Albion Rovers appointed John Devlin as their new Chairman recently and Devlin is determined that the League 2 side will see the benefit of the experience he will bring. More importantly Devlin is hoping that the club will provide an experience that fans enjoy and that the Coatbridge club can prosper by using their uniqueness to good effect.
Devlin is a former executive of the Airdrie based contact centre company, beCogent, which created 3000 jobs and provided services for John Lewis, Sainsbury’s and Virgin Media before being sold for 2010.
He also serves on the boards of other companies however he is no stranger to football or Cliftonhill as he explained: “Albion Rovers is not new to me as I was on the Board there from 2008 until earlier this year. I am very familiar with the club, the position it has in the game and the limitations it has.”
“There is only a small board in place and we operate on a low budget. I want things to change and we have a long term Business Plan to help achieve that. I also want to have more supporters coming through the turnstiles but you cannot rely on that just to happen.”
“Our commercial revenues also need expanded and that is something we have to get better at. It would be great to develop both sides of the business but you cannot just hope that it is going to happen.”
To get numbers through Devlin is looking to use what he has learned in the Business World as he was explained: “Customer Service is really important to me and I have been on Boards of Companies where their purpose was to provide a very good Customer Experience. People want value for money and not just on the football pitch. Everybody wants victories and entertaining football – that is the Holy Grail in football- but you also need to look after your fans when that does not happen as it does not happen every week.”
“We have to give fans a 2 hour experience at Albion Rovers that is better than going to the Cinema or ten pin bowling. That is what we are competing against.”
Devlin is not one for accepting excuses for things not working as he explained: “Our crowds are low but the fans we have are a passionate bunch. We can no longer just offer the reason for low crowds being because we are only 10 miles from Glasgow and people from Coatbridge would rather watch other teams.”
“We need to find our place, our niche. What makes Albion Rovers different? We do not have the same level of resources as other clubs but we need to use the resources that we have.”
Devlin recently shared with the club’s fans how you can be different in the face of competition with an analogy well removed from football.
“The head office for my business is in Edinburgh's West End just a 2 minute walk from Princes Street,” said Devlin before adding “The West End was built in the early 19th century and is part of the New Town World Heritage site. Just around the corner from the office on William Street is a small Chinese restaurant called Lune Town.”
“It is a family business and was opened back in 1979 by the current owner Stephen Chan and to be honest it has not changed much since the seventies. It is a bit out of the way and off the beaten track, tucked into an old cobbled dimly lit street. It's small, relatively simply furnished and very traditional.”
Devlin expanded the picture painted by saying: “It has a Lucky Chinese Fortune Cat in the small window and traditional Chinese prints on the walls. The toilets are somewhat inconveniently situated down a narrow stairway and the kitchen is serviced by an old dumb waiter lift. There isn't an adjacent cocktail bar to wait in and the bar itself is small but functional.”
As if fans were not getting the comparison to Cliftonhill he added, “In summary it is not exactly neither glamorous nor glitzy.”
Devlin continued: “To make things worse for them there are some much bigger, more successful and on the surface more appealing restaurant choices just along the road in George Street where people can mix in the cool bars and clubs.”
“Maybe Stephen Chan and his family should just shut up shop then? How could they possibly compete against the big boys with all the cash just along the road? Maybe they should sell the old place and move into a new bigger soulless space in an out of town Retail Park?”
Devlin dives to the heart of the matter to add: “However if you step inside Lune Town you will be immediately impressed by how immaculate it is. It may be a bit creaky and traditional but it is loved and is truly well looked after. The toilets are almost clinically clean and fresh.”
“It goes without saying that the food is superb and great value for money.”
Devlin added: “The real clincher however is that Stephen and his family have owned it for the best part of 35 years and that shows. You just can't beat an owner managed business. The personal service is faultless and makes you feel at ease and at home.”
“The Customer Experience is first class.”
The Lune Town know their place, their niche as Devlin explained: “Against the constant pressure of big business and competition, Stephen and his family continue to deliver because they understand that they have something unique in their small, traditional restaurant. It provides a personal touch, great value and a real alternative to the soulless big boys.”
“They understand that people like choice. Some will choose to go to a big restaurant chain, some will choose to go to a place with a Michelin Star celebrity chef. And some will choose Lune Town.”
Devlin finished the example by advising the supporters as if he was giving them a view of their club’s future by saying: “They don't try to compete. They try to differentiate.”
Devlin is however no Coatbridge born and bred supporter as he explained: “I was actually born in Airdrie and I went to Broomfield to watch Airdrieonians play when Bobby Watson was in charge and Sandy Clark was playing for them. I was lifted over the turnstiles to get in and I am honest enough to admit that I have not been a life-long Albion Rovers fan.”
“I moved to Coatbridge as a child and started being a supporter then however I did not get involved until Becogent sponsored a community programme. That looked to work with local Primary 7 children about choices in health, fitness and education. It was delivered by John McCormack who of our course was the manager of the club at the time.”
And how have the Rovers fans taken to a former Airdrie fan running their club Devlin was asked and he said: “The early engagement has been supportive. I had a question and answer session in a local Hotel with fans and that had a decent turnout of over 50 people on what was a horrible night weather wise.”
“We went over our 7 year plan, our 2020 vision, and it got a good reaction.”
It was no one off communication exercise with Devlin saying: “I am engaged with our fans via a supporters' message board and am actively looking for supporters who will help with three vital areas of that vision – the Stadium, Commercial and Community.”
“The plan has to be to work with what we have got. The facilities we have or could have as well as the wider environment affects us and is included in our detailed strategy.”
Moving from Cliftonhill was mooted several years ago however the property crash at the end of the last decade put paid to that for the immediate future with Devlin saying: “I would love us to stay at Cliftonhill and redevelop it during the longer term. I don’t want us to move to an out of town location as those moves and any associated displacements have not always been successful. I want us to remain close to the town centre.”
And is the Chairman’s role one that can be enjoyed Devlin was asked and he said: “It is only early days just now but I am enjoying it. I have a lot of respect for our previous Chairman Frank Meade and I am delighted that he is going to be the Chief Executive of the club. Together and with the help of everyone involved we can make Albion Rovers into something better.”
“I am not saying we are going to be a Championship club are anything like that but what I am saying is that we can be a better club.”
Devlin added: “I am a huge football fan so being involved in the game is no hardship. Even last weekend when we didn’t have a game I went along with our manager James Ward and took in the Linlithgow Rose and Deveronvale William Hill Scottish Cup replay.”
“We are playing the winners in the next round but whilst James was spying on team styles I was looking at how a small club from another small town set up their football club. They have an impressive set-up and it was good to see what could be achieved although they are not bound as tightly as ourselves with regulations.”
“They have a good loyal following that interact with the club so there were lots of similarities and lots of things to learn.”
Devlin finished by saying: “It was a good experience and it is all about the experience.”
Craig Stewart
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