BEARGER 1,830 Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 RST Statement on Ashley Court Action Today we have seen the absurd spectacle of Mike Ashley taking our club to court to stop the Rangers board from informing shareholders and fans about details of the Sports Direct contracts. This despite the fact that the board had already publicly stated they would not break those confidentiality agreements. At the same time Mr Ashley demands clarity from the board at an EGM called by him. It seems that Mr Ashley’s hypocrisy is matched only by his avarice. In his panic to stop Rangers fans from knowing definitively about his questionable dealings with our club, Mr Ashley has done them a valuable service. There can now be absolutely no doubt that the Sports Direct contracts with Rangers are of benefit to one party and one party only. We call on the hundreds of thousands of Rangers fans who have already stopped purchasing official merchandise to continue to abstain from an arrangement which benefits only Mr Ashley. We also ask them to spread the word to their friends and family and those remaining few who may as yet not be aware of the disgraceful retail arrangements which are holding our club to ransom. Figures published many months ago showed that Rangers received only 70p per £10 spent on merchandise by fans. In the last accounts reported the club received nothing from the retail agreement with Sports Direct. We also now have confirmation from the court that new contracts and undertakings were put in place by Mr Ashley’s lieutenants in the days leading up the last EGM whilst they were acting as directors of Rangers Football Club PLC. Mr Ashley, with his call for an EGM and the cost of today’s hearing has, by conservative estimate, cost the club the wages of a first team player for 6 months. The judge in the latest case called the expenses claim by SD “shocking”. Mr Ashley must think the Rangers support are suffering from some sort of mass delusion if he expects us to buy merchandise despite his continuing attacks on our club. Our message is simple. Unless the current contracts with Sports Direct are negotiated to the satisfaction of the Rangers board, and that satisfaction is clearly communicated to fans, then we urge Rangers fans not to buy any official merchandise from club shops, Sports Direct or any other outlet. Purchasing from other shops does not solve the problem. In addition to this we will be publishing and maintaining a full list of the companies owned by Mr Ashley or in which he has an interest. We would request that fans spread the word to their friends and family and ask them to boycott these stores and brands also. Quite apart from Mr Ashley’s questionable business practices he is bleeding the club you love dry and taking money from it that could be spent getting Rangers back where we belong. The only thing Mr Ashley understands is money. Take action and let’s make sure that in the near future both players and fans can wear the Rangers jersey with pride again, knowing that it is a true symbol of our club and not a testament to one man’s greed. - See more at: http://www.therst.co.uk/news/rst-statement-on-ashley-court-action/#sthash.IORNiDOu.dpuf 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEARGER 1,830 Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 (edited) https://www.change.org/p/mike-ashley-sports-direct-cancel-your-merchandise-contract-with-rangers-fc Edited June 11, 2015 by BEARGER 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueSolace 0 Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 Maybe Parliament is the only place that Fat Boy can be held to account, although he did not appear himself last time... 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pmu 0 Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 https://www.change.org/p/mike-ashley-sports-direct-cancel-your-merchandise-contract-with-rangers-fc I'm no fan of sos but I signed this with no hesitation 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bearman 9 Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 I did admittedly buy a Barca away strip for my 6 year old grandson from SD because it was cheaper than anywhere else (that's what he wanted). I will never ever spend my money in that store again, besides - it was smelly, the store has a stench of fustiness. One Bear who'll spend his cash responsibly in future. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEARGER 1,830 Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 http://ashleyout.com/campaigns/embargo/outside-nufc/ 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gribz 919 Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 (edited) The club pay for any unsold shirts. It's a fine gesture, but pretty futile at the end of the day. Who sets the price of shirts in our club shops? If its the club then couldn't we put them on sale for a quid each and then buy them so the club don't have to fork out for unsold and the sales price is the cost of a cup of tea. Its not all stock of shirts but still a saving to the club in a way. Edited June 11, 2015 by Gribz 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve1872 4 Posted June 11, 2015 Share Posted June 11, 2015 Rangers First Statement Hi <<First Name>> The board of Rangers First notes the outcome of today’s hearing that granted Sports Direct a legal injunction to prevent the Rangers board from revealing certain details of their current commercial deals. However, several details that emerged today have given us serious cause for concern. We would firstly question why Sports Direct were granted the inclusion of these confidentiality clauses in January this year. It is once again clear that the previous board have failed to put Rangers first and were operating to the benefit of Sports Direct rather than the people they were paid to represent. We would like to again highlight the comments of Colin Kingsnorth of Laxey Partners, previously the largest shareholders in Rangers, on why they decided to sell their shares to The 3 Bears late last year. “We sold because a fans-based group were hopefully going to be the best placed to take on Ashley's power. After Ashley removed Norman Crighton, his most vocal critic, it was obvious David Somers was just a wet fish agreeing anything Ashley wanted.” For a professional organisation such as Laxey Partners to issue such a damning assessment of the person who oversaw the inclusion of these confidentiality clauses speaks volumes. We feel that the current situation should not only be a concern to Rangers fans but also the shareholders of Sports Direct and PUMA as well. The decline in sales of Rangers replica shirts from around 500k back in 2008 to around 50k last year should be a major concern to all their investors. The further insertion of these confidentiality clauses we believe will only contribute to an even further decline in sales levels in the coming years. Rangers First have always been fully transparent with our members on exactly how their money will be spent. We strongly feel the same levels of transparency should be made available to the Rangers support regarding the income received from the club’s merchandising contracts. Rangers require a merchandising deal where both the club and retailer benefit fully such as the kind we have previously enjoyed with major sports labels such as Adidas and Nike. However, our massive international support are being severely compromised by the current commercial arrangements. We want to once again be able to wear our Rangers shirt with pride. Rangers First shall be viewing the outcome of events at tomorrow’s general meeting with extreme interest. We would also hope that the executive team of Sports Direct realise that the current commercial arrangements are of absolutely no financial benefit to either party. We will also be contacting all our members in the coming days regarding the club's partnership with Sports Direct. This is clearly a very strong issue amongst the Rangers support right now and we would like to know exactly the thoughts and feelings of all RF members on this matter. http://us9.campaign-archive2.com/?u=4f7c1477a7d50a25daa1f9b9b&id=433ea9cc63 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete 2,499 Posted June 12, 2015 Share Posted June 12, 2015 We should set up the black and red shirts an make sure the profit goes to the club as a gift. 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pete 2,499 Posted June 12, 2015 Share Posted June 12, 2015 Or how about an Orange shirt, 0 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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