Dee

Hi both, not received any email from you. If you want to re-send or drop me a DM on here I'll aim to get you guys sorted.

Total sales sitting above 6k as of this morning. Interestingly, data shows that the vast majority of our fans purchase within 48 hours of the match, no doubt payday will be a factor like you said. Here's hoping we can add a good few more on to that total before kick-off on Friday. A huge thank you to every member of the Society who has volunteered to get the word out there and raise the profile of the match and the Society. Initiatives like such take time to build and growth doesn't always come overnight but developing connections in our community and regularly having a visible presence in the town and surrounding areas is key to getting results off the park.

Hi Anja and Chris. If you can contact me on derek.watson@thewellsociety.uk, I'll aim to get that sorted for you ASAP. Looking forward to seeing you both at Fir Park in December.

Without divulging too much before we are further down the line, I think this is a really important post that touches on where the Society is at for now. Members that attended the AGM or attended any recent sessions will be aware that we have recently implemented a new CRM system and a lot of the work carried out recently has been to find out more about our members; most importantly how many active members we actually have, why some may have lapsed, where opportunity lies, etc. @dennyc is absolutely spot on, quoting 3 or 4k membership is good PR when building up the Society but comes back to bite us when it comes to voting turnout. Some of the immediate work the new board will be getting stuck into is finding out how many active members we have, how we can get those who are in a position to do so to increase their subscription, how can we improve communications, etc. etc. It's been touched on before but there is many reasons for that; junior members who lapsed and didn't continue as adults, members who paid up at the start and haven't contributed since, members who have passed away and the Society was never notified etc. It might sound silly but I actually think there's members out there who don't realise they are still a member because they've not contributed for a sustained period of time. It's arguably a historical failing of the Society that we're not totally on top of this, no hiding from that, but since the new board was elected back in October significant strides have been taken to improve this and we're getting there. There were 1,531 votes were cast in the investment proposal by Tuesday 16 July at 10am. 56% of eligible members. I get there was still a week to go but I think this percentage will actually be a lot higher than 56% if we were only counting active members. It should also be noted that around double voted in the elections than voted in favour or Erik's deal. I actually fully agree with those here who have raised concerns, regardless of the reasoning we need to have a lot more people engaging in the democratic process. Whilst this might be far from ideal, I actually think it presents a huge opportunity for income growth and a great opportunity to re-engage members and bring them on our journey. I keep banging this drum but I'm really confident about where we are at the moment and where we can go in the not too distant future.

Well aye, that’s also a point. An Instagram story of a Bobby Sands mural followed by one of King Billy doesn’t suggest any political leanings but that doesn’t suit the narrative. If you wanted to dig up political posts from today, they could have highlighted when I was critical of the Scottish Government on rail fares but again, maybe that doesn’t suit the narrative. If we’re going to talk about club representatives being political; Jim McMahon appeared on BBC Question Time (or maybe it was Debate Night) whilst he was in the role. He was also pictured campaigning for Scottish Labour whilst Chairman. I should add that I’ve absolutely no issue with that whatsoever, but it’s worth highlighting. Is it that we don’t want people associated with the club posting about politics or we don’t want them posting about politics that you don’t agree with?

Interesting responses here. I probably shouldn’t need to reply, but whilst on a trip to Belfast where I’ve visited both sides of the community and shared photos of both on my personal Instagram, it’s quite telling that the poster above has only lifted one’s from one side. To suggest that either offers political opinion is simply note true.

It was a great set up for the opening home game. The live music was very good. Certainly helped that the weather was kind.

Just to echo others on here, I’m really impressed with the level of experience in the candidates on the list, it’s a difficult task to narrow it down to 4. It’s my time to seek re-election so I’ve popped a wee thread on Twitter to detail some of the work I’ve carried out and the reasons why I’m standing again, but ultimately I need to fulfil my commitment to delivering the vision set out in our plan. https://x.com/derekwatson89/status/1820199100123611382?s=46&t=fyBP-j4_gznJVEo6hqYM1g Alongside Jay, Phil, Sean, Amber and Markus I’ve spent a lot of time and effort trying to get us to a better position. I feel we’re very much on the right track but I want to see that work through to completion. With the right people in place on the Society board and on the Exec board I’m confident we can deliver positive outcomes at Fir Park. As always, DM’s are open if anyone has any questions at all. Happy to answer. Regardless of the outcome I believe we’ll be in safe hands going forward. That said, I believe that some continuity would be beneficial and I feel that I’ve got unfinished business in regards to our strategy delivery and on some of the other initiatives that we’ve started moving with Brian Caldwell and Dawn at MFC Trust. If re-elected, I will continue to make progress on delivering on our strategy and I will ensure that supporters are at the forefront of decision making.

