What happens when the packaging that helped grow your product business isn’t ready for your next phase of growth? This is exactly the situation my client, Lindzee Barrera, founder of Birdie Girl Golf, faced.

Birdie Girl Golf had been successfully selling its fun, feminine golf accessories online and at golf course pro shops. Then a much bigger opportunity came along: Dick's Sporting Goods wanted to carry their products. There was just one problem: the packaging wasn’t ready for national retail.

What worked in pro shops wasn’t going to work at Dick's. The products needed packaging that could communicate quickly, hold its own in a much busier retail environment, protect the products, and meet the practical needs of a larger retailer. With an order on the horizon, there wasn’t time for months of exploration.

Lindzee was referred to me, and we got to work right away. The result? Birdie Girl Golf successfully transitioned from pro shops to Dick's Sporting Goods, with 25 products selected for stores nationwide.

Here’s how we prepared the packaging for this exciting opportunity.

Before: The Business Had Outgrown Its Packaging

Before Dick's Sporting Goods got involved, Birdie Girl Golf primarily sold its products directly to consumers online and through golf course pro shops. In those settings, the existing packaging made sense.

However, big-box retail is a completely different environment. At a market, pop-up event, or smaller specialty shop, someone nearby can usually explain the product. Also, when you manage the booth yourself, you can highlight what makes your product unique and answer potential customers' questions.

On a national retail shelf, your packaging has to do much more of this work for you. For Birdie Girl Golf, this became especially important for the two main products Dick's wanted to order: reversible golf cart seat covers and ball markers.

The seat covers essentially had no retail packaging, while the ball markers came in small linen drawstring bags. Although those bags were cute and worked for Birdie Girl Golf’s previous sales methods, they weren't designed for a large retail setting.

The brand didn't just need prettier versions of its existing packaging. They needed new packaging formats that could solve very specific retail problems, and they needed them quickly.

This Project Was a Full-Circle Moment for Me

This project also held a personal connection for me. I began my career in packaging design over 20 years ago at Dick's Sporting Goods. So helping Birdie Girl Golf prepare its packaging for Dick's all these years later felt especially meaningful.

It also meant I understood that getting ready for larger retail isn't simply about making your packaging look more polished. The retail environment changes what your packaging needs to do. My role was to help Birdie Girl Golf navigate this transition while maintaining the unique personality that makes their products distinctly theirs.

We Started With Packaging Pronto

Lindzee was referred to me and hired me for Packaging Pronto, my specialized packaging design service.

The first step in Packaging Pronto is a Strategy Session. Before I began designing, Lindzee and I discussed the products Dick's was interested in, the retail environment, and the packaging goals.

One key point emerged from our conversation: we needed shoppers to be able to see the products. Birdie Girl Golf's products are colorful, fun, and tactile. The patterns, materials, and little details are a big part of their appeal.

While a closed box could have created a polished appearance, it would have hidden many of the features that make the products attractive. At the same time, we needed enough packaging to provide context, communicate benefits, and protect the products.

So instead of starting with, “What should this packaging look like?” we focused on, “What does this packaging need to accomplish?”

During Lindzee's Packaging Pronto Design Day, I designed two packaging solutions: a belly band for the seat covers and a universal box for the ball markers. Interestingly, I drew inspiration for both solutions from outside the golf aisle.

For the Seat Covers, I Borrowed From Picnic Blanket Packaging

The Birdie Girl Golf seat cover truly shines when you see it in action. However, when folded on a shelf, it can be hard to understand its purpose.

This cover is reversible. One side features water-resistant nylon, ideal for warmer months and helping prevent sweaty thighs. Flip it over, and the other side is cozy fleece, perfect for keeping your seat warm during cooler rounds.

This creates a compelling product story, but we needed the packaging to convey that story quickly. We didn’t want to place the entire seat cover inside a box or bag, as shoppers needed to see the colors and patterns and feel the material.

To find a solution, I looked beyond the golf category and borrowed a packaging format similar to one I’ve used for picnic blankets: a vertical belly band.

The belly band offered us valuable space to share essential information without obscuring the product. On the front, we showcased the seat cover installed on a golf cart, giving shoppers immediate context of what the folded product actually was. Additionally, we had room to explain the reversible design and the benefits of each side.

Most importantly, we ensured most of the actual seat cover remained visible. Shoppers could see the pattern and color and feel the material. We weren’t adding packaging just for the sake of it; we were providing the context the product needed to effectively sell itself on the shelf.

For the Ball Markers, I Borrowed From Jewelry Packaging

The ball markers presented a unique challenge. These small, colorful accessories have a lot of personality, and we wanted shoppers to see the actual designs. However, their small size posed practical issues in a large retail environment. They are easy to pick up—and potentially easy to pocket.

The little linen bags that worked well in pro shops didn’t provide the visibility, merchandising options, or protection needed for a national retailer. So, once again, I looked outside the golf category for inspiration. This time, I borrowed ideas from jewelry packaging.

