All-Star Varsity Brands For Sale?

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Could this be a move to remove a for profit company from the perposal for STUNTS by removing VBI?

My original question did NOT indicate VBI would disappear, the question focused upon any speculation regarding "CHANGE" for the industry and what would happen if some of VBI Senior Management were to be replaced by New management. So far, many possibilities are surfacing including;

None
VBI breaking into parts
Cheer Gyms replacing training clinics for school based programs
Competition replacing current large uniform producers & suppliers
USASF/IASF change in ownership; possibly to membership fees versus administration backed by VBI
Movement of USASF/IASF into non-profit status; different than USA Cheer today
Competition sponsorship absorbed by existing & new Competition Companies

Others?
 
I have witnessed enough important USASF decisions to see for myself that Varsity as an entity does not exert control over USASF. However, I'm sure that nothing I could say would deter some people from their conspiracy theories.

USASF gets the bulk of its operating revenue from the net profit from Worlds. The "seed" money was there to get the USASF up to the point where it could fund itself. It is more than doing that now, even returning a large portion of the money that was borrowed. I believe that the operating budget is publicly available.

Ideally, I would like the funding for the USASF to be more evenly distributed among the industry. As it stands, many people criticize the USASF for being "all about Worlds" or "all about level 5." While I would disagree with that statement, the fact remains that Worlds and the Level 5 athletes are essentially the ones paying all of the "cheer tax".

You really believe VBI does NOT exert control over the decision process of USASF?

USASF Board of Directors directly or indirectly connected to VBI business ventures would influence control. Currently VBI has over 50% control for issues addressed by USASF when they recognize a business need.

Why would VBI provide the "seed" money to establish USASF ... unless it would provide new business opportunities?

Has all of the "seed" money for USASF been repaid to VBI, or is there an outstanding balance, if so what balance remains?
 
You really believe VBI does NOT exert control over the decision process of USASF?

USASF Board of Directors directly or indirectly connected to VBI business ventures would influence control. Currently VBI has over 50% control for issues addressed by USASF when they recognize a business need.

Why would VBI provide the "seed" money to establish USASF ... unless it would provide new business opportunities?

Has all of the "seed" money for USASF been repaid to VBI, or is there an outstanding balance, if so what balance remains?

That is true. I do not believe that Varsity as an entity exerts control over the decision process of USASF. They certainly express their opinions and those opinions are given weight - in much the same way that JAM Brands, the independent EPs, the NACCC, and several gym owners do. If I did not have the opportunity to witness the way that most of the important decisions were made, I may believe as you do, however, I have been privy to MANY discussions and votes regarding the direction of the USASF so I am in a better position to judge how much influence VBI has.

VBI does not have "over 50%" control of the decisions. They have less than 50% of the Board. The Varsity employees could ALL vote in unison (which actually seldom happens on contentious issues) and they could still get overridden.

VBI provided the "seed" money to do exactly what the USASF mission statement reads. They believed that they would get the money back (which they either have or are close) and that the new USASF would do precisely what it is doing - organize the all star market, give it credibility, provide a uniform set of rules and guidelines, and yes, help promote the safety of the sport. I do think that it indirectly has or will make them more money as all star continues to grow. However, this is also true of JAM brands, other EPs, and the majority of gym owners. It is absolutely in VBIs best interest that All Star continues to grow and expand and I think that they believed that investment in the industry itself would probably pay off.

I do not know the remaining balance. My guess is that at least half has been repaid, but I am not certain of the exact amount.

"For profit" businesses do not automatically have nefarious motives for everything they do. Example: nearly every gym that has a special needs team loses money on it. Does that mean that there somehow MUST be some underlying motive that means they will make more money in the long run? NO. Corporations aren't automatically lifeless, coldhearted, and greedy by definition. They are simply groups of people that, more often than not, want was is best for society as a whole.

Do I think that VBI is perfect? Hardly. They do things that I wholeheartedly disagree with. They do things that I think present clear and obvious conflicts of interest. (Example: I can't believe it doesn't upset more people that VBI owns gyms that compete and win at VBI events - beating out gyms that are not owned by VBI.) That is not the same as me saying I think they are doing anything underhanded. It does mean that I think there are more obvious targets for those hell-bent on exposing some vast conspiracy.

Bottom line: If people truly believe that Jeff Webb dons his Hitler mustache and sends his Varsity troops goose-stepping down the hallway to order USASF to squeeze money out of the broken, lifeless bodies of 8 year old cheerleaders, then there probably isn't much I can say to dissuade them. Those types never let truth get in the way of their opinion. All I can say is that my experience is that Varsity is generally in the business for the right reasons and the Varsity employees do NOT collude within the USASF to get the result that is best for VBI. The USASF folks are genuinely interested in the health of the industry as a whole.
 
That is true. I do not believe that Varsity as an entity exerts control over the decision process of USASF. They certainly express their opinions and those opinions are given weight - in much the same way that JAM Brands, the independent EPs, the NACCC, and several gym owners do. If I did not have the opportunity to witness the way that most of the important decisions were made, I may believe as you do, however, I have been privy to MANY discussions and votes regarding the direction of the USASF so I am in a better position to judge how much influence VBI has.

