Latest / Best of Business / Mark Robinson: NZ Rugby CEO on the body posting a $19.5 million loss

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Mark Robinson: NZ Rugby CEO on the body posting a $19.5 million loss · Best of Business

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  Speaker 1: You're listening to a podcast from news Talk zed B.
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  Speaker 2: For the third year in a row, the New Zealand
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  Speaker 2: rugby unions lost money. This time it's nineteen point five million.
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  Speaker 2: They have rolled out plenty of defense. There's record revenue
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  Speaker 2: coming in, good reserves. Of course, not a cash loss,
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  Speaker 2: but a loss is a loss. So what's the plan.
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  Speaker 2: Mark Robinson is the endz our boss and he's with us. Mark,
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  Speaker 2: Good morning, Boding Mike. When does you stop losing money?
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  Speaker 3: Well, the other question could be, you know, when do
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  Speaker 3: we said about how about we do with my question,
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  Speaker 3: when do you stop losing money? Well, well, well, we're
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  Speaker 3: always working towards a break even or better position, and
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  Speaker 3: that's what we've achieved this year. You're right in your
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  Speaker 3: intro and saying that. Put aside and look at the
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  Speaker 3: adjusted result. If not for the investment choice we made
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  Speaker 3: three years ago, which the whole game agreed to when
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  Speaker 3: we did Project Future, and then a late swing in
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  Speaker 3: effex right at the end of the year, we were
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  Speaker 3: to break even.
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  Speaker 4: So the model is improving if you look at the
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  Speaker 4: last or four years. If you' tapped three years and
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  Speaker 4: the year before that, we've generated over over a billion dollars.
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  Speaker 4: And if you put to side the investment we've made
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  Speaker 4: over forty million dollars into shoring up our stakeholders, so
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  Speaker 4: direct investment into the players, provincial unions, superclubs and all
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  Speaker 4: our other partners And you look at the investment we've
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  Speaker 4: made into the digital and content space and this effects shift.
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  Speaker 4: Like I say, you put that to the side, the
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  Speaker 4: deficit's been just under six million dollars as an operating
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  Speaker 4: business across that time, So you know, you have to
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  Speaker 4: take into account the fact here, Mike, when you look
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  Speaker 4: around the world, especially in rugby, a lot of these
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  Speaker 4: losses are just straight on sort of keeping lights on
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  Speaker 4: and getting the groceries and all the basics. We are
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  Speaker 4: actually making choices to make investment and growth for the
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  Speaker 4: future here, and you can see some green shoots coming
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  Speaker 4: through as it relates to Toyota signing this week, we
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  Speaker 4: hope some We've got some other announcements in the next few
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  Speaker 4: months around partnerships, so are definitely signaling now that our
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  Speaker 4: improved reach digitally, both domestically and internationally is starting to
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  Speaker 4: pay dividends.
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  Speaker 2: So to replacement for Anys in terms of dollars.
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  Speaker 4: Look, the properties are different, aren't they. So we've got
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  Speaker 4: Toyota coming in as a partner on our training kit
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  Speaker 4: and we are working through a potential partnership on shorts.
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  Speaker 4: So any us had both of those properties.
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  Speaker 2: So are you close to a deal or you can't
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  Speaker 2: say that on the rest of it on that we're.
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  Speaker 4: Working We're always I think I've said this through the
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  Speaker 4: discussions with any of us in the first quarter of
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  Speaker 4: the year.
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  Speaker 3: We are always.
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  Speaker 4: Having conversations with partners, be they existing ones and making
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  Speaker 4: sure those relationships are really strong and with the possibility
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  Speaker 4: of increasing and improving those in terms of value or
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  Speaker 4: potential new ones. So that's you know, that's the case.
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  Speaker 4: And as I say, i'd i'd like to think in
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  Speaker 4: the next little while we've got more to say as
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  Speaker 4: it relates to those other properties and actually.
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  Speaker 2: Have anybody that you can announce this year.
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  Speaker 3: Well, that's what're working on and we're.
