The founder and former chief executive of global online takeaway firm Just Eat, David Buttress, has been appointed the new chairman of Welsh rugby region the Dragons.
Mr Buttress, who hails from Cwmbran and built Just Eat from a basement start-up in 2008 into a global business which now has a market capitalisation on the London Stock Exchange of £4.7bn, has also invested in the club in a move giving him a minority equity stake alongside majority owner the Welsh Rugby Union.
The WRU acquired the club, based at Rodney Parade in Newport, earlier this year. The club is now debt free and has seen a £750,000 investment in a new Desso pitch at the ground, which is also used by Newport RFC and long-term tenant in football team Newport County.
Mr Buttress, who as a youngster supported one of the 73 clubs in Gwent in Pontypool, confirmed he is looking to bring in other board members, who will not only add value and expertise to help create a sustainable business for the long-term, but also potentially invest too.
Mr Buttress, who stood down as chief executive of Just Eat earlier this year but who remains on its board, as well as being a partner in global venture capital firm 83North, believes the region - which has one of the biggest player bases of any club or region in the UK - can be commercially sustainable, but that success has to be judged over the long term and not in “six months’ time.”
The value of his investment into the business has not been disclosed, with Mr Phillips describing the new chairman as anything but the traditional model of a rugby club benefactor who regularly has to invest or underwrite loans to maintain a going concern status.
The WRU chief executive added: "I definitely wasn’t looking for a benefactor as that is a boom and bust cycle. We have spent a lot of time talking with David over the last few months. And we are trying to build something here that works. Yes David is investing, but we are not saying year after year can you write a cheque, in fact it is the opposite.
“We have to back ourselves with Stuart [Dragons’ chief executive Stuart Davies] and the team to say can we make this thing sustainable? So splashing the cash on marquee players is not what we are going to do.
"That’s Bernard’s [Dragons’ new coach Bernard Jackman] job with a sensible budget that over time allows us to invest to improve. So we are not here for some wow signings just to impressive everybody.”
Mr Buttress, 40, added: “I don’t see myself as a benefactor, but someone who is part of the team who has a job to do and doing that to the best of my ability... and that’s it. I have a contribution to make.”
The entrepreneur said the immediate focus would be on maximising opportunities to drive commercial revenues.
The Dragons, who lost their opening match of the Pro-14 season against Leinster at home on Saturday although in front of an encouraging crowd of more than 6,000, currently operate within the confines of a squad budget of around £3.5m, which is less than the other three regions in Wales and sides in Scotland and Ireland in particular.
Mr Buttress said: “It is day one, so the plan over the coming weeks and months is that Stuart and I, and the rest of team, will go through what we think are the biggest opportunities and prioritise them accordingly, as there are always 20 or 30 things you can do in any business.
“However, the really great businesses do the four to five things that are really going to make change and big improvements.
“But I am definitely impatient to get started and driving as much improvement as we can and as quickly as we can, as we all want the same thing, which is for the Dragons to be as successful off the pitch commercially as we possibility can be, which hopefully will enable us to be more successful on the pitch.”
New board at the Dragons
The new look board, which will have a representative from the executive team of the WRU, although not Mr Phillips, will number around five or six.
Mr Buttress said good progress was being made in assembling the board.
He added: “They have to bring value to how this club operates, so that’s the first thing they have to bring and be passionate about it.”
But if they also opted, like he has, to make a financial contribution as well, he added: “That would be more than welcome.”
In context of other teams in the league with higher player budgets he said: “I am not looking at what the other guys have, but what we have and how we do it.
“And if we can be the best that we can be everyday, then that’s the standard we should aspire to.
“We sit on top of a player pool in Gwent which is one of the biggest in the UK, so for us to use money or any excuse for not being competitive for me is a none starter.
“We have a fantastic opportunity to drive financial improvement, but also to engage locally with the playing pool of talent, which means I think absolutely we can compete with anyone on the pitch. And that has to be the medium to long-term plan.
“And everything we do will be about trying to build something for the long term, as that is what it is all about... and nothing will be done with the short term in mind. In the end what will determine success is what this region looks like in four, five and six years’ time, and not what it looks like in six months.”
Message to the fans
In a message to supporters he said: “What I will be is someone who is committed and as passionate as they are about the team and them being successful.
"Secondly, I will be someone who will be listening and engaging with them. We will want to know what their experiences are like around the club. And I will definitely be open to hearing their ideas for sure.
"And the third thing they can expect from me is a very clear transparency about what is going to happen.”
Mr Buttress said it was also important that the club reached out more to fans – particularly women - and clubs across the region.
And while there are currently no firm plans, the intention is to play some games away from Rodney Parade.
He said he would also look at the potential for commercial developments around the ground.
Mr Buttress attended Croesyceiliog Comprehensive School before leaving for Middlesex University and embarking on a business career.
