England Cricket is looking for its fourth team sponsor in little more than seven years after Waitrose "confirmed that it will not renew its partnership when it expires" in March '17, according to Richard Hobson of the LONDON TIMES. The England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is "confident of securing a more lucrative deal" than the one with the supermarket chain that began in '14 and is worth an estimated £3M ($4.4M)-a-year, though the board "may struggle to meet a reported target to double the sum." Waitrose first revealed the decision publicly in its in-house newsletter "more than a week ago having previously informed the ECB." Vodafone sponsored the team between '96 and '10, but Brit then lasted four years before pulling out, citing "structural and strategic changes in business interests." A spokesperson for Waitrose said that it has decided "to focus our marketing activity on other areas." The ECB is understood to have employed TRM Partners "to identify potential backers" (LONDON TIMES, 2/13). The INT'L BUSINESS TIMES' Dan Cancian reported the decision is a "massive blow for the ECB," which has traditionally "struggled to attract main sponsors of Waitrose's profile from outside the financial industry, particularly as the retailer sponsored all England teams and was involved at grassroots level." An ECB spokesperson said, "We are talking to a range of potential partners keen on being involved with the team." Meanwhile, optical retail chain Specsavers is "expected to replace" LV= as the main sponsor of the County Championship, although the ECB, which earlier this month extended its partnership with Yorkshire Tea for a further three years, "is yet to formally confirm the deal" (IB TIMES, 2/12).
