Quote:
Originally Posted by redwah
I'm sure we could find one. There's at least one on every second week
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Quote:
Originally Posted by redwah
I'm sure we could find one. There's at least one on every second week
Newcastle Herald
Friday March 25, 2016
Newcastle Jets: Potential buyer Jeff Von Schmauder insists community key to success By James Gardiner
March 25, 2016, 10:33 a.m.
HAWAIIAN businessman Jeff Von Schmauder has no doubts that the Newcastle Jets can be a success.
ALOHA: Hawaiian businessman Jeff Von Schmauder heads an American consortium interested in buying the Newcastle Jets.
ALOHA: Hawaiian businessman Jeff Von Schmauder heads an American consortium interested in buying the Newcastle Jets.
But the land developer insists it is going to take community input rather than someone simply waving a cheque for the club to fulfil its potential.
Von Schmauder is part of an American consortium interested in buying the Jets.
“I want this to be a fresh start and a community-built organisation,” said Von Schmauder, who was born in Germany and raised in Maui. “Coming from the islands of Hawaii, we have a strong sense of community there and that is how our businesses work. It is the same kind of thing here. Newcastle has a culture and community of its own and that needs to be preserved and also recognised. It isn’t about someone coming in from overseas and telling everyone how it is done. We will have local leadership, local business people, local community stakeholders involved in this team. That is how it has to go.”
Von Schmauder splits his time between Maui and Blue Bay on the Central Coast and is the managing director of Terrafirmaworld.com. As well as own the land development company Von Schmauder said he had real estate holdings in Hawaii and “other sporting interests in the US”.
Von Schmauder’s consortium is one of six parties to receive an information memorandum on the Jets sale.
“I am in the due diligence process as we speak,” he said. “The next step for me is to sit down with the management of FFA and [chairman] Steven Lowy. It’s important that there is a strong relationship from the ground up with the FFA as well as the team and the local community. It is really important that all those pieces fit. If those align and they are compatible, I feel confident that things will move forward.”
Von Schmauder, who will be at Hunter Stadium on Saturday for the Jets’ clash with Perth Glory, said he was attracted to the Newcastle area and wanted to “help the community grow”.
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Chinese business Martin Lee met with the FFA this week and is the most advanced of the potential buyers but is understood to have balked at the asking price, which is believed to more than the initial $5 million figure.
The FFA assumed ownership of the Jets in May after revoking the licence of Nathan Tinkler. A new owner appeared imminent in September when a consortium, headed by Dundee United chairman Stephen Thompson, agreed to “broad terms of the sale”.
The governing body is set to lose $2.4 million on the Jets this season but said “there’s no time frame set for a conclusion to the sale process.”
hahahaha, here comes the leverage play on Mr Lee.
"hey boss, you'd better get in fast, errrrrrryyyyybody wants a piece of the Jets right now....."
the only thing better is if this Hawaiian gypo is using Tinks' trust fund to support it all.
Crying. That would be hilarious, please make it so.Quote:
Originally Posted by plague
The fact that 6 prospectus have been doled out should be enough to illicit further interest.
I have zero faith in FFA with regard to offloading this, or any club.
Anyone with a brain can see through this rich Yank Gypo baloneyQuote:
Originally Posted by plague
If this bloke is as wealthy as he is why in ****s name is he splitting his time between Hawaii and the Gypo Coast??
Can't find anywhere better than Gosford ?? FMD
Hopefully the Chinese chap does too
I'll take his money. I will also take great delight in telling anyone who lives on the CC that a local would prefer to invest in Newy rather than that rabble of a club in Gosford.Quote:
Originally Posted by MFKS
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tommyjet
Actually looking at his website, Terrafirma whatever, the contact address is actually Mariners Centre for Excellence?
Wtf?
Yep - will immediately push for a Hunter Mariners merger.Quote:
Originally Posted by noremac
The thought also crossed my mind also.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jetmaster
there is no respectable entity that will buy a losing sports team.
So, which nasty piece of work should we choose? has to be someone who hates fans, football, honesty....lets get the greens in
in Martin's favour he does seem to have something tangible behind him: has interests in Chinese football, sponsors football outside of China, has an established name as a business man who actually produces something, at face value does not seem dodgy, my only caveat is what is his long term vision for the Jets.
Contrast that with a guy who appears to work for a Central Coast property developer and has pictures of himself doing yoga on a beach in Maui as his sideline business, I'm thinking Martin is looking a more suitable fit for what we need (we already have plenty of yoga instructors in Newy)...
so what will we do with the ffa regarding their moronic set priceQuote:
Originally Posted by turbojetfireV8
Say that to the blokes who run Man CityQuote:
Originally Posted by hawk
http://www.pumper.com/editorial/2014...ef=related_img
shiart, that's not Jeff is it??
