Robo

Sorry, but for me, this does not even come close to passing the smell test. Found guilty or not, this is absolutely honking of trouble.

Joined this afternoon. Hoping that SMISA will be the vehicle for fan ownership.

I don't blame them either, if they are just looking to get back the money they've put in over the years. I've no idea if that's the case or not. Would be disappointed if they were trying to make a profit out of the club.

How?

Given the name of our club, might be tricky to keep 'religious vibes' from the forum.

Clearly not on this forum ;-)

Great post.

The only information that can be gleaned from their nationality is that they are unlikely to be St Mirren fans. And that makes me nervous.

IMO, one of two things needs to happen. Either SMISA organise a bid, or an new group of fans organises a bid. There doesn't seem to be anyone willing to help with the latter, so the former looks like the least unlikely option.

Sounds like new money will have to be invested, and if they're not English St Mirren fans, then you can guarantee they'll be looking for that money back again, and more on top. Will reserve judgement for now until more details become available...

"...already lined up several players...one-time Barclays Premier League star with Champions League pedigree...director of football with more than 30 years of experience...Gareth Bale, Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain...proposed assistant manager and backroom members are also said to have worked at some of the biggest clubs in the world...qualifying for European football in the next couple of years." All sounds fantastic! But the questions remain, how much will all this cost? who is going to pay for it? is it sustainable? and what's in it for them?

If it fails, we, the fans, better be ready to step in.

The more I read about the Hibs offer the less it sounds like a good deal for their fans. Think they need to agree that all share purchases go through a supporters trust rather than individuals buying up shares. At least we are in the position of knowing that whoever buys the shares on offer will be the largest shareholder and will be in control of the club.

I was going to raise a similar point. I'm torn on the issue, as I totally understand the desire to raise money and put it into the club, as we all want to see the club being as successful as possible. But also, at this time when the consortium are trying to sell, and they have already rejected a fan takeover, it seems wrong that fans should continue to donate money (and it's not investment unless you get an interest or shareholding back in return) which will serve to increase the value of the shares they are trying to sell. However, I don't think it'll be a dealbreaker for me, as I think SMISA may be the only group capable or willing to put together any new bid.

Definitely think that, in an ideal world, SMISA is the vehicle that a proposed fan takeover should be taken forward, but the impression I got was that this was not something SMISA wanted in principle (as opposed to just not having the numbers/time/expertise). If you could allay my fears then I'd definitely sign up.

Agree 100% Poz. Would join SMISA if they put forward such a scheme. At the moment it seems a bit wishy-washy... something that could be discussed if there were enough members. Think we need to make something happen. It's no good, IMO, hoping that SMISA will come up with something (though if they did I would get behind it). Yes, 10000 Hours didn't work, but that doesn't have to mean that the chance for fan ownership has gone. That is only the case if everyone believes it to be so. As a fanbase I'm positive we can come up with a new proposal. It might work, it might not. But what have we to lose. Sorry if I'm boring everyone to tears, but if anyone fancies discussing it PM me.

But SMISA don't want to own St Mirren, more's the pity.Would like to help organise something like this with other fans, rather than businesses, so that it would be genuine fan ownership without vested interests, real or perceived.

OK, I'll put you down as a 'maybe' then.

Indeed - that you volunteering Drew? ;-)

Yep, wouldn't be surprised if the Argentine bid falls through, but think we need to mobilise the fan base either way. If SMISA and/or the Fans Council were to put something together then brilliant, and I'd happily subscribe. Given that nothing has been put forward so far, I'd be concerned that hoping for others to come up with something will lead to nothing happening. Glad to see that there still seems to be support for monthly subscriptions, but does anyone fancy getting involved in putting some 'flesh on the bones' of this idea. A 'Buddies Foundation' maybe?

Don't think it'd be gone forever, which is why I think we need to take a longer term approach. Heard so many rumours over the years that the club is going to be bought over by Swiss/Dutch/American/Argentine/Fife(?!) businessmen, but the common factor in all of these is that it's not St Mirren folk involved. Even if the sale does go through in the coming weeks, I don't see these people being in it for the long haul. And when they decide they want out we need to be ready to come in, rather than go through all this again.

If the consortium were willing to accept installments, and REA was prepared to resurrect 10000 Hours, I'd most likely pledge my tenner again. But I suspect neither party would be up for that. Totally agree that involvement with the local community is crucial.

All valid questions Poz. I'm not under any illusions that there wouldn't be challenges to face, but at this stage I don't think they would be insurmountable. With regards to who would be future St Mirren chairman and who would be on the board, I think a lot of those questions were answered by 10000 Hours, ie the membership of the fans group (whatever form that might take) would vote to decide who they wanted. As to a new bid, there may or may not be someone out there with the charisma to be the frontman/woman, but even if not, if we can get a team of people who are enthusiastic enough, and are prepared to put in the work then I think it can be successful. I suppose that's what this thread is about. Are there enough people willing to get involved? I'm thinking maybe 3 or 4 even. If not, it's over before it's started. Any takers?

That's fair enough. If such a combination existed I think we'd have seen it by now. Sooner or later I think we'll need to be in a position to takeover.

I'm wondering what appetite there would be amongst the fans about organising and contributing to a new plan for a fan/community takeover of the club. I understand that for many the idea will have been soured after the 10000 hours experience, but I suspect that many of us still believe that fan ownership is still the best option. While 10000 Hours ultimately failed, there is still much from that that could be built on, and lessons can be learned about what went well and what went wrong. My own thoughts are that a new bid would have to be less complicated and should not involve taking on debt. It would also have to be over a longer period of time, and not necessarily aimed at buying from the current consortium, but perhaps the next opportunity. As I've mentioned on another thread, I'm happy to put my money (tenner a month) where my mouth is, and get involved. Is anyone else thinking along the same lines, and would be interested in putting an idea together? Would folks be willing to pledge for a long term approach in the way they did for 10000 Hours?