Text 4 Sovereign Sponsor

Terje Bogen runs a profitable business with a staff of 35 in exclusive offices in Oslo. It has a subsidiary abroad, and an annual turnover in excess of $15 million. Almost all Europeans have seen his commodities, yet none are listed in any business directory.

Bogen’s Sponsorservice, which he and three partners formed in the 1990s, sells athletic and cultural performances. The recipe, as he puts it, is straightforward; ”Business should see sports and arts as effective market communications media which can be beneficially used for price”.

The price is what supports Sponsorservice, which acts as an intermediary for the valued media. Athletic associations “sell” their sports to the company which, in turn, guarantees annual income from advertising and other business sources. Similar arrangements are made with individual sports stars and performing artists.

For event organizers, the firm offers a range of services from ordinary public relations through complete administration. Bogen’s current stable of stars includes 15 sports associations, the Norwegian Olympic Committee, a dozen individual sports stars, performing musicians and opera singers, and, of course, national and international championship teams.

It all started long time ago, when Bogen, a former cross-country ski racing district champion and then current coach, sought finances for Bjerkesprinten, a race to be held by his ski club. Educated in marketing, he knew that the traditional hat-in-hand appeal was outmoded. Having assured TV coverage, he then tackled finances by selling space on the stadium billboards that would be within camera range, at around $1,500 per advertisement. The response and its effects were so overwhelming that Bogen found himself looking for further opportunities.

Today, the firm’s operations cover not only the whole of Norway but extend into central Europe, where an office in Munich works with German events.

Unit five. Forms of business ownership Text 1 Partnerships for Life

Family businesses have been around for a long time. They can take any form – sole proprietorship, partnership, or corporation. But now more than ever before, married couples are going into business together. Businesses co-owned by spouses are up more than 90% in the past decade.

As you can imagine, these couples have to cope with strains on both the business relationship and their personal relationship. Helen and Bob Elwick, for instance, risked everything to open a Brigham’s ice cream franchise in Massachusetts some years ago. The Elwicks avoid friction by clearly dividing responsibilities based on each spouse’s strengths and preferences. Each spouse has sole power over his or her area, and they then make decisions together that affect the business as a whole.

Clarity of expectations is so critical that some couples set up rules about how they’ll interact in business roles. Some of the rules: they can’t leave the room until an argument is settled; they flip a coin if they can’t resolve a dispute; and they never discuss their personal grievances with others.

Differing personalities can also be a problem – or they can be opportunities, as Hank and Sya Zoller demonstrate. They co-founded Boxworks, a franchise company that sells designer and utility boxes and wrapping paper. Hank is very organized; Sya is just the opposite. The couple uses this difference to advantage. Sya is the creative force behind products like designer gift-wrap. Hank oversees operations and finance.

Peter Wylie, a psychologist who counsels family business members, says successful entrepreneurial couples have four characteristics: they have confidence in each other; they respect each other; they have mutual trust; and they feel affection for each other.