although there were plenty of times where they thought those people may be right, they persevered and made Golf City one of the most successful businesses in town.

As well as creating a successful business, Warren and Gill's passion for the sport of golf shone through during the development and support they gave to the players. We all know that without the golfers of today, there are no golfers of tomorrow. Therefore, Golf City assisted junior golfers as well as the more senior players in taking out the winning title of A-Grade pennants 10 times, and 3 times World Amateur Champions, just to name a few.

During their time at Golf City, Warren and Gill also founded the golfing brand Goldfern. Goldfern Golf Equipment was a dream of Warrens, and it became a reality after years of research and perseverance. What was it that New Zealand golfers needed? A brand of golf clubs that was NZ owned, designed, and assembled. In 1993 Warren gave them this by introducing Goldfern Golf Equipment in to the Golf City pro-shop with material and build quality that New Zealand golfers had been waiting for. After entering the market with Golf Clubs only, the Goldfern brand now consists of golf bags, golf gloves, and now has the largest range of accessories in the industry. Anything golf related is available.

In 2002, Warren and Gill said goodbye to Golf City. After 22 years, Golf City was sold which paved the way for bigger and brighter things. Later that year, in a specially designed warehouse in the CBD of Palmerston North, Warren and Gill started Golf Distributors. Golf Distributors started out with a staff of 5; 4 of whom were the Vining family. Today, the staff count has almost tripled; the brand consists of approximately 250 products and stocks over 300 shops across New Zealand.

Golf Distributors is the largest locally owned and operated golf distribution comany in New Zealand. They have a range of junior Goldfern golf equipment which has become the official brand of NZ Golf and is used in teaching academys and schools throughout New Zealand. Golf Distributors are also the official apparel partner of the Michael Hill New Zealand Open and the Pegasus New Zealand Women's Open, and most recently, the official apparel partner of NZ Golf with the Loft 8° Performance Apparel brand.

From a small 9 hole golf course, to the number one family entertainment complex in the Manawatu. From a back shed brand, to one of New Zealand's leading brands of Golf Equipment, the story of the Vining family and the team at Golf Distributors is one of great success. The New Zealand public have shown Golf Distributors great support over the years, and that is encouragement enough to continue providing a service and product that is second to none.

Sheridan Vining
Sales Director
Sheridan Vining is the eldest son of Warren and Gill Vining and has seen the ups and downs of Goldfern's history since day one. Sheridan was lucky enough to grow up with a 9hole golf course as his back yard. What was even luckier, was that he had a passion and talent for the sport that would carry him through to many competitions both nationwide and across the globe. During his time at Golf City, Sheridan progressed through the grades of club representative golf taking out winning titles at both junior and A-grade level.

As well as competition golf such as club events, Sheridan also has an amateur career worth acknowledging. His participation in the New Zealand North and South Island Championships allowed him to be recognised by some of the NZGA selectors. Theses selectors would eventually pick Sheridan to represent his country in competition golf in various countries around the world.

Quite possibly one of Sheridan's proudest moments in his golfing career would be the day he took out the title of New Zealand Long Drive Champion. Since doing so, he has been fortunate enough to travel the country as a member of the New Zealand Long Drive Team and taking part in various charity / sporting events showcasing this talent.

Today Sheridan has moved away from the competition side of golf, opting for a more hands on role in the procurement, design, production and sales aspect of golf. His personal drive for success shows in his attention to detail and his customer service. 

Callum Vining
Corporate & Marketing Director
Callum Vining is the youngest son of Warren and Gill and he too, has seen the ups and downs of Goldfern's history. During the early years, Callum's enthusiasm for the sport came through when he stared participating in some club competitions for junior grade pennants. Although golf was always a career option for the Vining boys, it was one that was never pushed on to them. As a result of this, Callum came in to the industry from a slightly different angle.

Callum's attention to the industry was more devoted to the sales and service aspect. His public relations skills came naturally as he assisted his mother and father during the early days of Goldfern's existence.

After 2 years overseas, Callum gained the skills needed to help take Goldfern Golf Equipment further, and allow him and Sheridan to carry on with what Warren and Jill had created over 20 years ago. Callum's own drive for success is immanent when dealing with product and people. His role within the marketing department allows him to keep searching for new and exciting product and taking that product to Goldfern's most valued people; The New Zealand golfer. From the early days at Golf Distributors, Callum spent a lot of time with the corporate part of the business. After much perseverance in this area the company now supplies corporate goods to various firms and industries around the country.

In order to carry on what Warren and Gill have created, Sheridan and Callum now work very closely with them in all aspects of the business. With a keen interest and obvious enthusiasm for all areas such as design, procurement, sales, service and accounts teams, you can rest assured that these guys are more than willing and able to help as soon as the need arises.

Richard Best
Operations Manager
Richard Best has been a part of our team since Goldfern Golf Equipment was established 15 years ago; thus making him the most knowledgeable person on our staff when it comes to golf equipment. Richards golfing career includes both amateur and professional achievements worth acknowledging. As an amateur golfer, Richard represented New Zealand at all levels including 2 World Junior Championships, and 2 Eisenhower Trophy World Cup's. Amongst other things, Richard also made his mark in the amateur circuit as the winner of both the North and South island Amateur Championships, and went on the represent Asia/Australia against Europe.

With achievements like this under his belt, the only thing left for him to do was to turn professional. After doing so in 2000, Richard went on to play on the Asian, Malaysian and Australian tours, and gained the kind of experience that he had been striving for since the beginning of his amateur career. Some of his professional victories include the Samoan Open, Fiji Open, Terengganu Masters (Malaysia) as well as numerous NZPGA pro-am titles.

At present, Richard has just qualified as a teaching professional enabling him to pass on his advice to people with the same passion for the sport of golf. His expertise, product knowledge, work ethics and professionalism is a great asset to Golf Distributors, and you can rest assured that with someone like Richard managing our team, you are getting quality product with fantastic service.

Ben Cribb
Assembly Technician
Ben Cribb has been working with us here at Golf Distributors for a little over 3 years now, but we have known Ben for a lot longer than that as he too has made some impressive achievements with his golfing career. As an amateur golfer, Ben has been fortunate enough to represent New Zealand at a junior lever on various occasions, as well as representing the Manawatu/Wanganui region at both junior and senior levels.

Throughout his golfing career, Ben has picked up some impressive sporting accolades; including taking home the title of winner for the New Zealand Maori Golf Championship. As well as being a member of the New Zealand Titleist Academy, Ben has also found the time to pass as a qualified green keeper with years of experience in this line of work at some of the regions top golf courses.

Ben's knowledge of golf equipment is vast, and his capabilities even greater. Ben is an extremely hard worker and applies the can-do attitude to any task that is presented to him. Working along side Richard Best, you can rest assured that all golf equipment assembled in their workshop has been done so with the utmost care and precision.

Liz Lynn & Christine Hart
Liz and Christine are a vital part of the day to day running of the Golf Distributors office. They are the voices that you hear when calling our office. Both of these ladies bring great things to the office and having made a name for themselves in other ventures over the years, we are glad to now have them as a part of the Golf Distributors team.

Liz is the freindly voice you hear when you ring our office. Liz caters to the needs of all our retailers, and has an incredible ability to make everyone she meets feel at ease. Liz also plays a major role in the accounts department alongside Gill. Together these two can sort out any issue, and make each process completely painless.

Christine plays a major role alongside Callum with our corporate accounts and marketing material. Her ability to each year, produce a very detailed and professional catalogue for all of the 250+ products we have on offer is fantastic. Christines ability to assist any callers query is outstanding and she is a great asset to our team.