VBI does not have "over 50%" control of the decisions. They have less than 50% of the Board. The Varsity employees could ALL vote in unison (which actually seldom happens on contentious issues) and they could still get overridden.

VBI provided the "seed" money to do exactly what the USASF mission statement reads. They believed that they would get the money back (which they either have or are close) and that the new USASF would do precisely what it is doing - organize the all star market, give it credibility, provide a uniform set of rules and guidelines, and yes, help promote the safety of the sport. I do think that it indirectly has or will make them more money as all star continues to grow. However, this is also true of JAM brands, other EPs, and the majority of gym owners. It is absolutely in VBIs best interest that All Star continues to grow and expand and I think that they believed that investment in the industry itself would probably pay off.

I do not know the remaining balance. My guess is that at least half has been repaid, but I am not certain of the exact amount.

"For profit" businesses do not automatically have nefarious motives for everything they do. Example: nearly every gym that has a special needs team loses money on it. Does that mean that there somehow MUST be some underlying motive that means they will make more money in the long run? NO. Corporations aren't automatically lifeless, coldhearted, and greedy by definition. They are simply groups of people that, more often than not, want was is best for society as a whole.

Do I think that VBI is perfect? Hardly. They do things that I wholeheartedly disagree with. They do things that I think present clear and obvious conflicts of interest. (Example: I can't believe it doesn't upset more people that VBI owns gyms that compete and win at VBI events - beating out gyms that are not owned by VBI.) That is not the same as me saying I think they are doing anything underhanded. It does mean that I think there are more obvious targets for those hell-bent on exposing some vast conspiracy.

Bottom line: If people truly believe that Jeff Webb dons his Hitler mustache and sends his Varsity troops goose-stepping down the hallway to order USASF to squeeze money out of the broken, lifeless bodies of 8 year old cheerleaders, then there probably isn't much I can say to dissuade them. Those types never let truth get in the way of their opinion. All I can say is that my experience is that Varsity is generally in the business for the right reasons and the Varsity employees do NOT collude within the USASF to get the result that is best for VBI. The USASF folks are genuinely interested in the health of the industry as a whole.

I agree with you on all except one part, and I could be way off base with this, but how many major companies wouldn't lose major money if world's didn't exist. The creation of an actual national championship that wasn't sole profitting their competitors gives reason for more teams to travel further and further to compete at their big nationals. I would have to do some math, but i would assume they gain a lot more money from the teams trying to get bids but don't than they lose from paying for said bids. offering a worlds bid that entice programs to come equals a lot of money.

If VBI knew that the USASF would market a world championship (I don't honestly know if they did, but I assume this was part of the reason for its creation, this is before my cheer time though) they probably stood to reason that they stood to profit from its very existence.

Is that evil? No, just really smart. It gives them the power to say that they made a great thing possible (which is true), it profits everyone including their competitors while still providing them oppurtunities for even more money as well. If they wanted a governing body that they controlled they could have made their own, made it to where you had to get a bid at a varsity event to go to their world championship, and maybe made a little more money in the short term, but people would see through it and companies would imitate it, stealing business away and destroying the whole purpose and we would call all of our nationals world championships . Making everyone involved (even if they have a very big voice in it) makes them more money in the long term.
 
Bottom line: If people truly believe that Jeff Webb dons his Hitler mustache and sends his Varsity troops goose-stepping down the hallway to order USASF to squeeze money out of the broken, lifeless bodies of 8 year old cheerleaders, then there probably isn't much I can say to dissuade them. Those types never let truth get in the way of their opinion. All I can say is that my experience is that Varsity is generally in the business for the right reasons and the Varsity employees do NOT collude within the USASF to get the result that is best for VBI. The USASF folks are genuinely interested in the health of the industry as a whole.

In other words, if someone is looking for a conspiracy, they'll find it. Whether it exists or not.
 
I agree with you on all except one part, and I could be way off base with this, but how many major companies wouldn't lose major money if world's didn't exist. The creation of an actual national championship that wasn't sole profitting their competitors gives reason for more teams to travel further and further to compete at their big nationals. I would have to do some math, but i would assume they gain a lot more money from the teams trying to get bids but don't than they lose from paying for said bids. offering a worlds bid that entice programs to come equals a lot of money.
Perhaps, but, there are many programs that will just send their one team to try and earn a bid.

I would be interested to see the effects on a particular companies non-worlds bid giving events. You see, a lot of these competitions have gone down dramatically since the inception of worlds bids.
 
I would be interested to see the effects on a particular companies non-worlds bid giving events. You see, a lot of these competitions have gone down dramatically since the inception of worlds bids.

Keep in mind that coincidence is not causation. Just because some events have declined or been eliminated since 2004 does not mean it's due to Worlds. Some of them were just run poorly and as others improved it became more obvious.
 
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