Pricing and the Albion

[Giraffe]

lack of edible alternatives to pies).

Bring back chips

 

[beardy gull]

A somewhat rare serious post from me, having read the numerous posts complaining about the pricing on match day tickets, programmes and in-Amex catering.

I can understand it - we all like a bargain and don't like paying more for something than we feel we have to, but I think some people are forgetting a few things....

- Tony Bloom has pumped in excess of £120m into the Albion, most notably to build the Amex itself.

- Tony Bloom continues to personally support the club, from the further seats that are in use for the first time tonight, the extra seats still to come and the training facility that we all hope will produce the Albion stars of tomorrow, even some of the exciting players we have all enjoyed over the last year.

- If Tony Bloom's financial support ended with the building of the Amex itself, we would not have a squad to compete in the top half of the Championship today.

- Ultimately, however, the Albion needs to be self-sustaining. We don't want to be "the next Pompey" in a few years time - looking back regrettably at gross financial mismanagement of the Albion that could threaten the very existence of the club itself.

- In short, things need to be paid for somehow.

What this doesn't mean though, is that we should accept a poor quality product or service. Gripes on that level are always valid and I'm sure the club will always be receptive as to how things can be improved. But people need to understand that "improved" does not always mean "made cheaper".

(Oh, and do yourself a favour and always use your smartcard when you purchase something, so you can take an immediate 10% off the published price)

True dat

 

[pal4life]

Although I agree with most of what our leader says if petrol went up by 15.4% I think we as a nation would be going mental!

 

[LamieRobertson]

If the program maintains its current good standard then i have no qualms in paying the increase

 

[Magic Sponge]

A somewhat rare serious post from me, having read the numerous posts complaining about the pricing on match day tickets, programmes and in-Amex catering.

I can understand it - we all like a bargain and don't like paying more for something than we feel we have to, but I think some people are forgetting a few things....

- Tony Bloom has pumped in excess of £120m into the Albion, most notably to build the Amex itself.

- Tony Bloom continues to personally support the club, from the further seats that are in use for the first time tonight, the extra seats still to come and the training facility that we all hope will produce the Albion stars of tomorrow, even some of the exciting players we have all enjoyed over the last year.

- If Tony Bloom's financial support ended with the building of the Amex itself, we would not have a squad to compete in the top half of the Championship today.

- Ultimately, however, the Albion needs to be self-sustaining. We don't want to be "the next Pompey" in a few years time - looking back regrettably at gross financial mismanagement of the Albion that could threaten the very existence of the club itself.

- In short, things need to be paid for somehow.

What this doesn't mean though, is that we should accept a poor quality product or service. Gripes on that level are always valid and I'm sure the club will always be receptive as to how things can be improved. But people need to understand that "improved" does not always mean "made cheaper".

(Oh, and do yourself a favour and always use your smartcard when you purchase something, so you can take an immediate 10% off the published price)

Couldn't agree more, exactly what I've been trying to explain to a few fellow supporters over recent weeks.

 

[Badger]

Which is what I shall be doing. Prices last season were SPOT ON. £5 for a pie and soft drink before the game, £3.80 for a good quality pint in a glass after the game.

A 10% increase in prices will see me eating at home before the game (which I used to do at Withdean, and will happily do this season), and may pick up a few beers from the Supermarket after the game.

For a club that is trying to promote supporters to arrive early and leave later, they aren't doing a great job at convincing me to do so.

Really? Really?! Because of a 30p increase you're going to buy beers from a supermarket instead of stay after the game and have a few beers and a chat.

EDIT: I assume you are aware of how much a pint costs in an average pub these days?

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

No one likes price rises, always reasons behind it though - although some increases are a bit steep.

Every commercial organisation, from the trains, to the energy companies, to the Albion, pitches its price rises like the outside world doesn't exist. They all want their cut of your money and they all have their reasons that seem entirely fair to them. Looked at in isolation, each may have a case. But in the end, its the luxuries such as leisure activities e.g. football that will have to give first.

 

[theonesmith]

Profit? The club is being support by Tony Bloom's pocket.

Do you know how big the gap is between 'now' (being supported) and the 'future' (being self-sustained)? How much more money does the club have to raise on a regular basis?

What irritates me is that there are revenue streams that are not being exploited, for whatever reason. I'm sure Barber will open these up over the next year or so though..

 

[KJP]

I don't mind paying more as long as its good quality, at the Chelsea game I bough a burger and it was about. 3 mm thick and was like charcoal

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

Agreed , we don't want to end up like Palace and Pompey.

 

[MattBackHome]

...even some of the exciting players we have all enjoyed over the last year...

bloom out

 

[Djmiles]

Really? Really?! Because of a 30p increase you're going to buy beers from a supermarket instead of stay after the game and have a few beers and a chat.

EDIT: I assume you are aware of how much a pint costs in an average pub these days?

