The New Plan

Posted by Blip Central on behalf of Blipfuture CIC

Hi everyone. Thank you for waiting so patiently. Before getting into the detail we can tell you that the news is good.  We have renegotiated the deal to buy Blipfoto in such a way that we can reduce the fundraising target and go ahead with the amount of money already raised!  There are still some hurdles to get over, but the finish line is in sight. We are now allowing ourselves to feel very optimistic about the future of Blipfoto and we hope you will join us in this.

We will explain here what has changed and what happens next. As always, if you have any questions, please do email us on info@blipfuture.com.

We would like to acknowledge right away the current owners and their representative.  Their willingness to be flexible in their negotiations with us has gone a long way to making this deal possible.

The key messages are:

- We have a new business plan that we’ve created based on the latest negotiations with the current owners, and our improved understanding of active membership numbers.

- To execute the plan, we are announcing that we will be beginning the process of collecting the pledges and donations on or soon after Tuesday 26th January.

- You are still able to buy shares and donate, and we encourage you to do so. This will help us do more as we take over the site and in our aim to ensure sustainability.

The New Plan

It became clear as we progressed with the crowdfunding that there were fewer active users and a smaller number of people willing to pledge than was originally expected. This helped us to renegotiate the deal with the current owners, and the revised plan reflects a substantial reduction in the price to be paid for Blipfoto.  

This has allowed us to set a new, reduced minimum target for the crowdfunding campaign at £120,000 - which we have already reached.

Based on the number of active members we now see we have also reduced our planned running costs – mostly by eliminating the proposed staff member and office.  Administration and support will be dependent on volunteers and the customer service experience for members will reflect that.  We are heartened by the number of people that have stepped forward and volunteered to help run the site, and this change will allow us to set a membership fee structure in line with expectations.  One of our first intentions is to consult with the community on membership pricing and structure.

You can download the new business plan here. We really do encourage you to take the time to read the plan, so that you understand the changes.

Next Steps

We have changed the business plan and reduced the target for the crowdfunding campaign, so we now have to allow 7 days for everyone who has pledged to read the new information, after which we will begin the process of collecting the money from pledges and go ahead and buy Blipfoto.

We need to make sure that everyone who has pledged (bought shares or donated via the crowdfunding site) understands that there has been a change, so all pledgers should shortly be receiving an email to this effect.

We believe that the updated business plan reflects all of our vision for a community owned Blipfoto, which is sustainable with affordable memberships, and we hope you will support it.  If you have any questions please contact us at info@blipfuture.com or through the Q&A on the crowdfunding site.  If anyone who has pledged through the crowdfunding site at https://www.blipfuture.com is unhappy with the revised plan, they are free to cancel their pledge up until the money is collected.

You will still have the opportunity to buy shares or donate up until the 1st March and any money pledged will help us as we implement the business plan.

Assuming that the campaign total remains over the target of £120,000 after anyone who has had the chance to cancel has done so, we will collect money from pledgers’ accounts on or soon after Tuesday 26th January.

Please Keep Pledging

If you haven't pledged already then please don't think it's no longer necessary, just because the target may already have been reached! We still want to encourage anyone eligible (in the UK, EEA, CH) to own shares, and for others to donate.  Any funds raised over the crowdfunding target will provide us with money to do more things with the site and for the community. It all helps!

There is more information on the methods available to pledge here.

The Future

Now, it's down to everyone who has pledged so far to stay with us. We don't want you to act on blind faith so please do read the small print and make sure that you're happy with the revised plan.

All being well, this time next week, we hope to be able to make an even more positive announcement.

Thank you, from Annie, Bob, Graham and Ian at Blipfuture.