US business man planning to launch bit to bring CCFC back to the ricoh (5 Viewers)

fernandopartridge

Well-Known Member
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/martin-kelman/3/839/747
A creative, enthusiastic professional who delivers timely results, well regarded for personal drive, business acumen, initiative and flair.

Highly skilled at building strategies and developing processes to provide simple business solutions to complex requirements.

Financially astute with a strong Sales, Operations and Sourcing background with industry leading Managed Services experience and ability to create roadmaps for large Services growth.

Annoyingly, he's also unable to identify a common or a proper noun.
 

duffer

Well-Known Member
Interestingly, he has also operated as a 'FIFA registered soccer agent'

Footballers' agent, eh. I'm not sure I'd have mentioned that if I was looking to build trust from potential investors. ;)

Might be legit I suppose, but looks a bit misguided at best, or on the hunt for a bit of free publicity at worst.
 

wingy

Well-Known Member
It's a route I've always felt the trust should pursue.

Don't know about the Ins and outs ,IE; stake In the Club etc ,you may not be able to persuade SISU to go for It ,but I'd be more Interested to see the FL's response If someone could present a solid proposition based on this approach .

Re SISU crystallizing their losses It's just a matter of time .
 

WestEndAgro

Well-Known Member
I'm surprised he didn't use his new buzz phrase "the secret meetingers".

To be fair, there's a few on here who seem to have an unhealthy obsession with him.

To be fair you seem to have the biggest obsession/stalking of Grendull , I can't find a post of his which hasn't been liked by you!
 

torchomatic

Well-Known Member
There's quite a few.

To be fair you seem to have the biggest obsession/stalking of Grendull , I can't find a post of his which hasn't been liked by you!
 

skybluearmy88

New Member
This bloke must have missed something. Last time I checked the rent at the Ricoh was not the issue as we were offered to play there for free minus a few food and drink sales. Ultimately sisu don't want us to be there so that acl fold and they can aquire the Ricoh on the cheap. Us pumping 3 million into playing there isn't going to achieve that for sisu so they will just laugh it off.
 

Neutral Fan

Member
Here's an interview with the CEO of "Crowdboarders". It's dated 31 March 2014 and refers to it being "pre-launch" so seems to be a brand new business venture aimed at getting people to loan money to businesses. The financial regulator (FCA) has said it's going to look into this market to ensure people can't be misled so I expect these sorts of websites will become more heavily regulated in future, and perhaps making it hard to get ordinary people to make investments.

Either way, like others have said, this just looks like an advert for a new company. The CEO doesn't appear to suggest he buys the club, just wants to arrange other people to invest via his online company. Hmm.

http://www.crowdclan.com/danny-kelman-ceo-of-crowdboarders/
 

bigfatronssba

Well-Known Member
So the £3m covers a few years rent, then what? Back to Northampton?
Can't see their being any incentives for sisu in this.
 

Ian1779

Well-Known Member
You could hardly blame Cov fans for being hugely sceptical about this... Dhinsa, Haskell, Hoffman are to thank for that.

I'm not quite sure what he is suggesting he would do... Is he trying to essentially become the tenant of the Ricoh and then sub let it to CCFC?

Whatever it is - £3m doesn't seem anywhere near enough to do anything.
 

bigfatronssba

Well-Known Member
Not read this in detail so I apologise if this has been asked already, but has he actually contacted the club about this?

I've read in there he's not spoken to acl yet but has to the council.

If he's after a rent deal it has nothing to do with the council.
 

Samo

Well-Known Member
A USA-based businessman has unveiled an idea to try to get the Sky Blues back to Coventry.


Martin Kelman, a Dallas-based soccer agent and entrepreneur, wants to raise funds which, he says, could pave the way for Coventry City to return to the Ricoh Arena.
The chief operating officer at online investment platform Crowdboarders intends to use his business to raise between £2million and £3m and negotiate a commitment for the Sky Blues to return to its previous home.


A long-running dispute between the football club and stadium bosses has seen the club move to play ‘home’ games 35 miles away in Northampton - resulting in record low home attendances for the Sky Blues.
Mr Kelman’s idea would first focus on securing the funds raised used to pay for a rent deal at the Ricoh Arena with any additional revenue invested in the club.
As an incentive, and to demonstrate the number of fans who would return to watch the Sky Blues if they returned to the city, investors would receive a season ticket at the Ricoh Arena for £100.


The 48-year-old ex-military man has a professional background working with telecommunications giants such as Nokia, Ericsson and T-mobile.
He plans to formally launch his idea in the next few weeks and believes it can help to end the deadlock and bring the Sky Blues home.


“I am a lifelong City fan, I grew up in Eastern Green, I moved to Birmingham when I was about ten but remained a Sky Blues supporter,” he said.
“Making some kind of bid is something I have been considering for about two years. I don’t need to do this - but I feel like it is the right time to do it.


“I have some people in the US who are interested in investing and some people over here. I will be looking to launch the campaign soon.

“Because I own the platform, no money will be taken out - we can put it all into the club. There’s no time limit either, it can be a constant drip.”


Mr Kelman, who claims his business was recently valued at £10million, says he has already made contact with the council about bringing in investors to help develop the area around the Ricoh Arena.
He has also attempted to contact directors at Ricoh Arena operators ACL to see if he can help to negotiate a rent deal between stadium bosses and the club.


He said: “Sometimes in business you reach a situation where nobody is talking and it all ends up in court.
“I don’t want Sisu out, I want to try and work with them and come in at the front end.


