SUFC: The Future SUFC up for sale

[yogi bear up the cagire]

Just................let's get it done!

 

[Callumturner22]

We need some early quick decisions if this goes through.

Make sure all staff are paid and rewarded

appoint Management Team, including Kev and Co, possibly beef up Stans Role if possible by mutual consent

Confirm and expand Recruitment team if we can afford it or at least ensure Still is mentoring an understudy
Pay up and end the embargo and get the white board functioning and contracts being sorted
Agree the Management structure, hierarchy and decision making process
That should give us the first fortnights baseline

You would like to think the first couple bits of update to date wages / embargo can be sorted first and foremost … then hopefully talks have been made with some targets but once new owners come along we can put concrete offer in for current players of new contracts as well as potential targets .

 

[Colin S]

I personally think the value of the club is around £1-2m as the only assets are the players and staff plus the name and a margin of goodwill. The liabilities are the debt (not just HMRC) and the unpaid staff. The other cost will come from the training ground and whatever they decide to do about Fossetts

 

[8]

Until ink is dry and announcement officially made I have my reservations.

However, once this is completed 'LETS '

 

[leeblue]

The only reason a journalist wouldn’t break a story is the promise of an exclusive in due course. Well somebody else got in first, bad luck.

As for the ITKs, did any of you sign a NDA? If not you could have shared, teased us a little if you wanted to. I’ve no doubt you will say doing so would have scuppered the deal. Or were you just playing it safe in your smoke filled rooms in case you’d mixed up Nash with Gnasher and Dennis.

Always tricky for the ITK crew. I have socialised/know lots of previous players for example and I have been told tons and tons of stuff. However I would never share that info on socials because that would be a betrayal of trust etc. Had a long discussion with Tom Lawrence a few weeks ago...again wouldn't share that discussion out of common courtesy. Just my 2 penny's worth.

 

[kentblues]

Precisely.

We're talking:

• Purchase of majority shareholding in club
• Purchase or eventual purchase of 3-sided stadium
• Partnering on build of 4th stand at new stadium
• Purchase of training facility
• Building (if true) of permanent facilities at training ground.
• Paying off of outstanding debts (HMRC, PGSS, etc.)
• Injection of funds into the club for a decent budget.
• Funding of full Academy.

That's a **** tonne of money required. Perhaps £30m-£40m at a guess. I don't know exactly how wealthy they are or where the major wealth might come from - I can only go on logic, and logic would suggest that they would need to have some serious money for all of that.

You have a couple of guys at Kimura who are local, one of whose father-in-law is Peter Taylor, and Ray W at least lives in Essex.

You are right I think regarding the sums of money they would need access to, not forgetting a deficit of a million or two annually until we get to the new stadium.

If you just look at the Kimura companies there isn't a great deal there. And Ray W's wealth is mostly quoted as between $5m and $15m with one magazine coming up with the $145m figure. I don't think anyone knows and I suspect he likes it that way (known to be "shrewd" when it comes to money and business). If it weren't for the local connections and IF we were looking only at personal wealth and willingness to risk it I would be a little bit nervous.

BUT and its very big BUT. Its about access to funds and they appear to have enabled around $15 billion in loans over the last 6 years. Kimura Performance is a venture capital company ( a form of private equity). They will invest because they see significant potential return against any risk. And they have a bigger appetite for such risk.You add the local connections and the fact they are very active in sports investments (and therefore experience driving value and revenue streams from the business) then it looks very positive. For example its one thing to understand the wider commercial opportunities that FF can bring, but you have to have the money to invest to make them happen.

Short of someone very local who is a billionaire and has decided they don't mind what happens to a few £10s of millions their wealth this is about as good an outcome as we could wish for imo.

Of course the odds on a Ray W documentary covering our rags to riches story, with guest appearances from Stan and Spud, must be significantly shortened..

 

[Massimo Giovanni]

I personally think the value of the club is around £1-2m as the only assets are the players and staff plus the name and a margin of goodwill. The liabilities are the debt (not just HMRC) and the unpaid staff. The other cost will come from the training ground and whatever they decide to do about Fossetts

I think you may have simplified the "club" for sale. What is also being sold is the sites, land, (prime building land with some planning permission) off Victoria Avenue, all at Boots and Laces, some at Fossetts Farm, the new training lands , and the Dome!

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

It sounds like someone got a bit ****ed down the golf club last Friday and start blabbing, which is probably why this has all started to come to light and more people were hearing about it / the story has been released rather than anything majorly "tactical".

It’s tactical. The buyers need to reassure existing staff (players, management etc) to hang around.

You've got to remember although a great deal of investment is needed (circa 40/50 million) with the amount of properties involved, id imagine the project is going to make some decent money once its all finished (be it 5-6 years down the line!) So it's all going to pay for itself by let's say 2028/9. And that's where RMs problem has always been. He's never had the money to be able to push this seriously forward. Okay yes he's forked out 1.5/2 million on "the training ground" but since then we've basically been under an embargo so the club hasn't actually gone forward since then. The fact this is a long term project and you won't be able to make a quick buck and run is a very positive thing for the club.

It's great that a couple of local lads are Involved and as I (and others) have said, you couldn't meet much more a pleasant chap than Spud so whether his involvement is small or not, it can only be a good thing as his connections in the game, from top to bottom, are superb.

That money is going to be made by the developers not the club/Kimura though.

The developers make money by selling bits of the development off. The stadium and training ground are bits that are being sold off. Think of the stadium as a semi-detached house. You don’t get the house attached to your building as well, that will be sold separately by the developers.

 

[JAL]

Just wish we had a confirmed time length between now and the takeover complete, it feels close, but we don't really know if its close, every day feels like a wasted day for the management team because we need to start going as soon as possible.

