Music Venue Properties, the independent Charitable Community Benefit Society created by Music Venue Trust to buy the freeholds of at-risk grassroots music venues, has announced a new campaign, ‘Give The Gift of Ownership’, to encourage music fans to gift shares in the scheme to friends and family this Christmas. Music Venue Properties has already identified nine potential grassroots music venue acquisitions throughout the UK and the ‘Give The Gift of Ownership’ campaign will raise much needed funds to pursue this ambitious project. To date almost £2.5m has been raised from over 1200 individual investors and the Music Venue Properties crowdfunding platform ‘Own Our Venues’ has now re-opened for further share sales to support this campaign.To date almost £2.5m has been raised from over 1200 individual investors and the Music Venue Properties crowdfunding platform ‘Own Our Venues’ has now re-opened for further share sales to support this campaign.Anyone can gift a share under the ‘Give The Gift of Ownership’ initiative with a minimum investment of £50. The recipients of shares automatically become a member and co-owner of the Charitable Community Benefit Society and its assets and will receive a guaranteed 3% APR return on their investment.
When gifting, purchasers simply select ‘This investment is a gift’ and enter the name and address of the recipient in the ‘Registered Address’ section when they checkout. Once the investment has been processed a digital copy of the share certificate is then sent within 10 working days. Chris Prosser, Director of Music Venue Properties said, “By supporting the ‘Give The Gift of Ownership’ campaign music fans will provide much needed resources for Music Venue Properties to acquire the freehold of more at-risk grassroots music venues. With 16% of the UK’s grassroots music venues having closed in the last 12 months at a rate of two per week, this initiative serves as a timely reminder that these are more than just spaces; they are cultural landmarks that have witnessed the rise of legendary bands and the birth of countless musical memories, while also acting as platforms for emerging artists to hone their craft and connect with fans. Giving the gift of ownership to friends and family this Christmas supports not only music but strengthens the communities these venues are a part of while proving that the public can and should take ownership of the cultural scenes they build.”
