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Hoop dreams
Investors gamble that pro basketball can be profitable in Halifax
DON MILLS says it was “easy” to find people besides himself to bankroll another professional basketball team in Halifax.
That’s surprising considering the city’s last entry in the eightteam National Basketball League of Canada, the Halifax Rainmen, declared bankruptcy this summer. But Mills is confident the team will succeed on and off the court. The group has developed a three-year business plan and the goal is to be profitable by the end of its third year.
Whereas Mills describes the Rainmen as a “cash-strapped” franchise, the new Halifax team has an impressive roster of 25 investors, including developers Jim Spatz and Wadih Fares. Mills is no slouch in the business department himself. He is the CEO and co-founder of Corporate Research Associates, a Halifax-based public opinion and market research firm.
While the goal is to turn a profit in three years, it’s unlikely the investors will make a killing off of the team. However, Mills says the group is thinking beyond bank accounts with their involvement in this basketball franchise, which didn’t have a name as this magazine went to press. “They see professional basketball as an asset to Halifax,” Mills says. “This is part of building an interesting and exciting city for people to live and work in.”
1,000
The number of season ticket holders the franchise wants to have within three years
The number of season ticket holders the franchise wants to have within three years
40,000
The number of people in the Halifax urban core who said they would attend at least one professional basketball game a year
The number of people in the Halifax urban core who said they would attend at least one professional basketball game a year
90%
The percentage of Haligonians who believe a professional basketball team is good for the city.
The percentage of Haligonians who believe a professional basketball team is good for the city.
Source: Halifax Professional Basketball Club Inc. market study
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