GC company affairs - on the right track?

Dear Member


Whilst 1 August marked the start of Gold Circle's new financial year, August 2012 heralds the dawning of an exciting new era in Gold Circle’s history.

The transfer of the Clairwood property to its new owner, Capital Property Fund was effected on 21 August. Consequent upon receipt of the net sale proceeds, the Gold Circle Group currently has aggregate cash funds on call with its bankers amounting to R470m. As Members are aware, R200m of the sale proceeds have been ring-fenced and protected for the future.

I refer to an exciting new era having dawned. This is evidenced by:
1. Gold Circle now having sufficient capital and funding to install an all-weather racing surface on the inside of the current grass track at Greyville. Facilities will also be upgraded and modernised to provide for racing taking place 80 times per annum at Greyville.

2. Gold Circle now having the capital and funding to upgrade, modernise and expand Training facilities.

3. Gold Circle embarking on a concerted marketing programme to broaden its membership base by attracting younger Members and more Black members to participate in the sport as members and Owners.

4. A management structure having been put in place for the Group, with appropriate positions and people so that the Group is able to be managed by its executive Management team with the non-executive directors performing a non-executive function.

5. The exciting results achieved by the Company in these difficult economic times.

STRATEGIC PLAN

For the past 15 years, Racing has faced stiff competition from the casino industry which has eroded our incomes and ability to build capital reserves and accumulate funds to upgrade our aging racing, training, IT and betting infrastructures. The significant losses incurred in 2009 and 2010 exacerbated this situation.

The proceeds received from the sale of Clairwood enable us to start addressing the upgrading and modernising of infrastructure and facilities but these upgrades and modernisations alone are not sufficient. We need to also position our business and commercial activities to grow revenues and cash flows in a responsible and sustainable manner.

Given the critical importance of ensuring Gold Circle adopts and implements the best possible strategy for its future, a “KZN Racing Think Tank” is to be held in early September for management and the Board to obtain the views and inputs from a cross-section of industry participants and investors, including Members, Owners,


Breeders, Trainers, Jockeys, Grooms, Administrators and Management. Members have been requested to please email any ideas and suggestions for Gold Circle’s future strategy so that these too can be taken into consideration.
All feasible ideas and suggestions tabled will be collated/recorded by an independent facilitator and presented to management and the Board when a detailed strategic planning exercise is conducted later in the year, following the election/appointment of the new Board.

DIRECTORATE

The Gold Circle Constitution/MOI provide for there to be at least 7 elected directors in the period up until the 2012 AGM and thereafter 7 elected directors, which provision Gold Circle complies with. Furthermore they provide that Directors shall have submitted probity examination documents to the relevant Gambling Board/licensing authority within a period of 180 days of being elected as it is a regulatory requirement that all directors undergo probity examinations.

A requirement of the probity application is that police and tax clearance certificates must be submitted as part of the application documentation. This has proved a major problem in 2012 as a number of applications were delayed in submission as tax clearance certificates are not issued until all queries relating to the taxpayer have been resolved. The delayed applications cannot now be submitted until such time as the licencing of Gold Circle as a Racing Operator, which is currently in progress, has been completed.

Accordingly, Messrs Butcher, De Klerk, and Sturlese have stepped down from the Board as they were unable to submit their probity applications in time. However, I am pleased to report that they have their necessary clearances and will make themselves available for the election to take place later this year.

Tony Rivalland has been appointed as a consultant, on a part-time basis, to assist with the running of the Summerveld training facility and the planning and design of the new training and racing facilities of Gold Circle, and has thus, in the interim, also stepped down from the Board.

No additional directors have been co-opted in the interim pending the general election to be held prior to the AGM as Gold Circle has more than the 7 elected directors as is required.

Given the success of the Board as it was constituted for the majority of the past year particularly in regard to turning the company around financially, re-establishing a management team and structure, being successful in the sale of the Clairwood property and in setting the path for separation with the Western Cape, we are fortunate to be able to rely on the continued attendance by Messrs Butcher, De Klerk, Rivalland and Sturlese, by invitation, at various Board and Committee Meetings to ensure continuity.

Nomination forms for persons wishing to stand for election in the forthcoming general election will be circulated to Members by the Company Secretary around the end of September 2012 and members who believe they can contribute to the future of Gold Circle should put their names forward to stand for election. We urge any person wishing to stand for election to please obtain a probity application document from the Company Secretary at the time of completing the nomination form to ensure they will be able to comply with the requirements and also, to apply for their tax and police clearance certificates as soon as possible thereafter to avoid the delays, frustrations and problems experienced this past year.

MEMBERS’ RACEMEETING
Members will be invited to a special Members race meeting to be held at Greyville, when the track re-opens in November, to celebrate the start of the new era of Gold Circle racing in KwaZulu-Natal and to be informed on the proposed upgraded racing and training facilities.
Yours Sincerely,

Robert Mauvis
Chairman

Interesting, so money was the primary problem and the primary solution?

Clairwood was/is the best track in south africa,shame it`s gone

lmao.....word is they have sent a delegation to china to check how the great wall was built so they can build one in order to keep the satelitte yards out for 9 months of the year...another story is they will sell summerveld as well and buy property down the north coast for a training centre....anybody got an idea which property it is or who owns it ?maybe craig can tell us

All sorts of stories going around but I cannot see why they are going to build new stables at Summerveld if they about to sell it?:S

what type of track will be put at greyville and which people will be involved with the selection and negotiating of such a valuable product?

how many will run in the july? Imagine the moaning.

WHAT EXCITING times lie ahead??? Sand as in Kranji, Lingfield, Southwell, Wolves Sha tin so very exciting it hit's u in the face?
Clairwood Park the end of an era where men of calibre put up these arenas for majestic beasts to outdo each other to get to the post first.

Now Greyville should read " Where the sea meets the turf and the sand."

I as a trainer look forward to an all weather (not sand) track at Greyville. Pouring at Scottsville or Greyville and cannot race on the grass we at least can still go there to race. People complain when racemeetings are abandoned and also complain when GC tries to cut down on the number of meetings lost by putting in an all weather track. Money earned for owners/trainers/jockeys on an all weather track will still be better than none earned at all as the horse is standing in the box with an abandoned turf meeting.

just make sure it's not a Vaal sand track

I agree with Mr H - Vaal Sand is rubbish !

The problem with Poly is the Weather - we cannot say which meeting will be rained out, at programming stage. And not all horses will like Poly, or will adapt to the change from Turf to Poly, when it rains.

So, if we thinking that by having Poly on "standby" in case it rains, think again ! Fields will diminish, together with Turnover and we will soon be dipping into the ring fenced R200M. ..

Think Tank. interesting. perhaps i should write in.

When in the UK we had Polytracks all over Newmarket and the Sheiks had just put in about 4kms themselves there. Surely they(the Sheiks) would not have gone that way if it was not pretty well tried out and proved good. Also Lingfield and Wolverhampton I actually raced at and I dont remember many times we could not work or race. If it is done right it will be a huge asset(and before any bright spark comments that GC might then sell it, I will!) to racing. Much better than sand and I cannot understand why the negative comments but we do have a number of posters who can only see that side. Don, I gather there will be consultations with the relavent stakeholders before a final decision on the track is taken. I cannot believe that I am replying to this thread while the Sharks are playing! Maybe it will show some people how important it is to get this right and I am convinced that the all weather is!