During the Packaging Pronto Design Day, I created a universal ball marker box with a window that allowed shoppers to see the actual marker while keeping it securely contained in a more substantial package. The product could still take center stage, but now the packaging gave it greater presence on the shelf. It also allowed for Birdie Girl Golf branding and product information, and included a hang tab for retail displays.

Additionally, the closed package made it much harder for someone to simply slip the small marker into their pocket. This single packaging format solved several challenges at once: visibility, merchandising, branding, and product protection.

And because we developed a universal format, we created a packaging system that could easily scale for Birdie Girl Golf’s needs.

Then the Retail Opportunity Expanded Even Further

After our Packaging Pronto Design Day, Lindzee returned to me with the complete assortment of 25 ball marker designs that needed packaging. This is where the work we had already done became especially valuable.

We didn’t need to start from scratch and create a completely new package for each marker. During Packaging Pronto, we had already done the strategic thinking and created the packaging format and overall design direction.

Now we needed to execute that system across the rest of the assortment. Lindzee booked a Design Hour Bundle, and I used the system we'd established to create the additional 20+ ball marker boxes. Instead of reinventing the packaging each time, we could efficiently extend one strong solution across the larger product line.

That's an important part of designing packaging for a growing product business. You're not just addressing the product in front of you today; you're creating a system that can support future opportunities as they arise.

In Birdie Girl Golf's case, their opportunity did expand.

Sometimes the Best Packaging Solution Comes From Another Aisle

This is one of my favorite things about packaging design. The best solution for your product doesn't necessarily come from studying what every other brand in your category is doing. Sometimes you need to identify the problem first, then explore how other product categories have addressed similar challenges.

For example, a picnic blanket inspired the packaging for a golf cart seat cover, while jewelry packaging provided a solution for the merchandising challenge of a golf ball marker. Additionally, we developed a universal design system that let us apply the initial ball marker concept efficiently across a wider range of products.

Each packaging decision served a specific purpose. For the seat covers, we needed a design that provided context and visibility without obscuring the product. For the ball markers, we aimed to ensure visibility and security while retaining the product's personality. As our assortment expanded, we aimed to create a packaging system that could scale without reinventing the design each time we introduced a new product.

This approach illustrates the difference between simply designing a package and strategically thinking about the direction of the business.

After: Birdie Girl Golf Was Ready for Dick's Sporting Goods

Then, Birdie Girl Golf took a significant step forward. Dick's Sporting Goods selected 25 of the brand's products for select stores nationwide. This achievement is a testament to Lindzee, who built the brand, created products that people wanted, and captured the attention of a national retailer.

My role was to ensure that when this opportunity arose, her packaging was ready to support it. This story is especially important for other growing product businesses.

Will Your Packaging Be Ready When Opportunity Knocks?

You don’t need to be selling golf accessories or already have a national retailer interested in your products to reach this point.

Maybe you're selling skincare, beauty products, candles, gourmet gifts, jewelry, craft kits, or another product primarily through pop-ups, holiday markets, makers markets, or your own website. Your current packaging may be doing its job well.

When you expand into larger retail spaces, you won't be standing next to your product to explain its unique qualities; your packaging will have to do that for you. It must help shoppers quickly understand what the product is, why they want it, and what sets yours apart from the competition.

Your packaging may need to provide different levels of protection for the product. It needs to align with the retailer's merchandising environment and create a cohesive brand presence, even when surrounded by numerous other products vying for attention.

The ideal time to sort this out isn't after a buyer sends you a purchase order; it’s while you’re preparing for that opportunity.

Is Your Packaging Ready for Bigger Retail?

If your product business has grown beyond its DIY packaging beginnings and you're thinking about pitching boutiques, regional chains, or larger national retailers, you don't have to navigate this transition alone.

I've spent more than 20 years designing packaging, including for brands sold at major retailers like Dick's Sporting Goods and Kohl’s.

Packaging Pronto helps you move from “I know my packaging needs to change, but I'm not sure what I need” to a strategic, professionally designed packaging solution that's ready for where your business is going next.

We start with a Strategy Session to get clear on your product messaging, retail goals, and what your packaging actually needs to do. Then, during your Packaging Pronto Design Day, we turn that strategy into a polished packaging design.

This is exactly how I started working with Lindzee. When her opportunity expanded into a 25-product ball marker assortment, we efficiently built on the strong packaging system we had already established.

You don’t just need packaging that works for what you're selling today. You need packaging that’s ready to grow with future opportunities.

If you’re wondering whether Packaging Pronto could help get your products ready for bigger retail opportunities, learn more about Packaging Pronto and book a call with me. We’ll talk about where your brand is headed, what’s happening with your packaging right now, and whether Packaging Pronto is the right next step for you.

How Birdie Girl Golf Went From Pro Shops to Dick’s Sporting Goods With Retail-Ready Packaging