If this article had a title It would be called "Sour Sweet."

In the September edition of TROT, I had mentioned in Post Time that at the July board meeting management had recommended a fee increase for members in 2019.

With the recommendation to the board, it was noted that there has not been a fee increase to Standardbred Canada members since 2013, and since then the association has been trying its best to toe the line, cut costs, and look for ways to continue to provide the service our members have come to expect. However as the years march on, the practice of a freeze on fees no longer works, and it certainly is not sustainable going forward.

For five years as fee increases remained static, the ongoing costs of doing business continues to rise, the cost of living continues to increase and the group insurance premiums that Standardbred Canada has been able to offer its members continues to go up as membership declines and claims increase.

As stated above, the practice of no fee increases is simply not a sustainable model for the association.

Hence, with board approval, management has begun preparing for fee increases which will take effect on January 15th, 2019. In addition to this, Standardbred Canada will offer more options for members to consider which includes multi-year memberships that allows for a 5% discount, and protection against any potential price increases during that three year period.

Details regarding the member and service fee increases and three year options can be found on the website and in this month's TROT Magazine.

Recognizing that our industry continues to have challenges with horse supply, and attracting new participants and fans, one constant is that the costs of doing business is not decreasing. While a fee increase is not the magic bullet, Standardbred Canada needs to course correct, and this is one of many initiatives that we will be undertaking in the next year to ensure that the association is operating under a financially sustainable model. This will include an operational restructure and a more focused targeted approach in the services being offered. Further details of this will be detailed in next month's TROT Magazine.

And, now from Sour to Sweet.

This month Standardbred Canada is proud to announce our new, Member Value Program (MVP). Throughout this past year, we have been working to put together a membership discount program that will save you dollars when shopping at participating vendors across the country.

The MVP participating businesses and services so far include Avis/Budget Rent a Car, Choice Hotels including the Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Sleep Inn, Quality Inn, Econo Lodge and more, Grand & Toy, John Deere, Sherwin Williams and UPS.

Our members can enjoy discounts right now by simply visiting and registering online at www.scmvp.ca.

The program has been designed to provide more value to Standardbred Canada members, and the list of participating businesses will only grow as the program grows. So please take the time to register and begin receiving discounts at our participating MVP businesses and services.

Over the next few months, we will let you know how the Member Value Program is evolving including additional businesses that have agreed to come on board to offer our members more discounts. At this time I would like to thank all of those businesses who have eagerly come forward to join our Member Value Program already.

We hope you utilize the SC MVP and we look forward to expanding the list of discount opportunities for you in the near future.

Dan Gall,
President & CEO, Standardbred Canada
[email protected]