Quote:
Von Schmauder returns to Capital Connection, Doering joins firm
Jeff Von Schmauder, founder and owner of Capital Connection, rejoined the company as president after serving six years in the Air Force as a combat medic. Von Schmauder founded the sanitation and waste management equipment financing company in 1990 and has served on the PSAI board. Jerid Doering also joined the company and is responsible for business development. Headquartered in Washington State, Capital Connection has locations in Boston, Maui and Australia.
I'm sure when it comes down to the nitty gritty Mr Lee will come to some arrangement...Quote:
Originally Posted by hawk
Lets hope so. On the face of it his already financial support of Football would indicate a genuine interest in the game.Quote:
Originally Posted by turbojetfireV8
We cannot possibly go to deep into the off season without this sorted and stuffing preparation for next season.
I can see another significant reduction in membership if we go into next season with a poverty pack squad.
^^^^Quote:
Originally Posted by furns
This
The fact that he talks of the need for strong local community ownership is enough to take this guy seriously. This club cannot be sustained on just the "deep pockets" of a wealthy businessman, it has failed twice with that type of ownership model in the last 5 years. Only problem is, who is going to pay the $5million plus price tag the greedy c#$nts at FFA are adamant on?
I'd say it's a reason to not take him seriously. Community ownership in this town is a complete ****ing joke. People here either don't have the money or are too tight to part with it.Quote:
Originally Posted by stopper2
I mean on top of actual season tickets / memberships what would the chances be of finding say 1000 fans willing to throw $10k each into the pot ? I'd say **** all, and those that did throw that type of money in would basically want to select the team every week and advise on the formation and tactics employed.
**** the community model - it will never work in this town.
Well with that attitude you might as well say give the Newcastle Jets franchise to ****ing Woolongong or Canberra or Sutherland because a one owner "ownership model" does not work in this town. By saying community ownership this also encompasses local businesses not just supporters willing to put in and become shareholders. A local consortium did put forth a proposal a while back but just did not have the required funds, so the interest is there, just need the extra $$$ that an overseas investor can provide.Quote:
Originally Posted by The Dunster
Wasn't that pretty much what tinks was offering though?Quote:
Originally Posted by stopper2
I have no interest whatsoever in this bloke taking overQuote:
Originally Posted by stopper2
He could have been the hero anytime in the last 2-3 years but showed no interest it ain't like our issues with ownership haven't been common knowledge. Why has it taken to now for him to come to light??
Secondly he can babble on with community lingo but it doesn't escape the fact he could have bought his community is the Gypos team but hasn't
I just don't trust him already
I barracking for the Chinese bloke.
Seems the lesser of 2 evils
I want the most evil of all the evil people taking us over.Quote:
Originally Posted by MFKS
Only way to get ahead in the world.
Must be some russian somewhere with 1o mil to throw away. They wont be scared to cheat
Why would you barrack for anyone at this stage?Quote:
Originally Posted by MFKS
We know stuff all about Martin Lee's proposal either and his motives, same as months ago with Dundee's Thompson.
The talks with Thompson were fairly advanced but not once did we here about what his vision was for the Newcastle Jets.
Even FFA, is their priority just to recoup their costs and make a profit or are they genuinely concerned with making sure the new ownership is the right fit for this club?
Going to be interesting but with the very limited knowledge we have of Lee or Von Schmauden or the supposed other four potential buyers, can't see the point in picking a favourite at this stage.
Trump might be interested?.... He'll buy anything right nowQuote:
Originally Posted by plague
I'd def be back in for season tix if the great man ponied up.Quote:
Originally Posted by lquiquer
Only the FFA and th interested parties know the details of the negotiations.Quote:
Originally Posted by stopper2
You make an excellent point. We have no idea what they are truly offering. Until such time I too will be holding off my view.
I love all this talk about 'vision'. Let's drop the BS. At the end of the day, we need someone who can throw some money at the team, get some decent players, win enough games, make the finals, entertain us, then we go home happy. Tinkler tried and did alright to begin with until we quickly learnt he didn't actually have money to throw at the team. Seriously, what do you want the new owner to do? 'Connect with the community?' What the hell does that even mean? We just need someone with money who'll hang around for at least a few years so the FFA don't have an excuse to see us disappear in place of another Sydney team.Quote:
Originally Posted by stopper2
Quote:
Originally Posted by MFKS
This
Mr LEeD seems to be already putting his money where his mouth is for football in various parts
Kinda hoping for the Chinese bloke also
If you were interested in buying the Jets would you be accepting the FFA asking price. The FFA are bleeding money, the longer it drags on the more it costs.
