Finances
Fireflies
The club balance sheet has been fortunate in never having had to pay a single penny for any of the boats used for the event despite the fact that, since its inception in 1949, the boats have always been supplied to the sailors. There are plenty of team-racing events where competitors have to bring their own boats but, at the Wilson, that has never happened.
In the early days (when every Firefly in the world was made of wood) club members lent their boats. Fireflies were one of the main classes in the club and borrowing enough was never a problem.
Towards the end of the wooden era, which coincided with the rise of other classes within the club at the expense of the Firefly, the availability of boats for the event became increasingly scarce. The idea of sponsored boats was conceived. Members of the club and friends of the event would buy a boat for the exclusive use of the Wilson Trophy.
The concept was developed over many years through the change-over to GRP and into the present day so that now the event prides itself on providing a completely-sponsored, thoroughly modern, matched, colour-coded fleet of boats ideal for team-racing and the envy of the sailing world. Still at no cost to the club finances.
The annual profit and loss accounts
Detailed information from the early years is not available and we cannot know how the club ran the finances in those days. In recent times, however, the basic rule has always been that the Wilson is expected at least to pay for itself.
The entry fee in 2008 was £450 for each of the 32 teams. (This year it’s £600 but that’s because it’s a longer event.) The entry fee is designed to pay for all the costs and, generally speaking in recent times, that has not only been the case but the event has actually contributed to club funds. In 2005, for instance, there was a small surplus of £72 but, on top of that, Wirral Borough Council awarded the event grants totalling £5,000 part of which went to the purchase of an outboard engine for the club.
In the last two years Jamie Marston’s untiring efforts, particularly with sponsorship, have given a real boost to the Wilson Trophy finances both with Firefly sponsorship and event sponsorship and the latter now attracts thousands of pounds.