Ron Gordon believes he CAN sell Hibs for a profit when eventually leaves and admits “that’s the whole play here.”
The American has been at the Easter Road helm for over three years now, but those haven’t been the easiest on the pitch for the Hibees. Gordon is now on the third manager of his tenure after the controversial decision to sack Jack Ross was compounded with the disastrous appointment of rookie Shaun Maloney, who lasted just five months.
Lee Johnson is the latest incumbent and after a sticky start, has the Leith club sitting third in the table, although a shambolic Premier Sports Cup campaign left the former Hearts midfielder needing a decent start to the Premiership campaign, which after the first round of games, he's had. Gordon wants Hibs to be regulars in European competition. They played in last season's Europa Conference League, but were knocked out by Croatian outfit Rijeka in the third qualifying round, and had to watch as theory city rivals guaranteed themselves group stage football this season - ironically, with back-to-back derby wins at Tynecastle and Hampden.
But longer term, Gordon sees no reason why he can't leave Hibs with a good return on the initial investment that bought him control from Sir Tom Farmer in 2019. When asked if it’s possible to leave Hibs having made a profit, Gordon told the Press Box podcast : “I sure hope so. That’s the idea. That’s the whole play here.
“Obviously I enjoy the football and that’s very important on a day-to-day basis but ultimately, the investment I made in Hibs was X times one, and hopefully on the day that we leave, it’s three or four times X.
“We want to build the club and build value. This is a value play from a business perspective. You want to create a club that’s much better than the day you walked in and when you leave, it’s a much better club in terms of infrastructure, revenues, performance, everything. That’s my goal and the vision I have for this. I want to be a great chairman for the club and leave it in a much, much better place. But hopefully that’s not for a long, long time and I want to enjoy the ride between now and then.
“You can screw it up and it’s not easy. But ultimately, I believe that I can create some value at Hibs. So on the day that we sell, we have upside.
”I’m in it for the long haul. You don’t go into this for the short haul. I’ve always looked at it as a long-term investment, one that I want to build, elaborate and construct to try and create something very special at the club. That’s going to take time.
“You make these investments and commitments because you believe in the project. I believe in the club. What excited me in the first place was the incredible potential it had to be more than it was. I want to realise that potential and that’s going to take time. You;re not going to flip this in five years. I wouldn't do that and it’s not on the cards for me.”
Various club owners have tried the same and failed to get back what they put in, but Gordon is adamant it’s different at Hibs. He continued: “I’m sure that’s happened to many owners and chairmen. I don;t believe that’s what’s going to happen at Hibs. I want to run a sustainable and profitable business. I’m not going to make money tomorrow and I don't need to make money tomorrow. More important to me is the challenge of building a great club. That’s what I’m focused on.
“But there are many examples of people in football who have made a lot of money, either throughout their ownership period and certainly in their exit. It’s a question of how you manage your business and the thing about football which is dangerous, is that you can mismanage it very easily because you get emotionally invested and your financial discipline goes out the window.”
As for matters on the park, Gordon is hopeful of keeping prized asset Ryan Porteous. The Scotland international is out of contract at the end of the season and can speak to suitors in January.
“Ryan is terrific,” said Gordon. “He’s a great ambassador for the club in terms of his commitment and his style of play. I absolutely love Ryan.
“I’m hopeful that he will extend with us. I don’t know that we can keep him forever, but I’m hopeful that we will extend with us. We’ve had conversations and I think we’ve put a very good proposal for him to consider.
“Ultimately it’s going to be his call and we’ll support him no matter what he decides. We want to support all our players and certainly want to support Ryan, but I’m very hopeful we can reach an agreement that means he can stay at the clb a little bit longer and we can position it more effectively so he can help us reach our goals.
“A lot will depend on Ryan and what he wants to do. Hopefully we can accommodate his wishes and find a place where we’re both happy.”
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