Should England cricket outcast Kevin Pietersen re-sign for Surrey to play T20 Blast cricket this year it is unlikely to boost sales, according to an exec of Surrey Country Cricket Club. Pietersen played for Surrey last year in the shortened version of the game and is rumored to be considering playing for Surrey again this year. But, according to Surrey County Cricket Club Head of Ticketing, Membership & Retail Steve Kitcher, the club's marketing activity was not focused on Pietersen last year during the T20 Blast as his performance was overshadowed by teammate Jason Roy. Kitcher said, "We found that as the season progressed, our best player became a young Surrey lad called Jason Roy. He was the one clearing the ropes as opposed to Kevin."
THE BIG PICTURE: Roy is to be the focus of Surrey's promotional activity in this year's T20 Blast competition. Kitcher added, "Even if Kevin wasn't performing particularly well or playing, we don't think it would impact sales too much, because it is much bigger than just KP." Kitcher said audiences were captivated by the entertainment value of the T20 Blast, which is usually accompanied by a lot of razzmatazz and spectators consuming a lot of alcohol. Kitcher was speaking on a panel exploring ticketing, retail and hospitality at a SportPro Live event in London. Also on the panel were Stuart Pringle, the sporting director at Silverstone Circuits, which operates the British Grand Prix; and Legends COO & President Shervin Mirhashemi. Pringle said that ticket sales for next year's Silverstone Grand Prix are likely to benefit from the fact that the current F1 champion Lewis Hamilton is British. Pringle said, "It's slightly ironic that the single biggest influence on your marketing strategy is something completely beyond your control. We think back to the (Michael) Schumacher years, it did us no favors whatsoever. Contrast them with the Nigel Mansell era, when we nearly got closed down for a track invasion. It's a nice problem to have."
ENHANCED EXPERIENCE: Silverstone is looking to broaden its appeal and act as an entertainment and banqueting venue, as well as enhance the customer experience of watching motor sport. Pringle: "We can't be complacent. We got to find different ways of packaging it up." Mirhashemi said that in the U.S. there was a "certain level" of hospitality and service that you have to meet. Mirhashemi added that hospitality packages were unique to each team it worked with. "Your customers in Dallas are vastly than your customers in New York," he said. "You have to be great at barbecues in Texas. You have to customize for you consumer. I am sure that is exactly what is going in Europe too."
John Reynolds is a writer in London.
