Wednesday 29 January 2020 10:57, UK
St Mirren could become the Scottish Premiership's second fan-owned club next year, with plans in place for a partnership between the supporters' trust and one of the country's biggest charities.
The St Mirren Independent Supporters Trust (SMISA) are set to link-up with social care charity and social enterprise, Kibble, to buy-out current owner Gordon Scott's shares in the club by 2021.
SMISA are already shareholders after jointly buying the club with Gordon in 2016 and were expected to complete phase two of their takeover in 2026.
Under the new plans, Kibble would buy 27.5 percent of Scott's shares now, with SMISA then taking its own stake to 51%.
SMISA's 1,200 members are being asked to vote on whether to accept the new proposals, with a members' meeting planned for next week.
SMISA chairman George Adam said: "St Mirren's place at the heart of life in the town is precious. We created the Buy The Buds campaign back in 2016 because we knew there could be no one better to safeguard that than the people who will care for it most, the fans.
"The deal unveiled today will deliver that, but it will do it in half the time, for half the cost and crucially, it will help create a stronger St Mirren.
"Kibble can bring new resource and expertise to help St Mirren grow as a business, but more than that, it can help grow the club's reach into the community of Paisley.
"Over the next few weeks, we'll be talking to our members about what this means and hopefully they will be as excited as we are by the possibilities."
Kibble chief executive Jim Gillespie said: "We are incredibly excited by this important plan for both organisations, both of which were founded in Paisley in Victorian times and are a part of the town's history.
"The purpose of our proposal is to step up Kibble's young workforce development programme and improve the future prospects of our young people, including employability options, skills and qualifications. Our executive team has been working on a strategic plan to maximise our opportunities along these lines within St Mirren FC."
Scott added: "When I took over as chairman and majority shareholder in 2016 it was with the intention of taking the club forward and working with SMISA to create a sustainable and successful fan ownership model.
"This is the right time, the right corporate partner and the right model. The club is in a very strong place right now - financially, in terms of stadium and academy infrastructure, and the people we have employed at all levels of the football club.
"Both myself and the current board are looking forward to embracing the expertise and support Kibble will bring and helping ensure a smooth transition into the majority fan-owned era."
Motherwell became the first fully fan-owned club in Scotland's top tier in 2016 Les Hutchison's 76% stake in the club was sold to the Well Society supporters group for £1 following talks which lasted a year.
