East_Stand_Al Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Leeann Dempster in 2day's Evening Times hoping a move from Fir Park will at least be set in motion within 5 years.Vast majority of fans.would be v happy with that.Patched up Fir Park has had its time and a move away would be positive for fans/players/staff alike. Wishy Press Twitter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brazilian Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 online but you need to register, which is instant( name, email address & location ) Evening Times article obviously the Journo choose to lead with the stadium headline, but dare say Leeann was more concerned in the share initiative releasing some more snippets about the shares opportunity, seems to be a concerted effort to get the story out in the public domain and talked about before the actual release of the fine details good management of what is probably one of the biggest projects in the clubs recent history in my opinion I was also delighted to see a snippet that there will likely be a subsequent fees to retain each persons place in the share scheme , maybe someone reads these threads Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brazilian Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 in fact here it is article by Chris Jack in the evening times Chris Jack Share 16 Jun 2011 From boardroom to boot room, changes are afoot at Motherwell. All of those alterations, at all levels of the club, could be profound – but it is a potential move from Fir Park that could divide the hearts and minds of supporters the most. The Steelmen are not yet ready to plant the ‘for sale’ sign in the centre circle but relocation plans remain in the pipeline. Despite having called Fir Park home since 1895, the financial benefits of a move elsewhere are becoming harder to ignore for Motherwell, with the possibility of building a custom-made stadium a few miles down the road in Ravenscraig having been mooted for some time. It would be an emotional departure for staff and followers of the club but the opportunity to flourish on pastures new is also an appealing one. “We have definitely got aspirations to move from Fir Park,” chief executive Leeann Dempster told SportTimes. “We have got history here and we love the stadium, the supporters are very bonded to it, but there are limitations to the stadium. “It is being closely looked at, at the moment. There is a key working group within the club that is essentially looking at that. “We have put a timescale on that, to ourselves, to get some agreement in principle about how we proceed. “Part of the unfortunate thing about having such a successful season is that you end up concentrating on some of the other things in terms of what makes a football club tick.” She added: “Are we going to move in two years? No. Are we going to move in five years? I would hope we would at least have an agreement in principle or the move will have started or we will have the transition agreed. “That is where we want to get to. We don’t have it signed and sealed yet but we are hopeful.” While Motherwell’s departure from Fir Park may not be imminent, that of John Boyle, the club’s chairman, is in the process of being finalised as he prepares to sever all ties with the club he assumed control of in 1997. Instead of holding out for financial recompense from another benefactor before relinquishing his grip, Boyle has donated his shares back to the supporters, with Dempster now at the forefront of moves to transform the club to make it more community orientated. It will give the fans a chance to have their say in how Motherwell is run, hopefully safeguarding their financial future. Dempster explained: “John isn’t handing the club back to the community without considering how a football club is run and the dynamics of a football club. “We are putting the structures in place to ensure that fiscally the club is run properly and that supporters have a real say in what happens at the club. “They are going to have a strong say in it, everything is going to be transparent and they are going to have a huge influence in it. “The supporters don’t want the club back in administration. There is a lot of emotion involved in football. “It is the first stages of getting the club to community ownership and that will take us a period to do.” Should the plans come to fruition, Motherwell fans who offer their financial backing would be in line to enjoy a range of benefits and discounts. Several tiers of investment will be available, starting at £300, to allow supporters to buy into the scheme, with a subsequent fee then paid to retain their place thereafter. With no wealthy backer to turn to in the midst of financial hardship, the money raised will be used to safeguard the future of the club and, Dempster insists, for the good of Motherwell only. “Importantly, it makes no difference what investment you put in, you will get one vote,” she said. “It is one member, one vote and that is a cornerstone of what we are trying to do. “What we are going to get across very strongly is that nobody will ever be able to financially benefit from John’s shares. “Any money that is raised at any point will always come back to the football club. For example, there may be three, four, five trustees who look after John’s shares on behalf of the members and those people will never be able to financially benefit from it. “We are not trying to create something clever to pretend we are handing the club to the supporters but actually trying to make ourselves rich.” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLip69 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Maybe I am saying something thats already been said but I could see this attracting a lot of fans as people would see it as something different from everyother team in the SPL. "I support Motherwell I get a say" sort of thing? They'd be wrong then because St Mirren are doing something similar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLip69 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 The only extra info from that is the mention of a subsequent fee, which was a fairly obvious requirement anyway so isn't exactly earthshattering. I'd much rather hear about this as and when the club are ready to publish full details of the scheme rather than pick up dribs and drabs imparted through the press. It's one thing running wee teasers about a new strip, but treating the financial future of the club in the same manner appals me. