New Team Sponsor

[ElmParker]

We may not be the world's biggest club, but surely we are now the world's most middle class club?

Perhaps that’s where the club see the real money is. There’s not many clubs that have as many salubrious middle to upper class areas within a 45 minute radius of their ground. Waitrose have expanded a lot in the North recently, but their heartland remains in this part of the Thames Valley. I bet there’s a huge untapped population of loyal Waitrose and John Lewis customers who may well be interested in watching Reading, now that they’ve backed us.

I was with you right up until the last sentence.

[The 17 Bus]

I'm really pleased with this, not least because I always do my shopping at Waitrose.

Good old Swaffam

[Fezza]

Does this mean JM will be dropping his asking price for the club to fit in with the

"... honestly priced"

part of our new sponsors marketing?

[Seal]

The deal is worth £185k for 1 year.

?

I work in the industry. My colleagues speak to football clubs including RFC every day.

[weybridgewanderer]

As part of the deal, the Waitrose name will appear on the new home and away kits, and offers will be available to season ticket holders.


In all Waitrose or just those in reading I wonder??

[RG30]

Good deal for the club, LOL at people moaning at anything.

[TFF]

I work in the industry. My colleagues speak to football clubs including RFC every day.

Not doubting the accuracy of your post but that figure seems *very* low.

I had heard that while still a Premiership club we were hawking a three year deal for about £1.2million. I thought that was pretty low but for it to halve again is quite surprising.

[Sarah Star]

Do you think there'll be offers to John Lewis employees to come and support Reading too? I have a friend who works for them who says she might come with me one day, but so far I haven't been able to persuade her.

[Seal]

I work in the industry. My colleagues speak to football clubs including RFC every day.

Not doubting the accuracy of your post but that figure seems *very* low.

I had heard that while still a Premiership club we were hawking a three year deal for about £1.2million. I thought that was pretty low but for it to halve again is quite surprising.

The market is tough at the moment.

Villa wanted £3m PA for their shirt deal; couldn't get it, so decided 'sod it' we'll give it to charity (and incidentally turned it into a great piece of PR).

I know of another premiership club who are holding out for more than the £500k PA they have currently been offered, but they're unlikely to get it.

We may have been able to command £500k+ PA if we'd stayed up, but are now (obviously) a much less desirable proposition for potential sponsors. RFC have done very well to get a premium brand on board in such a short time period. They were in a very difficult position whereby they only had a small window to sell the sponsorship - between their league status being confirmed and going to the printers. Therefore sponsors basically had them over a barrell, hence the low price.

[Dirk Gently]

I work in the industry. My colleagues speak to football clubs including RFC every day.

Not doubting the accuracy of your post but that figure seems *very* low.

I had heard that while still a Premiership club we were hawking a three year deal for about £1.2million. I thought that was pretty low but for it to halve again is quite surprising.

The market is tough at the moment.

Villa wanted £3m PA for their shirt deal; couldn't get it, so decided 'sod it' we'll give it to charity (and incidentally turned it into a great piece of PR).

I know of another premiership club who are holding out for more than the £500k PA they have currently been offered, but they're unlikely to get it.

We may have been able to command £500k+ PA if we'd stayed up, but are now (obviously) a much less desirable proposition for potential sponsors. RFC have done very well to get a premium brand on board in such a short time period. They were in a very difficult position whereby they only had a small window to sell the sponsorship - between their league status being confirmed and going to the printers. Therefore sponsors basically had them over a barrell, hence the low price.

A perfect summing up of the situation. Those touting this as a conspiracy for RFC to attract the middle-classes are way off- RFC just aren't that sophisticated. They'll be happy to take the money from whoever, that it just happened to be a well-respected brand is a big bonus.

[SpaceCruiser]

At least it's not Hat Painting!

I'd hope that shirt that appears on the official site is not the new kit?

[Stranded]

Spacey, it's quite clearly a t-shirt.

Unless there are new rules in the CCC that it's shirts v skins next year we're pretty safe on that matter.

[Roger the Rabbit]

Interesting to see how any Waitrose products get onto the concourses.
Not really in Compasses interests to lose their margins by selling someone else's products, or having anyon else selling. There isn;t room in the servery's to stock loads of posh sandwiches.
It looks a decen tdeal though, and I hope I get a decent discount at Woodley Waitrose with my ST !!

[Royalee]

Classic.

I look forward to paying a tenner for my organic burger next time I visit the Mad Stad.

Maybe we can replace play your shirts right with Nicky Hammond's Supermarket Sweep?

[Huntley & Palmer]

How wonderfully middle class, I for one can't wait for my organic hoisin duck wrap to be consumed instead of the normal roll over hot dog at half time.

[Row Z Royal]

Fair Trade Bovril.

[TFF]

http://www.readingfc.premiumtv.co.uk/pa ... 68,00.html

Richard Hodgson, Commercial Director for Waitrose (pictured second from right), added, "We're hoping to provide the catering for the corporate guests at the stadium, and also the pies, hot dogs and drinks throughout the stadium.

"It would be great if we could say that the very best food you can buy at any football stadium in the country, including Wembley, comes from Madejski Stadium - courtesy of Waitrose!"

Richard also outlined his company's reasons for taking up the sponsorship, saying, "Both companies think a lot about how they can work with their local communities and this is a fantastic opportunity for us to join forces.

"Although we operate on a national level, we're based locally with our head office in Bracknell - along with most of our warehousing.

"And we're still very much a southern retailer, only recently opening branches in the north and Scotland, so this sponsorship will allow us to put the Waitrose name into more households up and down the country."

I would guess (hope) this is the end of the Compass deal.

[Roger the Rabbit]

Do Waitrose do event catering ?
Do they have the management and staff to run a catering outlet ?
Given how Compass seem tostruggle with what is their core business how would someone with no experience manage it (and I'm prepared to accept the answer could be that they'll do it a lot better !)

It doesn;t seem logical that the club would pull out of the Compass deal for the sake of a one year deal with Waitrose does it ?

[Wycombe Royal]

It doesn;t seem logical that the club would pull out of the Compass deal for the sake of a one year deal with Waitrose does it ?

Maybe the compass deal finished this summer?

[Roger the Rabbit]

It didn't.