The new news of a confirmed bidder in advanced talks is very exciting, I just wish we knew when!

 

[hlane17]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1661664064257380353

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

I've just read the write up by The Athletic... It all seems a bit too good to be true.

I've done very little research but seeing as Kimura are a hedge fund it doesn't surprise me that their purchase of the club would be financed and keep a majority their capital liquid for other things. So I'm not worried about that.

If they've done any research at all they'll know that the management team is a real asset. So I'm not worried about that, or how the hierarchy will integrate.

While buying the club isn't going to be cheap. If it wasn't the stadium you probably could see the club bought for a nominal £5 like a few other club have been in the past because they were saddled with so much debt. But they aren't necessarily buying a stadium, they're buying the land and planning permission which at the moment is still to be approved. I wonder if the value of that is as high as people think.

I hope new owners take the opportunity to make some amendments. Over the years the plans for the stadium have repeatedly taken a hit and on a personal note I've always hated the apartments on top of the stadium. They're only there so Ron could squeeze as much money out of the development and as resentment for him has grown and grown, I would love to not see them while at a game.

That's probably unlikely to happen, there's probably some difficulty removing those apartments now, but I could see this being Kimura Performance/Integral Sports HQ, FF or the training being an extension of their brand. FF being called The Kimura Arena or something like that... So it wouldn't surprise me if they did want to add their own touch.

Could be exciting times ahead but I'll try to keep my feet on the ground.

They’ll almost certainly be buying “off-plan” rather than building it themselves. It’ll therefore be an agreement to buy it once ready. They’ll likely have some say on how to fit it out rather than re-drawing up plans.

 

[Paulie Walnuts]

I am more than happy with local businessmen, who have clout, more than one reason to make it a success and won't treat it like a toy.

Their reputation will be at stake with all the publicity and if it goes well for them will bring their business a lot more investment.

I would take these guy's over an American/Canadian/ Arab who could potentially take the heart and soul from our club like what happened with Oldham and others.

 

[Westcliff DGS]

Fine by me. Tala Ron.

View attachment 26439

Majority owners, meaning RM still has a stake in the club? Or other small investors?

 

[Medway Blue]

You have a couple of guys at Kimura who are local, one of whose father-in-law is Peter Taylor, and Ray W at least lives in Essex.

You are right I think regarding the sums of money they would need access to, not forgetting a deficit of a million or two annually until we get to the new stadium.

If you just look at the Kimura companies there isn't a great deal there. And Ray W's wealth is mostly quoted as between $5m and $15m with one magazine coming up with the $145m figure. I don't think anyone knows and I suspect he likes it that way (known to be "shrewd" when it comes to money and business). If it weren't for the local connections and IF we were looking only at personal wealth and willingness to risk it I would be a little bit nervous.

BUT and its very big BUT. Its about access to funds and they appear to have enabled around $15 billion in loans over the last 6 years. Kimura Performance is a venture capital company ( a form of private equity). They will invest because they see significant potential return against any risk. And they have a bigger appetite for such risk.You add the local connections and the fact they are very active in sports investments (and therefore experience driving value and revenue streams from the business) then it looks very positive. For example its one thing to understand the wider commercial opportunities that FF can bring, but you have to have the money to invest to make them happen.

Short of someone very local who is a billionaire and has decided they don't mind what happens to a few £10s of millions their wealth this is about as good an outcome as we could wish for imo.

Of course the odds on a Ray W documentary covering our rags to riches story, wituest appearances from Stan and Spud, must be significantly shortened..

Spot on. Its not immediately obvious that they are loaded, but do a bit of digging and you start to pick up some threads as to how they potentially are.

They will have some disgustingly wealthy contacts too. Private equity investors, other hedge funds, rich sports personalities, etc. So it's future potential, too. Potential for more investment from connections as the ship starts moving forward again.

 

[Medway Blue]

Majority owners, meaning RM still has a stake in the club? Or other small investors?

Kimura as majority shareholders, Integral Sports Management (Pettit's company) as minority shareholders perhaps, and then maybe a couple of individuals taking some shares too.

I can't see Ron Martin holding onto any shares in the club, but you never know.

 

[superblue24]

It has been mentioned on here, but those genuinely "ITK", and who did not actually sign an NDA are free to write what they like here, especially when writing under the guise of an avatar.

 

[rigsby]

Exactly my thoughts. I also wonder where it would leave us under new owners if we wanted to go our own way with the new ground.

Any sale of the stadium that still involves Ron is not the clean break that SUFC and RM want.

Ron has said himself the best option would be someone who wants the stadium project with all its trimmings.

That's exactly what any sensible new owner should also want. otherwise your relying on Your RH landlord to build you a new home when you have paid him upfront. None on here should pay their plumber a day in advance let alone Ron.

As for the price of any lans/building plot

1) land with no chance of PP
2) land with slim chance of PP
3) land with good chance pod PP
4) land with outline PP....Price will jump
5) land more or less ready to go but some hoops to jump through.
6) Ready to go, all boxes ticked.

It seems to me on project that big we are number 5 on that list but nearer 6 than 4. That's good enough for Ron to clear his debts and avoid the financial risk of a stadium development with would not earn him any more money.....Yet still leave room for a new owner/group to bring in their own builders and ideas.

 

[tallboyblue]

So if it comes to fruition will share holdings be worth anything?

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

It has been mentioned on here, but those genuinely "ITK", and who did not actually sign an NDA are free to write what they like here, especially when writing under the guise of an avatar.

That’s true. However if they want to remain in the know they won’t want to hack off their sources, or get those sources into trouble if they are themselves subject to an NDA.

 

[shrimper61]

Tune in to BBC Essex at 11.15 am BBC Essex is talking to Matt slater the reporter who broke the story..