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  Speaker 2: Working on you don't so currently don't. I'm just trying
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  Speaker 2: to work out how hard it is to go to
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  Speaker 2: the international market to get an international name, to get
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  Speaker 2: on the front of an all black jersey, and whether
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  Speaker 2: or not, there's it's slim pickings out there.
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  Speaker 3: Well.
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  Speaker 4: I think by the fact that we've been able to
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  Speaker 4: find Toyota as a partnership is a strong signal that
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  Speaker 4: the interest is really strong. And I said that right through,
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  Speaker 4: you know, from January onwards, I've been signaling that that
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  Speaker 4: is evidence of that, and there will be future announcements
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  Speaker 4: may soon. I just can't put an exact date on those.
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  Speaker 2: Minds. The money, here's my concern, and I don't have
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  Speaker 2: a vested interest other than being a fan. When you're
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  Speaker 2: bringing in more revenue than you ever have, which you
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  Speaker 2: are so well done, and you're still losing money, something's broken.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, And we've been also very clear around that too.
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  Speaker 4: And the conversations we've had for several years now is
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  Speaker 4: that as the business grows and the scale increases and
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  Speaker 4: revenues can continue to lift, of which we're confident of
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  Speaker 4: continue to achieve, the fundamental funding frameworks we have around
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  Speaker 4: the game need to be looked at. So that's what
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  Speaker 4: this next six months is about. We've always signaled that
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  Speaker 4: this is the year to try and look at the
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  Speaker 4: way our funding agreements work with provincial unions. It was
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  Speaker 4: the players and through this course, we have a whole
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  Speaker 4: lot of things lining up for us to be able
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  Speaker 4: to do that where those agreements come to an end
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  Speaker 4: and need to be looked at. So look, we've had
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  Speaker 4: a great couple of days in Wellington where we did
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  Speaker 4: have all those stakeholders I just mentioned and others in
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  Speaker 4: the rooms and that we were having meetings in and
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  Speaker 4: we had some really good conversations about what the next
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  Speaker 4: six months could look like. And I think the game
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  Speaker 4: is aligned about the possibility. If we can do that,
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  Speaker 4: then we're going to be in a fantastic space going forward.
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  Speaker 2: In simple terms, you said yesterday, we need to have
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  Speaker 2: a financially sustainable model. Do you have a financially sustainable
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  Speaker 2: model as you sit and talk to me right now?
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  Speaker 4: Breaking up? My got you, Mike, do do you.
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  Speaker 2: Have a financially sustainable model as you sit here talking
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  Speaker 2: to me right now?
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  Speaker 4: Look, we've got a lot of work going on to
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  Speaker 4: be able to present to the board at the end
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  Speaker 4: of this month on what the model could look like.
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  Speaker 4: And it could take a whole number of sort of
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  Speaker 4: shapes and sizes and all that sort of thing. But
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  Speaker 4: then ultimately, as is the beauty of sport and national
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  Speaker 4: sporting organizations. This is all about partnership and consensus eventually,
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  Speaker 4: so we have to be able to get back in
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  Speaker 4: the room with our stakeholders and partners and be able
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  Speaker 4: to work through those models with them.
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  Speaker 3: So yeah, I mean.
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  Speaker 4: There's loads of ideas as to what the model could
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  Speaker 4: look like and we just had to take our time
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  Speaker 4: and work through this. But the pointers might be enough
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  Speaker 4: revenue in the game and we continue to drive revenue.
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  Speaker 4: It's just how it's a portion and allocated. And that's
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  Speaker 4: why having a strategy that we clearly articulated to stakeholders yesterday,
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  Speaker 4: aligning with that strategy where everyone can see themselves in
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  Speaker 4: that strategy, and then allocating resource on that basis sustainable
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  Speaker 4: model is the key.
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  Speaker 2: Appreciate your time, Mark Robinson, who is the New Zealand
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  Speaker 2: Rugby CEO.
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  Speaker 3: What did your line break up?
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