Should Exeter City remain a fan-owned club?

[IndoMike]

These are good questions. And ones I would prefer not to answer for now. Thanks.

Ed. I don't see why you can't answer my question no. 2. It's not private or confidential:-
What happens if we become dependent on a private owner but that owner decides to pull out? Even if he was honest and didn't take any loans out in the club's name, surely there would be a grave risk to the club. And how could we stop him selling to a dodgy dealer?

 

[ex_user1234]

It would be interesting to see how Trust members react to any proposal from you, or you linked with others, to "buy out" the Trust at any stage in the future, given your strident criticism of both Trust and Club on this forum.

My criticism has been of the way the Trust and Club is run. May I ask what you achieved for the thousands of fans of Exeter City while you were on the Trust board? Specifics would be good. Thanks.

 

[ex_user1234]

Ed. I don't see why you can't answer my question no. 2. It's not private or confidential:-
What happens if we become dependent on a private owner but that owner decides to pull out? Even if he was honest and didn't take any loans out in the club's name, surely there would be a grave risk to the club. And how could we stop him selling to a dodgy dealer?

The key is not to become dependent on a private owner. There are things you can do to safeguard against that. It's why I think investment is the wrong model for City as investors always want a return. In terms of selling to another owner, you can build in safeguards against that too. That's why companies often have legally binding agreements that state you cannot do xyz without 75% of shareholders' votes.

 

[ex_user1234]

Have any of them ever made a profit?

Yes. Do City currently make a profit? No.

 

[Anonymous]

You appear to have a colossal chip on your shoulder and you "questions" reek of ulterior motive/personal agenda. I honestly don't believe you have any modicum of altruism about your character and am pretty annoyed that you didn't portray yourself in an honest and open light during the previous trust elections. I would not have voted for you if I had known the kind of attitude you actually have.

 

[IndoMike]

The key is not to become dependent on a private owner. There are things you can do to safeguard against that. It's why I think investment is the wrong model for City as investors always want a return. In terms of selling to another owner, you can build in safeguards against that too. That's why companies often have legally binding agreements that state you cannot do xyz without 75% of shareholders' votes.

So I still don't get what you are proposing.
You're saying that you wouldn't want a private owner and yet you think that the current Trust is not capable of raising sufficient funds to enable the club to make good progress.
So the only option is to wait until the next trust elections and hope that you and other like- minded folks can get voted in and then apply your principles. Is that right, or am I missing something?

 

[ex_user1234]

That's what concerns me a little, my understanding is that you started your company in 2012 ? And yet you have yet to post a profit ? Please don't hesitate to correct me if I am wrong on any count, by the way. Now fair play to you , you have succeeded in attracting an astonishing amount of investment capital, £6M from Dignitas alone. But just when will they start to see a return ?

It does seem a little ironic from the outside, that you are in the funeral business, and whilst all these people are dying, you are not seeking to "make hay whilst the sun shines" and be busy earning your investors a return, rather than furloughing staff. Perhaps I am being naive, and it is simply that "the timing isn't right"

So I feel my opinion is that I am far more comfortable as it stands with the Club safely in the capable hands of those that you refer to as "Marxists and their village fete committee". Yes there is always room for improvement, and they may well need the occasional good "kick up the ar$e", but at the end of the day, they are supporters with the best interest of the Club at heart.

I agree they are supporters with the best interests of the Club at heart. No one is disputing that. The problem is they are amateurs by definition. I'm sorry if that offends you, but it is true. Would you get a heating engineer in to fix your boiler if he just did it as a hobby and had no qualifications other than he liked trying to fix boilers? Of course you wouldn't. The same applies to Exeter City. The club should be run by professionals and the Trust should be nowhere near the running of the actual business. But they are. They are all over it. It makes a mockery of the supposed separation of powers. The reality is that Nick Hawker runs the show and the other Trustees fall in line with whatever he wants to do. I'm surprised they haven't sacked Julian Tagg already. He has been in the Trust's crosshairs for some time now.

 

[ex_user1234]

You appear to have a colossal chip on your shoulder and you "questions" reek of ulterior motive/personal agenda. I honestly don't believe you have any modicum of altruism about your character and am pretty annoyed that you didn't portray yourself in an honest and open light during the previous trust elections. I would not have voted for you if I had known the kind of attitude you actually have.

I am simply telling the truth as I see it. By the way, where's the list of 50% of football club owners being criminals that you've been compiling for me and @DB9? Can't wait to see it. Even the clinically insane wouldn't state something as bonkers at that.

 

[C j phill]

My criticism has been of the way the Trust and Club is run. May I ask what you achieved for the thousands of fans of Exeter City while you were on the Trust board? Specifics would be good. Thanks.

When I stood for election, my stated aim, in summary, was to ensure that appropriate governance arrangements existed between Trust and Club Boards, thereby maintaining that the interests of supporters were properly presented.

Very early in joining the Trusg Board, it became clear that in my view, there were good governance arrangements in place and these were codified further, during the year that I was a Trust Board member.

Having joined the Trust Board through a process where no election took place, I had decided at the start of the Trust year, that I would stand down at the year-end and seek an electoral mandate for the following period.

However, in answer to your question, having not achieved what I set out do , because good governance arrangements applied, I stood down and decided not
to re-stand for election.

 

[ex_user1234]

So I still don't get what you are proposing.
You're saying that you wouldn't want a private owner and yet you think that the current Trust is not capable of raising sufficient funds to enable the club to make good progress.
So the only option is to wait until the next trust elections and hope that you and other like- minded folks can get voted in and then apply your principles. Is that right, or am I missing something?

Forget about raising sufficient funds. I've never said anything about that. It's about how Exeter City FC is run. I think the current lot are a bit village fete and a different owner could professionalise it and maximise City's potential.