Yes, the event was filmed. I believe it will be edited into more of a highlights package or shorter version of the evening rather than the raw footage. That should be online shortly. I'll be sure to share the link when it goes live.

Thanks for sharing @wellfan I should add that this is very much a work in progress hence there's been no official "launch", that will come soon! Special thanks must got to Amy and the excellent folks in the Communications workstream for pulling it all together. Feedback is welcome as always. Would be great to hear what members like, what we may be missing, anything else that you think should be on there, etc.

@Mintymac, absolutely spot on. Any membership organisation is only as strong as it's members to an extent and it's more than important than ever that we all push forward collectively to grow fan-ownership and the football club. What I've been really impressed with in recent weeks and months is how many people have came forward to offer their skills, expertise and time. It's really important that we utilise our membership. We've got over 4,000 members and we need to find out what people can bring to the table. That doesn't necessarily mean sitting on a board or attending meetings every week, but it could be lending your skills to a project, giving pointers or opening doors etc. As a Society Board member (for now 😊), I'd like to thank all members of The Well Society who engaged in the process regardless of opinion. It’s been a costly, time-consuming and emotionally draining exercise, but this has been fan-ownership in action It’s energised members, improved communication and boosted numbers. In my opinion, it’s a really positive time to be a Well fan and I hope everyone can start pulling in the same direction. Attention now immediately turns to delivering, alongside the Chief Executive and a new club board, on the strategy set out in our plan. We've also got the opportunity for members to join the board with elections in the coming weeks. If anyone is considering standing and would like to discuss what that may entail if you are successful, feel free to reach out. Another reminder that our Annual General Meeting will take place on Monday 12 August 2024. I'd really encourage all members who can attend to sign up and come along. If you’ve not already, please consider joining The Well Society, or if you are already a member please consider upping your subscription. Happy to answer any questions.

No problem at all. We do. Our plan has always been to present these plans in detail before the ballot to provide members with a clear understanding of our vision and strategies. The ballot opens on 1st July so it will be very soon. As referenced in that interview with Ben Banks, the aim is also to have surgeries with members before that date - next week most likely - and info on that should be with you in the next few days.

Hi folks, Apologies for the delay in response, it's a busy period at the moment as I'm sure you'd all expect, and this is the first time I've had the chance to log back into this forum. Thanks for your patience. As you'll be aware following the club statement on Thursday, there should be further communication coming from the Executive Board very soon. On your specific valuation point, though we don't have the snappy, definitive answer you might be looking for, I hope this response details the thinking of the Society Board and shows why this deal is not in the best interests of the fans or the club. We don't think it is wise to state our valuation of the club for two reasons. Firstly, given that we remain open to investment, should it be beneficial to the long-term security of the club, 'naming our price' could potentially limit other offers should Well Society members reject this proposal, as we recommend they do. Secondly, the club is not for sale. We can say as the elected representatives of the many Motherwell fans who own their club, that we do not want to sell it. That echoes the words of the Chairman at the latest AGM who stressed that the club is not for sale; that's not just the opinion of the Society Board. Putting a price on something you don't want to sell would send the wrong signal. That said, that does not mean we cannot disagree with the club's valuation. Looking at the Chairman's rationale on the club website, we see a host of problems. The outgoing chairman's rationale states a £3.7m debt was taken into account in the valuation. The nature of the debt does not appear to have been taken into account. Half of the Well Society loan (£434k) would be written off under the deal. It is questionable whether the other £434k would ever be returned if this deal went through. The Scottish Government loan is an interest-free loan repayable over 20 years which has been used to fund long-term infrastructure projects that will save the club significant maintenance costs over the term of the loan. The outgoing chairman states that "net assets is only a valid basis to look at the deal if the assets can be sold. Ours can’t be." The club has assets in the playing squad who could potentially be valued at more than the executive board's valuation of the club. We are unclear why the outgoing chairman makes the following assertion. "We have operated at around breakeven over the period since we moved into fan ownership." The club has recorded a combined profit of about £2.5million since we moved into fan ownership. Recent losses have come after major one-off spending on facilities, eg a £1.2million pitch plus building work in the East (John Hunter), a new PA system and much improved CCTV systems. The Hibs comparison, which we referenced in the initial Society statement, is a highly relevant, very recent and illustrative example that highlights why we believe the executive board is under-selling the club. Last week Hibs reported a further sale of shares from existing shareholders which followed on from the Black Knights investment. This values the club at £26m. See a report in the Edinburgh Evening News from last week. https://www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/sport/football/hibs/hibs-investment-figure-revealed-as-shareholders-pump-in-extra-cash-4663394 Over the past decade, Motherwell have received greater SPFL prize money than Hibs and our transfer income compares well with Hibs. Hibs have made a combined £3.7m loss over the five most recent recorded seasons. Motherwell have made a combined profit of more than £2.5m under fan ownership. Hibernian's outstanding loans stood at £4.9million in their most recent accounts, greater than Motherwell's. Hibs turnover on average over the past six years is about double that of Motherwell's. Yet the valuation of the respective boards is 6.5 times greater/lesser. I'm aware that this is a pretty lengthy response but I hope that it answers some of what you were looking for. We'll be in a position to give you a lot more fairly soon and I'm confident that 'Well fans will see the potential in those proposals. Finally, not quite a Steelboy question, but a few people have asked if it's a case of A or B, so just to clarify that point. If the vote is no, the Society will continue to seek to put into practice its own plans for the future and continue to seek alternative investment opportunities that align with our values and long-term. I know I keep banging on about it being a busy time, but I've been really enthused and inspired by the work the refreshed board have been doing since the turn of the year (this would have been happening regardless of any other proposals), in terms of developing plans for the future of the Society and the club. We have consulted with a range of experts and we will look to share more information on this in our forthcoming communication to members. If this proposal is rejected, simply put - the Society will work closely with the Chief Executive, refreshed Executive Board, and new Chairman on our shared vision for the club.