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelboy Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 i think they're doing it the correct. surely it is better to have people waiting for all the info to be released and talking about it than have the full concept sprung on you out of nowhere? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBA Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 This share offering is starting to worry me a bit. I think we will be lucky to get 1000 people to sign up at £300, bearing in mind the financial pressures everybody is under now. Thats only £300k initially. Not a lot for what is really an IPO. Not sure what the annual contribution would be, say it was £50 then thats only £50k a year. Obviously all hypothetical, but I would consider these figures to be realistic to what people could afford and would be willing to pay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLip69 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 i think they're doing it the correct. surely it is better to have people waiting for all the info to be released and talking about it than have the full concept sprung on you out of nowhere? The concept's been out there for a while mate, I'm talking about the finer points, how it all works, what each level will cost, will the subsequent fee be another £300, or will it be set at a figure to top up whats been used out of the fund? What sort of financial target are we looking at, and what happens if the take up fails to reach that target? To be honest I think this whole project needs to be treated with a bit more seriousness than has been shown so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brazilian Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 aye very good lip, you heard about it so nothing else should get mentioned anywhere no point in trying to drum up as much interest as possible in it? a selfish attitude is it not, hows about the bigger picture, its happening, we need as many people on board as possible, whats wrong with keeping it in the media in the build up to the launch, allowing people to consider that around £300 might get them something they've wanted for a long time and thus allowing them to perhaps plan for said cash outlay over a few months from when its first mooted naw? you'd rather they telt you and then never mention it again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelboy Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 brazilian has hit the nail on the head. we've known this is going to happen for around 9 months now but it has only really been discussed in depth whenever the club releases something or it is brought up in the media. the more it is discusses the better imo. i'm quite excited to see exactly how it will work and what effect it has on the relationship between club and fans. whatever happens i'm fairly certain it won't be dull. regarding jba's point i think we'll manage to get 1500-2000 people on board between the core support who go week in, week out and those who live further a field but want to stay connected to the club. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spiderpig Posted June 16, 2011 Author Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 I think a lot of people are missing the point with this scheme, the current board are not that naive to think that this will generate enough cash to run the club year after year, i would love to be wrong but it wont happen. Its about getting the Fans and the wider community involved with the club by becoming members, shareholders, friends, call them what you like. For a financial outlay and an ongoing committment year after year you are buying your own small stake in the club, it might not bring any great financial reward to you but you will have a voice and a say in how the club is run, to me as a lifelong well fan thats a great idea. It needs to be kept in the media as much as possible especially locally, so if that means dribs and drabs of information then so be it, this is a great chance for motherwell to show how a club can be run and involve the ordinary fans as well as the big corporate sponsors, we can take the lead in Scotland and be proud of it, so lets get as many people as possible onboard and signed up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheLip69 Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 aye very good lip, you heard about it so nothing else should get mentioned anywhere no point in trying to drum up as much interest as possible in it? a selfish attitude is it not, hows about the bigger picture, its happening, we need as many people on board as possible, whats wrong with keeping it in the media in the build up to the launch, allowing people to consider that around £300 might get them something they've wanted for a long time and thus allowing them to perhaps plan for said cash outlay over a few months from when its first mooted naw? you'd rather they telt you and then never mention it again I'm not sure where you're coming from in your first sentence, and I really dont know how anything I've said can be construed as selfish. For a start the club has been pushing this "community" thing for some time now, and John Boyle in his farwell address mentioned exactly what was to be done with his shares and that the club would be operating the scheme. So I'm fairly certain that anyone who takes more than a passing interest in the club would be aware of the clubs proposals vis a vis becoming a community club. The mention of the first level of £300 is not just allowing people to consider it's going to get them something they've always wanted it's also allowing people to say "thats a bit steep, i'm already struggling to pay for my season ticket". The one vote regardless of the financial outlay may see some people saying "sod that £300 will do me". It's one thing to keep the concept in the public eye that's fine and dandy and it's perecisely what the club should be doing, but to release details before the whole thing is finalised is crazy. I've been involved in these type of things before and on 9 out of 10 occasions when everything has been finalised you find that something you ratified right at the start is no longer suitable for the finished project and it gets dropped. That's one reason for keeping the details close to your chest, another is it starts rumour and speculation some of which can backfire badly. Release all the info, and answer all the questions at the one time and you look as if you've done a professional job and that gives the investor a bit of confidence. I'd rather they told us when they were ready to tell us everything and ready to answer any questions. