Jeff Hunt is a Canadian businessman who currently
owns the
Ottawa 67's hockey club of the
Ontario Hockey League. He
started a carpet-cleaning firm called Canway. His firm was in the
Profit Magazine 100 seven times in the 1990s.
OHL Hockey
In 1998, he purchased the Ottawa 67s and has seen his attendance
quintuple. When Jeff Hunt purchased the 67’s, the teams previous
owner had been spending just $25,000 a year on marketing costs.
Hunt would spend that amount every week once he became its new
owner. His goal with the 67s was to provide an NHL-calibre
experience, from the game and the music to the concessions and
promotions. His goal was to create a fan experience that appeals to
the whole family and connect the team with the community.One of the
highlights of his ownership was in 1999, when he led the team's bid
to host the
1999 Memorial Cup
tournament.
Despite that fact that in 1997 the tournament
had been hosted across the river in Hull,
Quebec, he was able to convince the Canadian Hockey League to host the
event in the city of Ottawa
and
guarantee his team a berth in the tournament. The 67's did
not disappoint, as every game of the series was sold out at the
10,550 seat Ottawa Civic Centre. The 67’s would go on to win the
Memorial Cup.
CFL Football
Jeff Hunt is a longtime fan of CFL football, he was a Rough Rider
season ticket holder and has attended eight Grey Cups. In 2006,
Jeff Hunt was part of the Golden Gate Capital group that was
regarded as the front-runner among three bids to land a CFL
expansion franchise for Ottawa. But The group withdrew after a
prominent group member was diagnosed with intestinal cancer. In
September 2007, Hunt confirmed that he was once again heading up a
group of local investors to talk to the CFL about bringing the
Canadian Football League back to Ottawa. Hunt wanted to take over
Lansdowne Park, home of Frank Clair Stadium, and operate football,
hockey and sports entertainment out of it. His objective was to
renovate the stadium itself, and add luxury suites and
state-of-the-art facilities.
On March 25, 2008, Hunt was awarded an expansion franchise.
The team
is expected to play at Frank Clair Stadium
if the stadium can be remodeled, and would play in
the 2012 CFL season and has been
conditionally awarded the right to host the 2014 Grey Cup game. A
Can $7 million fee was reported to have been
paid.
Charity
Jeff Hunt is also the organizer of the Jeff Hunt Charity Golf
Tournament. The tournament is in support of the University of
Ottawa Heart Institute. 90% of the tournament proceeds from the
tournament are be donated to the Ottawa Heart Institute, while the
remaining 10% are donated to the Ottawa 67's Foundation.
References
-
http://www.canadianbusiness.com/entrepreneur/managing/article.jsp?content=20071105_110314_5204
-
http://mastercardmemorialcup.com/2010/history_aboutMemCup.php
- http://www.cfl.ca/article/ottawa_ownership_group_bios
-
http://slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Football/CFL/Ottawa/2006/10/11/2000248-sun.html
-
http://www.sportsnet.ca/football/cfl/2007/09/27/ottawa_cfl_hunt/print/
- [1]. Regina Leader-Post. July 8, 2009.
- http://www.jeffhuntgolf.com/index.html
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