Bret Clark has been named general manager at the Wisconsin Club. The board appointed Clark on Nov. 6.
The Wisconsin Club, established in 1891, has two Milwaukee locations: a city club at 900 W. Wisconsin Ave. and a country club at 6200 W. Good Hope Road. It currently has about 1,400 members and 175 employees.
Clark has worked at The Wisconsin Club since 2002, and was most recently assistant general manager of the Wisconsin Club and manager of the city club. He replaces Kevin Ehlert, who was general manager of the Wisconsin Club from May 2017 to October 2018. Ehlert was brought in to succeed John Constantine, the 27-year veteran general manager who mentored him in the role before retiring, but was later terminated by the club’s board of directors.
Clark said while it’s daunting, he’s happy he took on the general manager position.
“Initially when John Constantine left, (the role) didn’t feel right to me. But most recently, it was actually because of my wife. She prodded me and the members prodded me and the staff was saying I should take on the challenge,” Clark said.
Among the strategic priorities Clark has for the Wisconsin Club is attracting younger members.
“The club itself, we need to recognize and we do recognize that the families and the younger people are what’s going to be the future of the club,” he said. “We’re taking on some more family-oriented events, we’re changing some of the member structure to bring in some of the under-40 category, the younger members.”
The Wisconsin Club recently added an associate member category for those under age 40, with lower pricing. A full regular membership is $3,100, while an associate membership is $2,100, Clark said. There are also tiered golf and fitness categories.
And the club has added more family-friendly events including cooking classes for kids and adults, an event based on the “Incredibles” movies, and a luau.
Clark has named Jordan Hoffmeier manager of the city club and Jake Hartley manager of the country club. Hoffmeier most recently worked at Milwaukee Country Club in River Hills, and has previously worked at the Wisconsin Club. Hartley has worked at the country club for several years, and was promoted to the new role.
