In reporting the operating surplus, the Club confirmed it had also reduced its debt by in excess of $1.5 million, to $1.97 million. Richmond has now reduced its debt by more than $2.5 million over the past two years.
The Club’s net asset position also improved from $16.05 million to $19.07 million.
Some of the key highlights, which have contributed to strong revenue and profit growth, include the following:
• Record membership revenue of $5.305m representing 53,072 members.
• Record sponsorship income of $3.452m.
• Significant improvement in the Club’s operations at the Wantirna Club.
• Secured pledges of $6 million through the Fighting Tiger Fund.
Richmond president Gary March said the result was very pleasing, but stressed that a lot of hard work was still ahead of the Club.
“We have recorded a significant surplus, which has been built on the wonderful support of our loyal members and supporters, our business partners, along with a committed board and administration,” March said.
“We knew it would require a united effort to build the foundations for success, and never more evident has that been, than in the past two years. I particularly thank those, who provided such outstanding support to the Fighting Tiger Fund.
“While we will reflect on a very positive 12 months, nobody is under any illusion that there is still much more to do. We still have debt to clear and we need to continue to build this club’s financial resources, so we can support our football requirements into the future. I can assure you that we will be relentless in the pursuit of this goal.”
March said he was most pleased that, over the past two years, the Club had generated positive financial results, while at the same time meeting the immediate requirements of the football department and administration.
“Our football department is better resourced than it has ever been. Our players will shortly have a state-of-the art Punt Road Oval on which to train, which compliments the ME Bank Centre, new cutting-edge equipment and technology has been purchased, we have enhanced coaching and recruiting structures, and we will stand alone in the VFL competition from 2014.”
“We have achieved all this while significantly reducing our debt and generating a net surplus. The challenge in front of us, is to continue to deliver these results in an incredibly competitive environment, and that will require plenty of hard work.”