Myself and Phil Speedie had a chat with Ben Banks about Erik's proposal. https://www.glasgowworld.com/sport/well-society-opposition-to-motherwell-investment-proposals-explained-4666102 More than happy to answer any questions here should any members want clarity or a bit more info into our reasonings and the next steps.

There's quite a lot to unpack there, some which I agree with and some which I don't. Let's start with where I do agree - in an ideal world it would be excellent to have our own training facility and the stadium needs modernised to an extent to make corporate days and hospitality more appealing. Both fair comments. Where I believe your argument falls down is the Dundee United comparison. Firstly, Dundee United are a much bigger club than Motherwell. Their average match-day attendance is almost double ours and their wage bill sits at £6.9million - significantly higher than ours. On top of that their recent annual accounts reported a £5m loss - up from £1.9m the year before - before player sales were taken into account. This all going on whilst under American ownership. In the 5 years under American ownership, United have experienced, as you rightly point out, relegation, they've had 6 different managers, protesting fans and have spent upwards of £10 million. Said American owner has continued spending and most worryingly has done this with an interest free loan against the club. I couldn't tell you the current total but a couple of years ago their accounts listed that the club owe said investor over £9m. How will they ever pay this back? Certainly a worrying situation. To quote a 'Well fan journo who penned this in a previous Herald article about United; "Wealthy benefactor? Check. Money being ploughed in? Check. Wages wildly exceeding turnover? Check. Careening through managers? Check. Success? That cheque is still in the post." Now I know this thread is very much about Motherwell with the figures of our deal and details of the investors still to be presented to the wider fanbase, but it's certainly worth noting that not one American investor has brought notable success since they put their money into a Scottish football club. That success may come, but it's not guaranteed. And I'm not here to convince anyone that we shouldn't be entertaining any external investment, far from it. I think it's important we listen to all credible offers that come our way. I'm also not comparing the deal on the table at Fir Park to that at Dundee United, I'll wait until we all know the full facts. But I think it's hugely important to have a serious think about what our red lines are. What do we value the football club at? What percentage of control would we be willing to relinquish and for what cost? What does any investor want to gain from putting their money into Motherwell FC?

993* Well Society members (a 36% turnout) responded to the poll: 351 votes were cast for the option: I would not consider voting in support of any proposal which would see the Well Society losing its majority shareholding. 642 votes were cast for the option: I would consider voting in support of any investment proposal which would see the Well Society losing its majority shareholding. Interesting results, in all honesty I was expecting a lot more to be in favour of the "I would" option. 36% of the membership that voted saying No before they have sight of the options on the table is very telling. For me the most disappointing aspect is the extremely low turnout on what I'd stress is an important issue.

