An update from Commercial Manager Daniel Bowerbank as Stanley prepare for their second season in SkyBet League One.
Last season was another successful season. John Coleman's men retained their League One status - a huge feat considering many (outside of Accrington!) tipped them to be relegation favourites.
The Emirates FA Cup was a huge success where the Reds faced Championship Derby County in the Fourth Round, live on TV, to equal the club's best ever FA Cup run. This was after defeating League Two Colchester United, League Two Cheltenham Town and Championship side Ipswich Town.
There were two record breaking attendances at the Wham Stadium, following the construction of the new Eric Whalley Stand sponsored by local business Studio.co.uk, for the Barnsley and Sunderland games.
The work for the new season for the commercial department began as soon as the team celebrate winning their last League One fixture against Plymouth Argyle at the Wham.
There is plenty to do to get ready for the new season in which the club has continued to develop behind the scenes with the new look shop and building work around the ground.
Following the close season, the commercial team have reflected on how we can continue to make improvements for season 2019/20, which will be Stanley's 15th season in the English Football League.
Where to begin!
We have once again committed to working with global brand adidas for the forthcoming season and announced a few months ago that the club will be once again retaining their same home strip from the 2017/18 season and the away strip from 2018/19 will also remain the same for the upcoming season.
Throughout last season we agreed a long-term deal with our current back of shirt sponsors Guide Security which will see the club partner with Guide until the summer of 2021. In addition to the long-term deal it will also see Guide Security maintain and support the club on their security and CCTV commitments throughout the term.
Fagan and Whalley have also recently signed a new two-year agreement with the club and will continue to sponsor the first team until the summer of 2021.
We are due to announce our new training kit sponsors within the next week.
Last season saw the hospitality packages offered at the football club smash through previous records. We anticipate yet another increase on the income and attendees for the new season and would encourage any fans or businesses to contact the commercial team as early as you can.
Our Stanley matchday experiences have received great reviews from both home and away fans throughout the 2018/19 season. We are pleased that it has gained much needed recognition from many clubs across the EFL and we will continue this throughout the 2019/20 season with live music, beer offers and with family fun days.
We will also continue with our superb Funfair and Firework Display in November, with the date to be confirmed and we are pleased to announce we have already secured a main sponsor for this event. HML Recycling will be our principal sponsors for our community event and we would like to thank them for their continued support with the club.
The Reds community shirt giveaway - where we give free shirts to Year 3 primary school children in Hyndburn - has now secured another sponsor with Studio.co.uk committing to supporting this great club initiative. The commitment from local business Wham World, Stanley Trust and Studio.co.uk is superb and each of these businesses will have their logo emblazoned on the shirt giveaway scheduled for September 2019 (dependent on fixtures). There are still two opportunities for businesses to get involved with this superb community event.
Since the launch of the 2019/20 season tickets in March, we are almost at 1,100 and are on track to maintain our 2018/19 season ticket target. To find out more about our season tickets click here.
Are you a fan or local business who would like to book seasonal hospitality here at the Wham? You can find out more information about our package here
We have five remaining pitch side advertising board spaces on the HML Recycling Stand which is non-TV facing at a cost of £600 + vat per board**.
We also have three TV facing boards remaining within the Coppice Terrace and one within the Clayton End at a cost of £1,200 + vat per board**.
Within the Eric Whalley stand sponsored by Studio.co.uk we have five large branding opportunities at the reverse of the stand at a cost of £2,500 + vat per board**.
You can sponsor your favourite player, priced at £180 inclusive of vat for either home or away shirt, or both home and away, for a great price of £299 inclusive of vat. For full package details click here.
The Stanley Big Screen is available for fans and businesses to add messages, pictures, announcements on the screen on a match-day from £25 with business packages and in-match action packages available from £500 + vat for the season. Game by game offers are available.
Our EPPP Level 3 academy are on the lookout for sponsorships for teams, soccer camps, academy player sponsorships and end-of-season awards presentation. If you are interested in supporting the future stars of Accrington Stanley get in touch using the contacts below.
We have some new commercial inventory available for businesses to get involved with the Reds. Our media team are on the lookout for a social media partner and, following a change in EFL rules for cup competitions, we now have the opportunity to sell the left arm sleeve sponsorship for the EFL Trophy, Carabao Cup and Emirates FA Cup. Should you wish to discuss any of these opportunities get in touch using the details on the contacts page.
Fixture launch date is upon us, Thursday 20th June 2019, and we cannot wait to continue planning our matchday experiences within the hospitality suite at the Wham Stadium. We have had quite a large number of enquiries for the high-profile games already for next season which is great for the club. For prices of individual guest packages and full match sponsorship packages for the new season, click here.
Finally, for now, we have announced a pre-season friendly versus Ligue 1 side Olympic Marseille at the Salford Red Devils AJ Bell Stadium on Thursday 11th July 2019, kick off 6pm. Over the next few days we will be releasing hospitality details for this fixture alongside match sponsorships and other ways in which you can sponsor at this fixture. We are hoping to get strong TV coverage.Hospitality is available to book for all Sky Bet League One games and prices are listed on the website under commercial hospitality.
We would like to thank local company Albert Harrisons & Co for their training kit commitment over the last two seasons and look forward to continuing to work with them on alternative projects throughout the season.
Finally, we would like to thank William Dyer Electrical Contractors who are also pursuing alternative sponsorships. We are in negotiations with a couple of local businesses for the Clayton End sponsorship and hopefully we will be able to bring you news as soon as we get some.
We would like to thank you for your continued support!
Daniel
**for the full season plus production and artwork.
Commercial department contact details:
01254 356950 option 2