Hibernian Football Club has an ambitious owner and Chief Executive that are challenging the norms to develop the club’s commercial and hospitality offerings as well as transforming the way the club operates on the pitch. fcbusiness travelled to Easter Road to speak to Ben Kensell to find out more.
Hibernian Football Club has a long and proud history in Scottish football and have set about an ambitious strategy that has seen it transform itself on and off the pitch.
Leading the change is Ben Kensell who joined the club as Chief Executive in July2021 from Norwich City where he held the position of Chief Operating Officer. Prior to Norwich he also held roles at Charlton Athletic as Chief Commercial Officer and Arsenal where he spent over seven years. It was at Norwich where he learnt how to operate in an environment that was fully self-sufficient and where every penny counted.
“Hibs want to be one of the most successful and sustainable clubs from a holistic perspective without requiring the owner’s additional funding to prop it up like many clubs in the UK,” Kensell told fcbusiness.
“The work that we did at Norwich City over seven years being self-funded shone a light on club-controlled income growth, player-trading and central distributions and that’s the direction we wanted to take here and that’s why the owner wanted me here. I work across both football and non-football activities and take a very hands on approach.
“There was already a vision at the club from the owner and a skeleton of a strategy but to move things forward I had to build out that strategy, change the culture and construct high performing teams on and off the pitch, and this takes time. We created a club DNA giving it that identity and plan so we could clearly articulate what we were going to do and how we were going to do it. I knew it would need patience, time and collective buy in.
“That vision is key to the overall success of the club’s new commercial and hospitality ventures and with the backing of the club’s US owner, Ron Gordon, Kensell has been given an opportunity to overhaul the club’s revenue generating activities as well as investing on the pitch with many squad changes and big improvements at the club’s training ground.
Kensell continued: “We want to be the club that does things differently in Scotland and that is something that comes from the very top – the owner. Ron’s someone who doesn’t mind taking risks and is very clear that something might not work but it’s much better to fail trying than not doing anything at all.
“He’s a great owner and we have a similar mindset, but we need to be clear on what we are going after and communicate to staff, players, stakeholders and fans so everyone understands the direction we want to head in.”
Success Is Requisite
But success on the pitch is requisite and running parallel to the business overhaul, the club have been ambitious across its football operations in a bid to improve performances and develop a club that is as competitive as it can be. The appointment of several new positions at the training centre on the performance side and an experienced Academy Director spearheaded these changes as well as developing a link between the training ground and stadium that fits and compliments the overall culture created around the club.
“On the football side we focused a lot of our efforts on building up the academy and putting a process and player pathway plan in place for that future success which is starting to bear fruit with the club in the UEFA Youth League currently and academy players contributing in our first team,” Kensell adds.
“We recruited Steve Kean as Academy Director who has vast coaching and management experience and built strong teams around key personnel across all footballing areas following a full review of operations.
“We have built up good foundations there and I’m pleased with the progress. It’s certainly assisted by the success we have had with player sales in the last two windows at the club with Josh Doig going to Verona and Martin Boyle to Saudi and then us subsequently signing him back for a handsome profit. But we’ve also changed our recruitment structure and reduced the average age of our squad and that helps develop assets from a player-trading perspective.
“We’re really focused on the four key principles: Club Controlled Income, Player Trading, Central Distributions and External Investment which we would class as capital investment into the assets. We’ve completed a lot of capital projects in a short period of time at Easter Road as well as the Training Centre.
“Those are the four pillars that we focus on and everything we have done works back to one of those and has to contribute to the growth of the club or to make the club better. Ultimately all monies generated go back into the playing budget to make us more competitive on the pitch which in turn, we hope, makes our fans proud of their club.”
Despite these changes, on the field the club has struggled for consistency in the managerial department, Kensell admits, with three managers appointed in the space of 12 months.
He said: “On the footballing side it didn’t help having a few managerial changes last year and ultimately we had a disappointing season in the league because of that instability, but in the Cup competitions we reached a Cup semi-final and the League Cup final where we were narrowly beaten by Celtic.
“We want stability, we made mistakes and held our hands up to it but it doesn’t change the overall plan and how we achieve the vision. It hurts when things don’t work as you want them to but we showed great resilience during a tough period to stay together and I know we will benefit from that.”
That resilience is crucial and Kensell believes the club is beginning to see evidence that the work they’re doing is beginning to bear fruit.
“We’re making positive changes off the pitch across many areas and I’m seeing a real buy in internally and externally to changes in operations, commercial, communications and HR departments but you always doubt whether you’re on the right path as there is always more you can do as you strive for that good, better, best mentality,” he stresses.
“You do see those green shoots in the academy, or the growth in commercial, or improved fan engagement and the player recruitment strategy coming good and sometimes you just have to ignore the noise, trust the process and fundamentally stick to the plan, but it was tough at the start of the year on the pitch for sure.”