An excellent summary of last night's AGM @StAndrew7, thanks for pulling that together. I just wanted to pick up on the point made about The Society having the opportunity to present it's own plan. Firstly, as some have pointed out, I think from it's inception the Society has been hugely successful but in my opinion one of our real failings has been to effectively communicate our success. I noticed a very good summary from @capt_oatson Pie & Bovril that detailed since 16/17 the fan-ownership model has been profitable; Net - £2,415,205. Our loans to the club (around 900k) have been invaluable and who knows where we'd be without that input. It's important to note that there's room for significant improvement from the Society and if we want to move forward and succeed we must acknowledge our shortcomings. On that note, I'd argue that we've simply not been good enough at is converting those members who are not paying a monthly subscription to actually stump up (if they are in a position to do so) and we've not inspired those who are currently paying to up their contributions. There's many reasons why people might not be paying a monthly subscription but the change from the original model to the current one example; some have paid their initial fee before it was move to monthly DD's and haven't paid much since. This should be an easy fix, and as @Jay has highlighted, I feel with the current re-vamped board in place we are in a much better position to do this sort of thing. On said plan, I've been really impressed and inspired by the additions to The Well Society board at the end of last year. The contributions from Amber, Sean and Phil have been excellent and I believe we're moving forward at pace. From our discussions, and I hope that other members of the Society board who contributed to this don't mind me sharing their vision, it has became clear we must explore in detail the potential of both the 'Well Society and the operations of the club to maximise revenue and to grow. Some suggestions put forward from Board members include; - Extensive market research of our fan base, cross referencing habits around tickets sales with our membership to identify potential membership growth. In turn allowing the board to develop a strategy for increasing the revenue of TWS, forecasting financial targets therefore dictating our organising strategy for future years. - Commission a study of the operational structure of the club similar to what other Scottish Clubs are doing. This will help us identify what additional roles and infrastructure are required and what financial investment would be secured for them over a set time period. A fundraising strategy can then be developed as part of a comprehensive operational strategy that ensures cohesion and shared vision throughout the club that can be collectively evaluated regularly. - Host a fact finding conference at Fir Park bringing together fan owned clubs across Europe to explore best practice, develop relationships and commercial opportunities. This alongside the ongoing work and sessions hosted by Phil Speedie should ensure a closer relationship between the Majority Shareholder and the operations of the club and I would hope that it would empower members to be more involved and bring them closer to the club and the vehicle which they are funding. By compiling the results from the above projects we can present a fully comprehensive 5-10 year strategy that will sustainably grow the revenue of the club, reduce potential financial risks and ideally ensure remain competitive on the park. The strategy should lay out the require project specific investment and infrastructure requirements and lay out a roadmap to achieve each. In my personal opinion, I believe that this work can and should be done whilst continuing to keep our options open to potential investors, providing they are credible and fit with our values. We've no doubt got a wealth of talent in our ranks that is going untapped. We've got 3,800 not only from Lanarkshire but across the Globe and we simply don't know enough about them and we don't know what each individual can bring to the table. That needs to change, and it needs to change fast, regardless of external investment or not. I've been really heartened by progress and I'd like to thank all those that have been involved it in, but there's a long way to go and I'd like as many 'Well fans to be part of that journey as possible. Regardless what the future brings, I think discussions like this are so important in highlighting how much the Club means to so many people.

Might be of interest to some.

Just a quick update to respond to the above posts. The display was planned before the Phil announcement and it will not be linked. A massive thanks to everyone who has donated. As I type this we currently have a total of £5,645 which is still rising. We will donate the final total to the Society which will be doubled by Les then the £4,500 for display prep and costs will be returned. By my poor maths this means the Society is set to gain at least £6,790!

It cost a bit more than that but not a significant amount more. To give a bit of background to the 2011 display. It was heavily subsidised by the printing company (I believe they actually took quite a hit on it) as the owner was a relation of a Motherwell legend. This company has since went out of business. The display we had against Pano cost more than the 2011 one and we only filled the east stand. One of the main issues we have with materials is that it's extremely difficult to get claret & Amber off the shelf from most retailers. We then have to get our Pantone colours printed. We're aiming high fundraising wise this time & will see how we get on!

Back in another final so we're hoping to have another impressive fan display. I know many on here were very generous back in 2011 so I thought I'd post here again. It's a high target but with various fundraising efforts we will hopefully get there and raise some dosh for the Society also. Post below: Since our inception our aim has always been to bring colour and atmosphere to Motherwell games, both home and away. Over the years we believe our contribution, both vocally and visually, has had a positive impact on improving the atmosphere at Fir Park however we understand this would not be possible without the backing and support we have received from the wider fan base . For this we are forever grateful. On many occasions we have organised choreographed fan displays. These displays are often costly and are more often than not paid for out of our own pockets or through donations, again from generous Well fans who share our vision and support what we are doing. As the Betfred Cup Final fast approaches we would like to ask our fellow Motherwell fans to dig deep once again and donate towards another display. On Sunday 26th November we want to want the players to emerge from the tunnel to a sea of Claret & Amber. This is only possible with your help! We have an initial target of £4,500 which should pay for all material costs, postage and delivery. Once this target is achieved we will then donate any additional funds raised to The Well Society which will be doubled by Les Hutchison. Thanks for your continued support. SIWY! https://www.gofundme.com/motherwell-fans-cup-final-display

