Sportsmarketing. ie have uncovered the reasons of WEXFORD CREAMERY’S decision to pull out of sponsoring the county’s GAA teams after 18 years. It was prompted by several reasons, but, as you guessed it, money was one of them.
Milk production manager with the company, (which employs 100 people in Wexford town), John O’Connor said the business had a great relationship with the GAA since it began sponsoring the teams in 1991, but implied that the cost of sponsoring the team had drifted above the budget allocated from St. Ivel dairy company headquarters in Britain. It is thought that more than one key sponsor has already weighed in with a big sponsorship offer for the county teams. This comes as welcome news considering there are also concerns that other financial backers may withdraw their funding at a time when the GAA board’s debt for 2008 is at €250,000, on top of a €108,000 loss the previous year.
Mr. O’Connor, a St. Martin’s man, said Wexford GAA have always sought sponsorship.
“If they get a substantially better offer, it’s not for us to stand in the way.”
He said Wexford Creamery has completed a three-year term of sponsorship, before adding that Wexford Creamery is a very solid business which is this year celebrating 50 years in business in the county.
“The sponsorship very much impinged on a lot of people, our hundreds and hundreds of farm producers in Wexford and South Wicklow included. They bring their raw material here and those products are distributed to the South East market, while our cheese is now sold across the country and the continent.”
He said the sponsorship was ‘a very good fit’ for Wexford Creamery.
“From a business point of view what better way to market ourselves than with the GAA.”
When asked about whether the decision to discontinue sponsorship was down to a decision made in the UK in terms of cost projection, Mr. O’Connor said: “Understandably with all businesses you have a cost base, but the promotion and sales and marketing end of it is a very different budget, so businesses, by their nature, will always try to keep to that budget.”
He said Wexford Creamery thoroughly enjoyed being involved with the GAA, whom it sponsored to the tune of €80,000 per year, adding that the arrangement with Wexford GAA as to how the money was spent was ‘reasonably loose’. He stressed that there was always a quid-pro-quo, agreeable attitude between the GAA and Wexford Creamery He wished the football team all the best in the coming year and said the hurling team is not as far away from the big cats of Kilkenny and the Tipperary team as they think.