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carlukemurray Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 £300 over and above a season ticket is a lot of money to most fans, however I think a lot will recognise that this is an extremely important venture for the club at he present time and dig deep if possible. It is an exciting time to be a Motherwell supporter. If the strategy works and the community buy into it, then Motherwell will improve dramatically as a football club and others will follow our example. It won't be easy....is it ever? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fatcalf Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Release details and sit back to see the reaction, fine tune it before the actual launch and you may get it closer to being what folk want. Reading too much into something is not a particularly Motherwell trait is it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
El Grew Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 So under these proposals, the membership would essentially facilitate a 750k interest free overdraft? Glad to see that someone's paying attention to exactly what's being proposed. Without wishing to dampen enthusiasm for what in principal and on paper seems like a good idea, I personally don't believe that in the current financial climate or any financial climate come to that, that there are 2,000+ Dossers out there who have got £300 to write-off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuwell Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 To be honest I think it will be hard to raise £750,000 but think it is feasible. Just done a quick calc. and it could be done 770 fans paying £300 = £231,000 400 fans paying £500 = £200,000 200 fans paying £1000 = £200,000 60 fans paying £2000 = £120,000 total £751,000 1430 fans willing and able to pay something to help the club is not out of the question in my view. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steelboy Posted June 16, 2011 Report Share Posted June 16, 2011 Glad to see that someone's paying attention to exactly what's being proposed. Without wishing to dampen enthusiasm for what in principal and on paper seems like a good idea, I personally don't believe that in the current financial climate or any financial climate come to that, that there are 2,000+ Dossers out there who have got £300 to write-off. i'm sure there will a option to pay it up, they'll be doing everything they can to get fans on board. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ian-in-Oz Posted June 17, 2011 Report Share Posted June 17, 2011 My only question would be are the shares going to have to be bought each year or is it pay once & the shares are yours forever. For example you could have a (wealthy) family of five and the father decides he's gonna buy 5 shares so one for each family member. Then God forbid that family perishes in a car crash does that mean those five shares just lie dormant til the end of time? Surely an annual subsciption would both keep shares active and allow new fans to invest in the club or even current fans who can't afford it now but in the future may be able to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuwell Posted June 17, 2011 Report Share Posted June 17, 2011 If I've understood it correctly, people wont be buying a share. Instead in year 1 they would be buying the right to join a mutual society which would give them the right to one vote in the society plus other benefits - which are still unknown. The following years they would be paying ( I think ) a smaller amount to stay a member - similar to joining a golf club as someone else explained it. The shares JB has given the club would stay owned by the mutual and administered by trustees voted for by the members of the mutual. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kmcalpin Posted June 17, 2011 Report Share Posted June 17, 2011 I'm glad we've now got some real debate going on this very importnat issue. No doubt the price of membership is important to most folk but hopefully the discussion will mature and move on at some stage to the bigger picture of the future direction for MFC. Still this has to be debated first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lobey_Dosser Posted June 17, 2011 Report Share Posted June 17, 2011 Am I the only one that wouldn't dream about pishing away £300+ on some sort of 'feel good' trip? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fatcalf Posted June 17, 2011 Report Share Posted June 17, 2011 Am I the only one that wouldn't dream about pishing away £300+ on some sort of 'feel good' trip? If you alone consider it as such then yes, if others consider it in a similar fashion then no. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Posted June 17, 2011 Report Share Posted June 17, 2011 Am I the only one that wouldn't dream about pishing away £300+ on some sort of 'feel good' trip? What you do with your own money is entirely up to you of course, but if someone decides that £300 (or more) is worth paying for a say, no matter how small, in the running of their club then that's their choice. Also, knowing that your money is being put away to help maintain the financial stability of the club is more than just a "feel good" trip in my book. I like the look of the idea, and look forward to hearing the final details as they become available. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StipeIsGod Posted June 17, 2011 Report Share Posted June 17, 2011 I think I'm likely in the same position as a lot of Well fans, in that I'd love to invest, in order to play a small part in our future, but simply cannot afford to spend any money outwith my season ticket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albi Posted June 17, 2011 Report Share Posted June 17, 2011 £300 to vote on who's going to be on the board? Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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