Quote: vastman "Without wanting to sound patronising its a very easy formula to work out.
The East stand is the key. At present it contains zero facilities. Its only income stream is match-day seats, it doesn’t even have genuine food and drink outlets.
The new stand will cost the club nothing, there are no repayments. So from day one it’s making money. Apart from doubling the potential seating income, with all the add ons like bars etc it probably makes each seat 25% more profitable, maybe more. Whist the 24/7 nature of the new structure makes for another vastly improved revenue stream. Again I must point out that the club will not be paying a single penny more for all this in terms of loans etc than it does now. It’s an instant cash cow if done right.
Ditto the old clubhouse and flats. As part of a vastly improved environment most notably the car park - there ability to generate income also becomes greatly enhanced. Suddenly a party or even a wedding at the BV flats no longer appears the horror show it is now.
The North stands revenue creation depends more on how the club is performing on the pitch. I’ll put it this way, if you don’t attend regularly you are far more likely to if the team is winning and your no longer at risk of breaking an ankle.
The pitch and what they do with it is the most interesting and it’s clearly the main community element. Go artificial and the usability is almost endless and the returns are high.
Back to the East stand. The shear attractiveness of this new frontage will be the key imho. BV has never had a decent main road frontage. Thus it has never really had a presence in the city. The new stand will instantly become iconic. You won’t be able to miss it where as now most people pass BV and even if they do notice it they don’t believe such a dump could be the home of a famous RL club. At last the club will have a base of operation and a certain grandeur it so lacks at present.
So finally, all the above attracts money. Many people are fickle and attracted to image. The new BV like it or not will attract the bandwagon jumping prawn sandwich brigade but it’s their money that will make the difference. So as a diehard I say welcome aboard and hand over your disposable income as soon as possible.'"
As much as I agree with all that, and that Monday will be a significant day in the history of the club, I still don't feel we are on the sunlit uplands yet. It will be great to see physical progress start next week, but it'll be at least 12 months before we start reaping the benefits. Next year could still be the toughest yet. Reduced capacity could well hit us hard. The hardcore fans will have to dig deep and redouble their efforts.
Saying that, the value of the assets of the club have shot through the roof recently. 6 or 7 years ago the only value was the players' contracts and our place in the top flight. The club didn't really own anything and we should be thankful and celebrate that progress.
The Future looks bright, but we've got some distance to go yet.