Fan Consultation
With the amount of changes being under taken the club we’re keen to ensure their fans were informed, understood and involved in the processes. That required a period of intense consultation with fans and fan groups associated to the club with a survey in collaboration with the University of Edinburgh undertaken by over 10,000 fans that created the bedrock of what the club were doing.
“We had a plan and a clear DNA and vision but was that in line with what the fans wanted?” Kensell questioned. “By doing that piece of work with the University of Edinburgh, and having over 10,000 fans respond, we were given the evidence to match up against our plan.
“We embarked on various different capital projects and better fan communication and engagement that would be aimed at effectively growing revenue but also helping Hibs fans connect to their club again. There had been a slight loss of identity over the last couple of years about what their club is. What we wanted to do was reinforce that with some of our club communications and some of our actions, but we had to be clear what they wanted and thought, so it really came from them.
“Actions really do speak louder than words and the fanbase have been promised much over a long period of time but probably haven’t seen it always delivered. We were determined that if we wanted to get the fans behind what we were doing we needed to listen to their views and act appropriately and with integrity. We wanted to do it hand in hand with them rather than deliver something that we just think they want across the general admission and corporate areas.”
Hospitality Overhaul
Hospitality is a crucial element of the matchday experience and a key component in a club’s revenue generation potential and at Hibs, it was one element of the club that offered huge potential. “We looked at hospitality in the entire West Stand and saw there was real opportunity in this very tired facility that was limited in its ability to serve a good standard of hospitality with options for all. Edinburgh has excellent restaurants and a great social scene but the hospitality on offer at Easter Road wasn’t anywhere near where it needed to be.
“This was a huge undertaking because not only did we have to build the business plan to invest in the actual facility itself, we also needed to find a catering provider that could deliver the standards and quality of food and service across the whole stadium whether that be in the kiosks or the hospitality.
“We also needed to appoint a designer and contractor to oversee the complete transformation of the hospitality offering and we wanted to do the entire stand over the close season. So there was a lot to do in a very short time period. In addition we were trying to sell the hospitality vision off plan rather than fans being able to see it with their own eyes before committing to large sums of money.”
To undertake the transformation, Kensell appointed 442 Design who he had worked with previously at Arsenal and Norwich, and had full confidence in their ability to understand the sporting and hospitality environment. Working tirelessly through the project, the team at 442 Design, with input from the Hibernian Historical Trust and a club working group which was assembled, helped transform the entire West Stand into six individual and unique spaces that catered for a broad range of tastes and budgets – the Chairman’s Suite, the Albion Bar, Edinburgh Club, Tornadoes, Pioneers and the jewel in the crown, The Emerald Club which they charged at £25,000 a head where members become Associate Directors with many additional benefits.
“All six areas each have their own clear identity and attraction,” Kensell adds. “Pioneers is a restaurant that is a nod to the past as Hibernian have been pioneers and first to do several things in football that many people may not even know about.
“Hibs were one of the first British teams to play in European competition; they were the first team in Britain to have a corporate shirt sponsor. The first to have floodlights of which one of the originals is visible in the actual space itself. There’s many firsts that I learnt on my arrival and I felt like Hibs were almost apologetic in sharing these stories so what we wanted to do was bring a clash of a museum style attraction and intertwine that with a hospitality experience. 442 did a brilliant job with it.
“Pioneers as a restaurant is a high-end all-inclusive food and drink offering with unrivalled views across the pitch, but you’ve got this lovely clash of history and modern dining facilities mixing with each other. There is another restaurant which is an entry level carvery offer called Tornadoes.
“Tornadoes was an era for the club that was incredibly successful, and we deliver that history with a real modern twist, very in keeping with our urban, gritty roots in Leith. It’s a vibrant, colourful, and loud space with a live chef’s table it’s very in your face. We wanted to keep this affordable and it’s had great uptake from a match-by-match perspective,” said Kensell.
Then there is the Albion Bar which used to be a fan favourite pub on Albion Road. The club have sold out all memberships and have a large waiting list for this area. “We wanted to bring that old stadium and boozer look and feel into the club environment and we’ve done that by taking the old turnstiles that were ripped out when the ground was redeveloped and placed them into this hospitality area.
“We’re taking that history and bringing it back to a modern era and really celebrating the club past and present. The spaces are 75% matchday focused with 25% flexibility for non-matchday due to the sheer conference and events competition in Edinburgh and location of Easter Road; this was a very conscious business decision.
“I think that was what really came out of all this work; we wanted to make the fans really proud of Edinburgh, proud of Leith and proud of their club. It was essential any changes were done in an appropriate manner and in keeping with the club’s history. We went back to the survey at every opportunity and even had fans on the decision-making working group around the hospitality areas.”