No not JUST because of that. Why would I want to pay £4 a pint and have to wait 20 minutes to get served when I can be on the train by then? Like I said, the club aren't convincing me to stay on after the game and increasing prices won't help.

 

[Razi]

I'd love to have an opinion on the price of food and beverages - but my #1 complaint from last season, and seemingly still at the Chelsea game - was the speed of service. It is next to impossible to enjoy a drink and not miss a single minute of football, it's a trade-off from queuing up before half-time, or missing the start of the second half. And woe betide the person who ALSO needs to use a toilet. Shouldn't be like that.

 

[pork pie]

Attendances & matchday income have been far higher than projected - this season we will be making even more profit than last season with more people attending games - so why is everything increasing in price despite this? It's not as if we have an overly impressive playing budget.

I think the issue should be "is the price reasonable under the circumstances?". If it is, what have overall revenues got to do with anything. We need as much as we can get, to pay off loans, and improve the squad.

I would be a little pissed-off if we were having to pay more to the catering company so they can get their act together, rather than the money going to the Club. I think the Club must be missing out on millions as a result of the caterers not being able to keep up with demand.

 

[banjo]

Buy more of these =

 

[Waynflete]

A somewhat rare serious post from me, having read the numerous posts complaining about the pricing on match day tickets, programmes and in-Amex catering.

I can understand it - we all like a bargain and don't like paying more for something than we feel we have to, but I think some people are forgetting a few things....

- Tony Bloom has pumped in excess of £120m into the Albion, most notably to build the Amex itself.

- Tony Bloom continues to personally support the club, from the further seats that are in use for the first time tonight, the extra seats still to come and the training facility that we all hope will produce the Albion stars of tomorrow, even some of the exciting players we have all enjoyed over the last year.

- If Tony Bloom's financial support ended with the building of the Amex itself, we would not have a squad to compete in the top half of the Championship today.

- Ultimately, however, the Albion needs to be self-sustaining. We don't want to be "the next Pompey" in a few years time - looking back regrettably at gross financial mismanagement of the Albion that could threaten the very existence of the club itself.

- In short, things need to be paid for somehow.

What this doesn't mean though, is that we should accept a poor quality product or service. Gripes on that level are always valid and I'm sure the club will always be receptive as to how things can be improved. But people need to understand that "improved" does not always mean "made cheaper".

(Oh, and do yourself a favour and always use your smartcard when you purchase something, so you can take an immediate 10% off the published price)

We're of course extremely lucky to have Bloom supporting our club, and should be very grateful to him. However, it's not reasonable to compare his support with that of ordinary fans.

Bloom is a multi millionaire who has chosen to invest/spend his money in this way. Fans are not millionaires. Many fans are not at all well off, so incremental price rises may well push away traditional working class fans.

If you took a purely business oriented approach maybe that wouldn't matter, but a football club should be more than just another business.

Keeping prices down might make it less likely that we're successful on the pitch, but might retain fans from poorer backgrounds. Getting that balance right is something the club should take very seriously, and I think that is the basis for some of the complaints.

 

[Beach Hut]

We're of course extremely lucky to have Bloom supporting our club, and should be very grateful to him. However, it's not reasonable to compare his support with that of ordinary fans.

Bloom is a multi millionaire who has chosen to invest/spend his money in this way. Fans are not millionaires. Many fans are not at all well off, so incremental price rises may well push away traditional working class fans.

If you took a purely business oriented approach maybe that wouldn't matter, but a football club should be more than just another business.

Keeping prices down might make it less likely that we're successful on the pitch, but might retain fans from poorer backgrounds. Getting that balance right is something the club should take very seriously, and I think that is the basis for some of the complaints.

Very concisely written and it is very clear from comments some fans are already being priced out in only the 2nd season at the Amex

 

[trueblue]

Spot on Bozza. I don't have any complaints about the pricing of anything outside of the 1901 club at the moment at our state of the art ground. It's a great place to be and, I'd anything, I felt prices last season were surprisingly low compared to other places with a captive market. My only moan is with the ineptitude of the catering operation and the fact that we now seem to be paying for that with a lack of choice that supposedly helps them disguise their shortcomings. Fine. I'll just go back to how I used to watch football and spend nothing at the ground but it's a shame because, with my partner, we were quite happily sticking an extra 20 quid a game in the club's coffers last season on food and drink.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

I'd love to have an opinion on the price of food and beverages - but my #1 complaint from last season, and seemingly still at the Chelsea game - was the speed of service. It is next to impossible to enjoy a drink and not miss a single minute of football, it's a trade-off from queuing up before half-time, or missing the start of the second half. And woe betide the person who ALSO needs to use a toilet. Shouldn't be like that.

46% of fans use the concourses at football grounds at half time according to the research done, but at the Amex, it was 70%. That's why the staffing was too low to start with. I think that after 12 months Azure has now had time to sort that problem.

 

[supaseagull]

Exactly what I would have wrote if I could have been arsed!