FFA are grandstanding and if you ask me this bloke from Hawaii is nothing more than a smokescreen to make it look like there is a serious second bidder, or any other bidder for that matter. I know what's more beleivable and it's the Chinese bid by a country mile
For the first five minutes whoever buys us can throw all the money they like at us, but by the sixth minute I wanna see a plethora of sponsorship deals with local and national (even international, I'm not fussy) businesses, third party agreements coming from every direction, blanket advertising announcing the all new fighter Jets have arrived and they're ready for combat, promotion to make the Knights hierarchy cry, and that's just for starters. The Jets need to rebuild the brand properly within the community by showing they mean business on and off the park, they've made a tentative start but we need to take it fifteen levels higher.Quote:
Originally Posted by halo se7en
I do want to know what any prospective buyer envisages the club will be in 5, 10, 25 years time - A-League and ACL champions? A proper academy producing top level juniors? That should be the minimum. And do they have the investment power long term to make it a reality? Martin ticks a few boxes, but he really needs to be able to show where he's gonna connect with local business etc before I get too excited. I'm also a little apprehensive about being owned by someone who will have virtually no profile here, unless he starts a consortium with local investors will it just look like we've been sold off to a faceless corporation? I'd like to see an owner who actually comes to games as regularly as possible and shows some passion for the team, that would give the semblance at least that the owner is a supporter of the product he is endorsing, more like a Lowy-style ownership where you know the owner is prepared to win at all costs.
we'd get a wall and players would have to pass straya testQuote:
Originally Posted by lquiquer
keep dreamimgQuote:
Originally Posted by turbojetfireV8
Jesus you aren't asking for much. But there it is again, 'he really needs to be able to show where he's gonna connect with local business etc'.Quote:
Originally Posted by turbojetfireV8
Why? If he gets national or even international sponsors on board, why is this even a priority? And what makes you think local businesses wouldn't jump at the chance to try and connect with a cashed-up Chinese business man?
As for your dreamed up white knight, name some wealthy Newcastle business people who are interested in the Jets, have a high profile, and who are respected enough for the almighty local businesses to deem good enough to get on board. I'm sure this Chinese guy has a million percent better chance of attracting sponsors from further afield than the Hunter Valley then whatever novocastrian it is you're conjuring up in your imagination.
Seriously, do you think any owner is going to be around in 25 years? For any a-league club? Or for most clubs around the world, even highly successful ones?
Also, can you explain to me what 'rebuilding the brand' means without using useless jargon? When the team wins, people attend. When people attend, they get to know the players. When the players become better-known, their face gets plastered around town. End of. If you're talking about school visits, hospital visits, training camps yada yada yada, aren't they already doing that? Do we have any tangible proof that increasing these visits and spending more time out in the community actually leads to an increase in membership or 'better connection' with the community, or is it just another myth we can whinge about when we aren't winning games.
Better community links and proper promotion get people through the gates.Quote:
Originally Posted by halo se7en
Money spent on the team, office & coaching ancillary staff etc to create a culture the community can get behind and the crowds don't drop off by 50% when we lose more than 2 games in a row.
No, we need an owner to do what Con and Tinks both failed to do and failed terribly, I might add and that is to connect with local corporate businesses in the Hunter and NNSW as a whole....to bring in valuable sponsorship dollars and support. This will ensure the long term longevity of the club so that we are not always relying on one man with hopefully deep pockets to continually be pumping money into the Jets.Quote:
Originally Posted by halo se7en
All good to connect with the community by visiting hospitals, schools and local clubs but you can't beat having a strong, successful club like we had between 2006-08 to truly connect with the community.
^^^^Quote:
Originally Posted by turbojetfireV8
This
To be fair any new owner can get the local business community to pay a hell of a lot of his teams bills if he a) employs some staff who return phone calls or b) doesn't **** them over by continually owing them money.
Jets always seem to be way behind when it comes to commercial revenue. Might be a good idea to look into fixing that.
We all agree memberships are strong for what we get onfield.
The local interest is definitely there from businesses as a local consortium did put forth a bid but were well short of the $$$ required by FFA.Quote:
Originally Posted by halo se7en
Don't for a second underestimate that there are businesses in the Hunter who want to be involved with the Jets. Just look at businesses like Inspirations Paint, Greater Building Soc, Varley Eng etc who have all come on board since FFA took over and with the right owner involved I bet there would be dozens more willing to be involved!