“We want to work with Sisu, but they can’t be at the front door anymore. It’s creating tension and that is filtering onto the pitch.
“I have tried to meet Paul Harris (ACL director). Ultimately we just need to know what ACL is looking for in terms of rent.


“What we don’t want is Sisu’s debts. They have created them - we haven’t.”
Mr Kelman added that he accepted there would be some skepticism about his plan, but insisted he had the best interests of the club at heart.


“I went to the Peterborough and Swindon games and what this situation is doing to the fans is just terrible,” he said.
“I want to do things right. We want to get the club stabilised, we don’t want to lose ten points again.
“I live in the States and I want to bring back the right people to put money into this.


“We don’t want to do something hostile unless we have to. If we have enough people committing to come back to the Ricoh Arena, then that is a good enough incentive.”
He added: “People will always jump up and say ‘I don’t believe it’, but if the people are with me and we can create the momentum then Sisu will have to listen.

http://www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/sky-blues-fan-hatches-3m-7017005

No they won't. They may well tell you to fuck off and mind your own business. They certainly won't appreciate remarks like 'We don’t want to do something hostile unless we have to'... and how hostile can you be with 3 million? Deluded rubbish!
 

Broken Hearted Sky Blue

Well-Known Member
No they won't. They may well tell you to fuck off and mind your own business. They certainly won't appreciate remarks like 'We don’t want to do something hostile unless we have to'... and how hostile can you be with 3 million? Deluded rubbish!

I know the next thing will be this guy saying if you dont hand over everything by midnight the deals off,Fisher will be going round all the investors houses collecting their shares:thinking about:Sorry
 

torchomatic

Well-Known Member
I know the next thing will be this guy saying if you dont hand over everything by midnight the deals off,Fisher will be going round all the investors houses collecting their shares:thinking about:Sorry

Joe Elliot will probably be the chauffeur.

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M&B Stand

Well-Known Member
This bloke must have missed something. Last time I checked the rent at the Ricoh was not the issue as we were offered to play there for free minus a few food and drink sales. Ultimately sisu don't want us to be there so that acl fold and they can aquire the Ricoh on the cheap. Us pumping 3 million into playing there isn't going to achieve that for sisu so they will just laugh it off.

Check again. Playing there for free has never been on the table. If only.
'Fees' replaced rent.
 

RoboCCFC90

Well-Known Member
So in affect Martin Kelman is only trying to bring the Club back to the Ricoh Arena, using money from investors and fans?

This tactic is doomed to fail as far as I can see, although it would leave the Club £400,000 cheaper per season based on the last rent deal offered by ACL.

The problem with the idea from Martin Kelman is that once again there is no communication with the Club from what I have seen in the article. There is nothing to suggest that the Club want to go back to the Ricoh under these circumstances and surely Mr Kelman would have consider to ask this before going to all of the trouble trying to arrange publicity, discussions with the Council , ACL, etc.

I do think things could be slightly different had the Club been able to access Matchday revenues but this isn't possible.

Sorry Mr Kelman but I can't see it, especially since you haven't even consulted the Club on the matter.


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RoboCCFC90

Well-Known Member
Give the guy a break. Isn't this what we all want as a first step?

Agreed. However a first step is someone making this offer to the Club and not directly trying to contact ACL.

Ultimately the Club has a say on where we play and not ACL?

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RegTheDonk

Well-Known Member
So in affect Martin Kelman is only trying to bring the Club back to the Ricoh Arena, using money from investors and fans?

This tactic is doomed to fail as far as I can see, although it would leave the Club £400,000 cheaper per season based on the last rent deal offered by ACL.

The problem with the idea from Martin Kelman is that once again there is no communication with the Club from what I have seen in the article. There is nothing to suggest that the Club want to go back to the Ricoh under these circumstances and surely Mr Kelman would have consider to ask this before going to all of the trouble trying to arrange publicity, discussions with the Council , ACL, etc.

I do think things could be slightly different had the Club been able to access Matchday revenues but this isn't possible.

Sorry Mr Kelman but I can't see it, especially since you haven't even consulted the Club on the matter.


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Yes Robbo, I agree with all of that.

I'd question while he claims to be a big fan of the City, which is probably right, he's failed to keep up with the off-field politics. He does not recognise that ACL profiting in any shape or form does not suit SISUs plans. Even if he somehow managed to get £3M to pay the rent for a number of years, it would help keep ACL in business - not what SISU want.
 

shy_tall_knight

Well-Known Member
There is a beneficial financial deal available to SISU already moving back to the Ricoh at either £1.2 m or rent free is better to the club by millions of pounds. The northants move is a gamble operational losses due to the reduced crowds but a strategy to get the Ricoh by distressing ACL or embarrassing the council. SISU have nothing to gain from this deal that they cannot negotiate themselves. Going back would be seen as a climb down.
 

Chipfat

Well-Known Member
I don't really care if this guy is full of shit or into self promotion, he will get news regarding the clubs current current plight. No matter of personal opinion any news is good news for every fan and keeps the situation highlighted. We all want the club back in Coventry and that is the most important thing, so instead of taking the piss or being judge and jury, let him have his minute and see where it takes us, as we surely all want the same..
 

shy_tall_knight

Well-Known Member
Chipfat agree with your point regarding keeping the northants move in the public domain, and I'm not ridiculing the guy but just realistic and pessimistic
 

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