Port Vale welcome companies to Vale Park

Port Vale Football Club welcomed a host of businesses to the Port Vale Commercial Open Day yesterday.

The event was a chance to meet local and national companies covering a range of products and services.

Chief Executive Officer Norman Smurthwaite was in attendance and was on hand to talk to the 80 networking delegates.

The afternoon event included a tour of Vale Park and a buffet.

Commercial Director John Booth declared the day a success and believed that winning teams such as Port Vale attract winning businesses.

Booth said: “It’s been better than we could have hoped for today, we’ve had a lot of businesses come along.

“We are a company and a Club going in the right direction and that always appeals to business, they like to be involved with success.

“Some we know and some we don’t, it all bodes well for next season and we will get a lot of interest in the commercial side of the club.

"I think the audience is about 50% businesses and organisations known to Port Vale and 50% companies who haven’t had any recent dealings with us.”

The day saw local Burslem and Stoke-on-Trent companies in attendance and Commercial Director Booth believes it is important to work locally as well as nationally.

“We’ve got a good cross section here, national brands who we have been talking to about various sponsorship opportunities right down to some Burslem-based companies who have small niche businesses.

“Football is a vehicle for any business, you get great brand awareness, but a lot of businesses want to give something back to their customers or their staff and football is a great vehicle for doing that.”