2014 AGM Report
The Club’s AGM was held on Sunday 29 November at the National Motor Cycle Museum in Solihull. A collection of P6s had gathered for an informal winter meet in the car park, and there was free entry to the museum for all members.
The AGM itself reported on the Club’s activities for the 2013/2014 year (Jun-May), and also covered some more recent events.
After Chairman Dixon Sheppard opened the meeting, Michael gave an overview of the Club’s many activities. First to report was that Driving Force production had been brought up to date, and a process had been put in place to ensure the timely delivery of quality magazines with consistency using new collaborative technologies. The new Club website was also reported. This was borne out of many hundreds of hours by Brian Humphreys and Michael Allen, and incorporates several key features that are core to the Club’s growth strategy – regular news, paypal integration, mobile/tablet friendly pages (40% of all traffic is a mobile/tablet), social media integration, events diary, free technical articles, and a comprehensive overview of the car and club are all new features contained in the new website, which also features a completely overhauled graphics to bring it in line with the rest of the Club’s visual style. The introduction of the new eNewsletter, providing members with 12 communications per year – double the normal classic car club output. The expansion of the Club Areas was covered, some of which are still requiring an organiser. A discrepancy was reported with ‘The Rover P6 Club Limited’, which was set up in 2009 to provide the Club with adequate legal protection. The current directors dispute ownership of the Ltd Co, and the Committee is in formal negotiations to resolve this issue.
Brian Humphreys gave a report on membership. Against a backdrop of an average 2.5% reduction in classic car club membership in the UK (FBHVC data), The Rover P6 Club grew by 18% in the 2013/14 club year. To date, the Club has grown by 33% over the last 18 months. New members joining is significantly increasing (partly reflective of the growth strategy) whilst membership attrition is at an all-time low. We are collecting lead sources for new members, which reveals that 17% of new joiners are finding us first through social media.
Treasurer Dave Forrester gave a report on the Club’s finances. As can be seen from the balance sheet in the presentation below, the Club has a firm financial standing. Dave stated that his strategy is to ensure the Club has enough funds at the bank to deliver a full years’ worth of magazine regardless of membership trends, to ensure the Club is on a sound long-term financial footing.
Brian gave an appraisal of the Club’s events over the past year, and outlined the core elements of the diary for 2014/15. We are now attending all 7 major indoor classic car shows in the United Kingdom, maximising the exposure of the Club and the Car to potential new members. ‘Rumblefest’, the 50th Anniversary celebration of the Rover V8, was announced for July 2017. This will be a joint event across the Joint Rover Clubs, and include other model clubs, such as Morgan etc. The P6 Club is proud to be a core part of this event.
Michael Allen then outlined the Club’s growth strategy for 2014/15. This covered the further leveraging of social media as a facilitator to attracting enthusiasts, enhancing our links with journalists and devising articles for them to print – the best mechanism for free and meaningful publicity in the press. Enhancing the website and developing an electronic magazine strategy to support overseas growth were also outlined.
Voting was then held. James Rumney indicated in advance that he would not be standing again for the Committee due to time commitments but would continue to actively support the Club in an organisational capacity. James was thanked for his contribution of many years’ service. Stephen Benyon returned to the Committee after a short absence.
Mick Burke was elected as the new Chairman for the Club, taking on the baton from Dixon Sheppard, who had served as Chairman for 3 years.
AGM Presentation
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