Congratulations Jay, well deserved! As for that Loving Cup presentation at Ibrox, it's nothing short of a disgrace that our club took part in this. "Many years have past since then and so it is, to this day, in the Blue Room in Ibrox, before the first home game of each New Year, the Toast to the health of the reigning Monarch is celebrated by the Rangers board members and the board members of the visiting team of the day." Considering we are now a fan owned club we should be ensuring that we represent the views of our paying members. To be toasting the reigning Monarch is absolute cavemen stuff and something we could have politely declined. Jay, I wish you all the best in your new position. Please make it a priority to have a word and clarify we don't need to bend over to please other clubs, especially the Old Firm, at every opportunity.

Motherwell fans, or any football fan in general, proclaiming that they are "glad" that an eighteen year old boy with no previous convictions has been banged up in our overcrowding prisons is extremely worrying and quite frankly ridiculous. Was his actions irresponsible - yes, was it against the law - yes, but does the punishment fit the crime - not in a million years. Pyrotechnics are banned in the UK at present and probably always will be due to the hysteria from both the media and the governing bodies of our game. Whilst these rules are in place the actions of those involved in setting off such devices are indefensible. What should be highlighted though is there is MASSIVE differences between a smoke bomb and a flare and there is a massive overreaction in terms of health risks around the use of smoke bombs. I know I am most likely n the minority here but I think clubs should be doing more to accommodate young supporters needs and wants. In recent years there has been a rise in the use of pyrotechnics across the UK and it has been ridiculed by governing bodies, police forces and clubs alike. Kids are getting arrested, charged and their futures being tarnished. Take a look at Norway for example, they have tackled this issue by discussing with supporters the dangers and implications of these devices but also found out the reason for people wanting to bring these devices to matches. The result - pyrotechnics are now legal in Norway in specific areas of the ground, away from those that are at risk but they must be approved by fire departments and clubs ahead of the match. Progressive or common sense? As for the Well Bois "going to war" with the police and stewards. What a lot of nonsense. The Well Bois would much prefer it if the police were as far out of sight as possible. Should the Well Bois take more responsibility in self-policing? Arguably yes. That said, there is a great deal of self policing that goes on week in week out. When you have a supporters group of that age range and dynamic there is always going to be 1 or 2 people who attach themselves and like to push the boundaries and occasion it may reflect back on the group as a whole. This "group" has been around for the best part of 10 years and are not all "wee needs", as Onthefringes mentioned there is a lot of young & old professionals involved who only want to bring colour and noise back to football. What again is not justified is people in that group getting dawn raided at 6am, losing wages, their jobs, their livelihoods for singing a song at the football or for "allegedly" behaving in an aggressive or threatening manner when at a match. What a lot of people on this forum don't see is what goes on away from the football stadium. The court cases, the waste of public resources and public spending that goes in to quite simply intimidating and antagonising predominately young boys who only want to vocally and visually back their team. The numbers in that End Section of the East Stand are slowly dropping and its because young lads are getting dragged through the legal system, only to be spat out at the other end, more often than not with a not guilty verdict after suffering months of trauma and worry.

Aberdeen supporters displayed a Heavy Hands Empty Stands banner at the weekend. 'Well fans not allowed drum or flags in to Pittodrie and home fans not allowed megaphone.

The legislation wasn't brought in to stop us from banging a drum, you are spot on there. It was rushed through parliament following the "Shame Game" when Lennon and McCoist were head to head on the touchline to try and look like the Scottish Gov were actively tackling sectarianism. The reality is the lack of thought behind the bill has resulting in the legislation being so vague that you can be criminalised for almost anything at all as long as someone finds it "offensive". It's clear not everyone will agree and thats the joys of democracy but as a "group" we would most likely side with fans of all clubs; Rangers, Celtic, Accies, Airdrie etc. if it meant highlighting the draconian measures that a certain demographic of society have to face when travelling to watch their team. It's not always going to be popular and it may result in some being disappointed with our actions. That's not easy for us, we want our fans on side but it's an issue we are determined to bring to light. Was it the correct way to go about it? Debatable. What I can say though is when there was the silent protest at Fir Park a few weeks ago the main stream media completely ignored it. Saturday's incident has been covered by The Evening Times, The Herald and STV. It might not make any jot of a difference to those currently reviewing the act but it has certainly got people talking about it again.