The balloons are not yet bouncing on the floor of the Halle-Bérégovoy in Mondeville, this Tuesday, January 19, that Baptiste Gendrot is already active behind the scenes.
The USO Mondeville's commercial director takes boxes of delicious content from his safe: assorted cheeses and cold meats, galettes des Rois, and a bottle of wine.
“It's for our 90 partners.
They all deserve this attention.
"
The initiative dates from the beginning of December, to deal with the closed session that keeps supporters and sponsors away from their favorite women's basketball team.
“We were the first to do so on the Place de Caen.
The ice hockey club took up the idea.
It makes the partners happy.
The distribution begins at the beginning of the afternoon on match days, broadcast online, throughout the Caen conurbation.
In a real estate agency, the manager eagerly discovers the meal tray.
"How's it going at the club?"
»She asks.
The opportunity for Baptiste Gendrot to give news and keep in touch with these local partners who, in normal times, vibrate to the rhythm of the baskets of basketball players from mondevillaise and enjoy other advantages, such as sports sessions, on Tuesdays and Thursdays. noon, with club equipment and a professional trainer.
Keep the link and preserve the club spirit
“We do not see that the portfolio, develops the commercial director.
USOM sells a service to its partners.
You have to take good care of people.
And we see that, despite the covid and the closed door, these professionals recommend us in their network.
It is important to us.
"
So these deliveries of products made by local food artisans are appreciated.
Gaëtan Aude, manager of a driving school partner of the club, "does not want to give money without return".
The links therefore go beyond: five players pass their license in his establishment.
“And then when the room reopens to the public, I am thinking of offering a competition on our Facebook page, to save places for our students.
This two-way partnership, maintained in times of crisis, encourages him "to come back to the stands with a megaphone to encourage Mondeville!"
"
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The meal tray comes with a coupon with the link to watch the game on the Internet.
The goal, hammered out by the club: to keep the link and preserve the club spirit, with loyal sponsors, who have re-engaged massively this season, despite the crisis.
Far from being trivial for a club like USO Mondeville: “Our 90 partners provide some € 250,000, € 300,000 in normal times.
It's a quarter of our budget, ”says Baptiste Gendrot.
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This January 19, in the empty room, Mondeville was to face Montbrison in Ligue 2. The covid finally got the better of the meeting, less than two hours before kick-off.
To the chagrin of President Olivier Liberge, who showed the photos of the meal trays to his players: “wow, they were too good!
The cold cuts and everything!
"And the leader to confide:" I am disgusted.
We had put the small dishes in the big ones to do well.
»Meals worth a little over € 2,500.
In the absence of a show on the ground that evening, the partners will at least have had some on their plate.