Sitting at the top of the club’s new hospitality offering is their version of Manchester City’s Tunnel Club, and Arsenal’s Diamond Club. Named the Emerald Club, this new high-end offering is exclusive and limited in its numbers which drives a high price point.
“All of our Emerald Club members are Associate Directors and they’re not just buying it for matchday hospitality they’re buying it to be part of the club. That has created a market for us to develop an exclusive Associate Director membership. They’re big supporters but they’re supporting the club in the best way they can and have excellent benefits on the football and non-football side.
“The work in the hospitality areas was an important element to adding value to the sponsorships and matchday revenue; it allowed us to quadruple our turnover and double capacity just in hospitality alone at Easter Road in the one stand.
“There’s still opportunity in other stands to really add to what we’re doing in the hospitality space whether that be a fan park, another version of the Albion Bar or more high-end hospitality.”
Opportunity, Opportunity, Opportunity
When Kensell arrived at the club he took a really detailed look at the club’s accounts which revealed lots of opportunity and growth across many areas. There was huge potential and a great stadium that was probably under-utilised. There was the acceptance that the club didn’t have the critical commercial infrastructure in place to unlock this potential.
Working with digital and LED specialist, ADI, the club installed two 59m² main stadium LED screens, two 15m² screens, and a large main reception screen as well as LED perimeter advertising boards.“The introduction of the big screens and the pitchside LED allows us to further monetise our partnerships by providing them with greater value assets with more eyeballs on them with the improved broadcast deal,” Kensell adds.
“These assets also provide us with additional inventory for sponsorships which drive increased price points. It also offered a much better way of improving in-stadia fan engagement and driving atmosphere with the total stadium takeover before kick-off and at half-time which is what fans wanted and asked for.”
Hibs are also investing in a technology roadmap with PTI Digital and becoming more focused on how they engage better with their fanbase and corporate markets through digitally enhanced platforms.
“What Edinburgh brings you is this thriving multi-cultural business and economic community hub that allows us to jump on the back of as long as we’re providing really good facilities for corporate entertainment and value at every turn but we need to understand who they are and what they want before we market to them and that starts with being really good with data and we are at the beginning of that roadmap.
“We’ve seen a big increase in partnerships by making the tweaks we have. All that comes from a lot of hard work and energy from the team here and the drive to want to constantly improve and be the best versions of ourselves.”
Since Kensell’s arrival turnover has risen considerably year-on-year and is growing again. Attendances are growing and on the pitch the team has performed well in their hunt for European group stage qualification for the first time in its history, but there is a long way to go.
Kensell concludes: “The signs are encouraging on and off the pitch. I am really proud of the progress to date and the unity and culture we have built internally amongst all staff, but we must continue to strive to be the best version of ourselves in everything we do on the business side and on the pitch and hope that it brings us the success that our fans richly deserve.”
Hibernian Hospitality Design Approach
David Dunn, Managing Director–442 Design
Our starting point was to understand the gaps in the existing offer and to identify opportunities to expand and improve the whole experience. We wanted to create a simple three-tier hospitality offer with up-sell opportunities at each level creating around six or seven new matchday experiences. This required a few significant changes to the layout and the operation. The directors were relocated and the lounge switched into the VIP Emerald Suite. The staff offices were relocated to the South Stand offering up a space with great pitch views and room for a new kitchen.
We created a new spacious entrance area with large mural backdrops adding real energy when arriving in the space – the club crest is in there of course – but the ‘We Are Hibernian FC’ mural featuring iconic club legends is the perfect photo backdrop and sets the tone. The new Albion Bar is at Level 1 which is a nod to old Leith, the shipyards and the club’s roots. We refurbished old original turnstiles from the 1930s to create high standing tables in front of the bar, one of the many authentic details that resonated with the fans.
The up-sell opportunity in Level 1 is Tornadoes which is a table service seated area named after the 1970’sera “Turnbull’s Tornadoes” – the high-flying side that played under manager Eddie Turnbull and included, briefly, George Best. Tornadoes is a fast-casual style area with vintage posters and old match reports from the era applied scrap-book style on the wall, another example of the authentic storytelling and a result of a strong working relationship with the Hibs Historical Trust.
Level 2 is the club deck Edinburgh Club. This area runs the full length of the pitch with first class views. The open plan layout includes two new bars and two new chef’s tables to allow flexibility for both matchday and non-matchday use. The walls have hand-painted murals of the city skyline and a large wall backdrop proclaims “My Room On This Earth’ in acknowledgement of the club anthem ‘Sunshine on Leith’.
The up-sell option in this area is a premium area called ‘Pioneers’ in recognition of the club’s history of innovative achievements.
Level 3 – The Emerald Suite is the new members-only lounge and private bar. This is fully-inclusive with a short walk to the best seats in the house – this is matchday hospitality at its finest.
Images: Hibernian FC