Hoops

Community ownership

maybe we need to ask Gina Rinehart for some help. Even a days wage might do the trick. Now there's someone with experience. However pricier than having Gorj run the team

And I think a lot of members of this board would contribute to a community model - they're long time passionate fans. I know I'd throw in whatever I could.

We don't replace anyone now; three years under the Martycliffe abortion has conclusively established that.

I got the impression of the venue being secure ,
vide the last SOS media release , and of them having shares in the Community Based Ownership Model .
From there , under the owners , is a General manager (office) and a Coach (oncourt)
The Perth Owner , who at 80 years , cain't go on forever .

In relation to Clarke and having a basic crowd of 4000, people know the product they are getting to this point. Interestingly enough, if the product became Phil Smyth or Brett Maher as a coach, the product changes and thus people are engaged a little more early on to see what new ideas are brought onboard.

As for shares, I made a donation to the Hawks back when things went sour, and what they offered even though I was a 36er was great. I never used it, but it was 2 seats behind the players, no rubber/ruler/sticker etc. Just the seat and i think it might have been a bbq that i never attended cos I live here.

As for the stadium, I dont think the bank will give it up, not at this stage anyhow unless the price is right. At this point in time, they still get turnover and while it might not be in their interests to undertake a stadium on a long term basis, they might be more susceptible to short term earnings, than asking for 2M/4M directly.

As for community ownership, there would need to be a set limit on shares as with any company trading on the ASX. It might seem good having 1000 shareholders, but too many cooks spoil the broth is the term right? Too much conflict of interest. Thats why a single owner seems good, however!

lastly on day to day sales and seating, the cost with an owner is $30 odd for a gold seat. with community ownership, the price drops as it benefits every shareholder to get a bigger crowd, despite seemingly losing money. last year they had blue zone seating at $10 a game. great idea cos it sold out an area behind the glass.

I think the SOS mentioned something along the lines that community ownership means more access to grants etc.

Could we convert it into a religion? Could Marty Clarke be a messiah?

Cairns model looks pretty good .
also , they do the most community/school visits
1000 a year

I think you would need to budget on close to $4M to run an NBL Club. $3M seems a bit light on. It would be interesting to see where the costs actually are:

Player and Coaches Salaries and on costs ($1M)
Stadium Hire ($0.8M?)
Travel ($0.8M?)
Office Staff ($0.5M?)
Marketing ($0.3M?)
Other Expenses ($0.3M?)

Any community ownership needs some linkage with grass roots basketball IMO.

I would definitely look at how the Wildcats run things as they are setting the standard. Have a look at their website and they have a heap of staff. Now, whether they are full time or volunteers who knows, but they have some good resources

The other mob to look at are the Breakers.

The NBL may need to step in and guide the Sixers on the best model as well. I would also be chatting with the existing clubs under community ownership to learn the good and the bad.

PR is the big missing link (off court) with the Sixers at the moment. The Facebook page is shocking, tweeting is random. YouTube? Celebrity spots on "SA with Cossie" are going begging - imagine Cossie going fishing off Old Noarlunga with Luke or Tom Daly picking strawberries at Hahndorf or something like that. Anything to lift the profile.

What about a puff piece for the Sunday Mail written from one of the wive's perspective?

That's basically it . Some will buy more than 1 share @ $5000 each , ( 1 vote per share ) , some will go in a syndicate and buy 1 share = 1 vote .

Would be really helpfull to find out how the other 'community' models work, because there are significant problems with some of the above.

I have no idea of what it would actually cost to run a team/club, but am very confident $700,000 is way short of the mark. To get some idea of what $700,000 'means' in this context, just divide by 10, which gives $70,000 each for 10 players. I know a squad has more than 10 players, and that players get different salaries, but looking at it this way gives a reference point. And that little exercise doesn't take account of salaries for coaches & player support staff, travel, accommodation, recruiting costs, medical supplies or club/team admin staff. Then there is venue hire.

And that's just the dollar side.

When it comes to 'running' the club/team it simply wouldn't work to have decisions like whether or not to sack the coach made by members/shareholders. It might be feasible to have them vote on the membership of a board to make such decisions, but not the decisions themselves.

They key to success with such a model, apart from adequate funds, would be to have a very good board with the right mix of skills - business, legal, financial, communication, to name some - that is allowed to make the best decisions [including appointment of the coaching team] it can given the information and resources available to it at the time the decision has to be made.

A first-rate CEO [more $!], who would also be selected/appointed by the board, would also be invaluable.

The 'shareholder voting' model sounds nice in theory but is totally impractical in my opinion. The key is to get good people with the right mix of skills and empower/allow them to run the show.

From what i know (living in ADL) Cairns and Wollongong were gonna close down , went to community ownership , made grandfinals.
Season tickets don't give ownership . Shares are $5000 each , for 1 vote and the ability to stand for the board . Don't know numbers , probably about 600 x $5000 = $3M . Players are only paid on known incomes , not borrowing money , and a lotta staff volunteers , instead of paying wages .
It's not for profit , but doesn't make a loss either.