SUCCESS
Volume – it ’ s only five years old , but Event Cup Solutions has already supplied a staggering 30m cups to its customers .
UP FOR THE CUP
Reusable cup firm raises glass to ‘ game-changing ’ innovation
WORDS : DAVE ROBSON PICTURES : STUART BOULTON
You could understand if John Reeves raised a celebratory glass when he looks at the football Premier League table – and yet he doesn ’ t support any of the teams .
Instead , Rangers fan John can toast the success of his company knowing that the clubs at the top of the table all use Event Cup Solutions to keep supporters refreshed .
This year – which is only its fifth – the Middlesbrough-based firm is on target to wash and supply a staggering THIRTY MILLION reusable cups to venues across the UK .
Clients include eight of the 10 Premier League clubs currently employing the trademarked ONE Planet ONE Chance reusable cup solution – Manchester City , Liverpool , Aston Villa , Chelsea , Tottenham Hotspur , Brentford , Everton and Wolves .
Then there are the latest additions to the Event Cup stable , including Premiership rugby union side Northampton Saints , the 14,300-capacity OVO Hydro in Glasgow
Having a ball – clients include no less than eight Premier League clubs .
48 | Tees Business and one of the most iconic indoor venues of all , Wembley Arena .
To cope with demand , Event Cup has now added wash centres in Manchester and London to existing facilities in Birmingham and Middlesbrough ’ s Skippers Lane .
It means that next year , with expected growth in the sports and venues sector – predominantly football , rugby , horse racing and cricket – Event Cup Solutions should wash and return between 45m and 50m cups .
And one of the keys to that growth is an innovation that ’ s being universally described by potential clients as a “ gamechanger ”.
John explained : “ We ’ ve just signed an agreement with a company that specialises in RFID technology – radio frequency identification – which basically gives every cup an ID .
“ At the point a customer buys a cup at a venue , we can link the cup to the card they use to buy their drink , which means we can charge a deposit . It then means that when they return their cup at an auto return point , the deposit is automatically refunded to their card without any human intervention .
“ The benefit to the venue is that it increases the cup return rate because there ’ s a financial penalty for people who don ’ t return their cups . Also , the system will identify where somebody has received their cup and not been charged , so it ’ s about profit protection too .
“ We ’ ve presented it to four or five iconic UK venues and they ’ re all using the term ‘ game-changer ’. We ’ ll be the first to market this in the UK – we ’ ve just signed an agreement so we ’ ve got the exclusive rights for the UK and Ireland for this solution .”
John said Event Cup is working with two football clubs about a pilot for RFID in the first quarter of 2025 – and some large cricket venues have expressed a firm interest .
The extra capacity RFID should bring will see Event Cup Solutions continue to grow , with John estimating a workforce leap from 35 full-time employees to more than 50 next year .
Reflecting on the firm ’ s first five years , he said : “ The rate of growth has been challenging at times but it proves the model we designed and developed was right for the market at the right time .
“ As our competitors are now switching to our type of model , that ’ s where innovation becomes really important to us – and that ’ s another reason behind RFID . We ’ ve almost got to keep the back door locked and keep well ahead of the competition and we ’ ll do that through innovation .
“ We ’ ve learned quickly , we ’ ve adapted quickly , we ’ ve got ahead of the competition and we ’ re now the market leaders in the sports and venues sector . To stay there , we ’ ve got to get the level of innovation right and that ’ s what we ’ re doing with RFID .
“ Our pipeline in new business next year looks healthy and with the RFID technologies and capabilities , it will put us in a unique position in the UK market .”
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