So , we'll be seeing the new strip quite soon ....we also have rough costs
for a heritage shirt and also one a bit louder so I think the next step is to decide
on some basic designs when we have the next red and green meeting so we can
talk to suppliers and get some mock ups done. Could also do with knowing how
many people are interested and if Anyone has any ideas about sponsors to try and get the
price down a touch. Cheaper costs means more for the squad builder !

The away kit for the players is a sunk cost. They have to design it and produce it!

Suppliers such as Kukri and Samurai have facilities where they will discuss retail price of shirts and from there manage orders direct from supporters order via a direct link from the club's website to the supplier's. The supplier then deals with the payment and delivery of the shirt to the supporter and pass agreed margin to club. The club incurs NO additional costs.

The club are aware that such a facility exists.

Suppliers such as Kukri, Samurai, Raven Sports have a bespoke kit designers on their website which you can mock up draft designs.

Good eggs , I shall have mess and print a few off then everyone can
see them and take a vote on the designs at the next meeting
.
wheb is the next meeting ?

Last seasons shirt manufacturer, Pier clearly didn't offer that facility as everything appeared to be done via the club.

That's right. I am led to believe that the club has had a meeting with Raven Sports recently so the shirt supplier must be up for grabs.

What we dont want to do is take revenue from the club by offering other shirts cheaper? Unless you know a lot of Keighley fans that are likely to buy several?

Completely agree.

The worst thing that PIRAG could do is go in to competition with the club. It would kind of defeat the object of the organisation in the first place. Might be worth opening a dialogue with the club as to what their opinion is and take it from there.

In my opinion I would have thought a vintage shirt would be fine, but something like the Batley one on here wouldn't go down too well.

Good. Let's just hope the club utilise what they can provide and means that fans can buy gear and it gets delivered in a timely manner. If the manufacturer can supply direct to the customer then this should then take away the headache of the club having surplus stock.

To be fair I don't get why you'd end up with too much excess stock. Or why it's such a big deal.

I have a fair bit of retail experience. I'd assume that the club would have records of what sold this season and in what size. You order accordingly from those records for the new kit.

If half way through the season you end up with a few too many, you get the players to sign them all and sell them at a premium as limited editions. You could even get some framed and add even more value to them.

I agree, but was told that was the reason why stock had to be ordered direct from the manufacturer last season. I assume the Directors were reluctant to hold stock, but for the record I agree with you, this should not be an issue.

To be fair it probably comes back to the old issue and the clubs marketing being poor.

For me the main thing that the club needs to really improve is kids merchandise. I used to work in the club shop in Cavendish court and these things used to sell. Kids grow, kids sizes change and if the club sells replica shirts, but made of t-shirt material, to keep the costs down, they would sell loads. Adults do buy themselves a replica shirt, some buy both strips but people with children know that the kids want to wear lots of their favourite teams things, not just shirts but scarves, hats, training tops, drill tops, tracksuit pants etc and this must be accessed by the club. I do believe that this stuff should be sold in all sizes though, from young children right up to adult xxxl. I know its about spending first but if the club really sourced things well, companies are desperate for trade, especially local ones, so if we keep the designs simple, the logos attractive and attention seeking without being too over the top then it should make everything easier. I think its important that these things are ready for the middle of November at the latest, at least having 5 of each size by this stage with more due by the beginning of December. The two groups (Keighley Cougars and Pride in the red and green) could sell the stock between them, in the shop, then people are free to choose what they buy without feeling like they have to pick a side. Every sale is stock recorded in a book, like I used to do in the shop and then profits raised go to the correct group - club sales directly to the club and pride in the red and green sales go to them, then into squadbuilder.

Sounds like you've got yourself a job! - if the directors will Finance it up front initially and then get their money back when things are up and running

Is it not worth looking at a small retail unit in the Royal Arcade in Keighley, The rents aren't a patch on units in the Arndale and rates are very low. Merchandising has been a problem for years at the club and the last 2 years have been a particular farce ( I had 2 crappy experiences purchasing leisurewear from the club this year). Fans can't buy what the club won't stock. If the club is as forward thinking as certain individuals would like you to think then now is the time to have a shop to create a buzz in the town ... but then again