Tag: Dan Jamieson

Introducing… Giveback Giveaways

March 24, 2020
AnnouncementsGiveaways & Competitions

There are lots of things we love about creating the world’s best signed memorabilia. But among the very best of those things is when we hear from our customers about how we made their day, their month or their year.

It’s better still when we’re told we brought unbridled happiness to a child’s face, reduced a parent to tears of joy or, quite simply, when we’ve made another birthday extra special. It’s why we do what we do.

At Icons we were thinking about what we could do in these uncertain times to bring more joy to the world. That’s when I remembered a phrase I like to use and one I try to live by: “choose generosity.”

So, this week we’re launching Giveback Giveaways across both Icons.com and A1 Sporting Memorabilia with the kind help of some of our closest partners, suppliers and friends.

We were thinking about what we could do to bring more joy to the world. That’s when I remembered… “choose generosity.”

All throughout this week we’ll be asking our fans and followers to nominate someone deserving to receive something special from us in the hope that it will bring them joy in these difficult times.

With a warehouse full of amazing products, continued worldwide distribution, and a little extra time on our hands, we figured we could put our efforts into getting gifts out to people across the UK and around the world. We’ll gather ten prizes across the two sites each week and, via social media, try to find the heroes who deserve them.

Why not nominate a nurse or a doctor working all hours; self-isolating grandparents stuck indoors; or a sports-loving child bored with no-one to play with.

We have signed shirts, photos and boots to giveaway, plus unsigned shirts, trophies, posters and footballs. With the help of our friends and colleagues at DHL International we can still get these great prizes out to all four corners of the globe.

One of our company mottos is that “we believe in heroes” and while that usually means the icons of sport we work with, right now it’s the people on the frontline of this global crisis. They need our support the most in these trying times so we’re asking you to help us find them.

Stay safe, take care, look after your own team and, once again, we thank you for your ongoing support.

For more information about how possible restrictions due to the Coronavirus outbreak may affect ordering from Icons.com, please contact Customer Support via customersupport@icons.com.

Follow Icons on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for all our latest blog posts, special offers and competitions.


From Our CEO: Business As Usual

March 18, 2020
From Our CEO

Here at Icons.com, we wanted to provide an update for all our customers, suppliers and friends in sport. In particular we’d like to assure everyone that for the time being we are still operating business as usual – but, of course, there are a few changes.

We are still taking orders 24/7 from all around the world and dispatching said orders to 3-4 working day(s) timeframe. To allow this to continue, while adhering to the all the safe-working practices and protocols recommended to us by the UK government, we have closed our headquarters in London. Our distribution facility in Dorset is, at the time of writing, unaffected. 

We care deeply about the safety and wellbeing of our staff and all those around us. So we will continue to keenly monitor the ongoing developments and take every precaution as necessary.

We dispatch using DHL and their world class international shipping service and, as such, we’re able to continue to send out orders to all four corners of the world on a daily basis with no problems.

While the football season is suspended, we’ve decided to reach out to our friends and partners across the wider football community to give away some of our iconic products – hopefully bringing cheer to some lucky winners in these uncertain times. Look out for promotions, competitions and giveaways over the coming weeks. We’re very excited about what we have planned. 

Stay safe, take care, look after your own team and thank you for your ongoing support.

For more information about how possible restrictions due to the Coronavirus outbreak may affect ordering from Icons.com, please contact Customer Support via customersupport@icons.com.

Follow Icons on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for all our latest blog posts, special offers and competitions.


From Our CEO: All Of Us Are Fans At Heart

April 17, 2019
From Our CEO

I was born and raised in Liverpool and have been a massive fan of Liverpool FC since before I can remember. I grew up in the city when Liverpool and Everton were the two best teams in the country – if not Europe – and I remember not bothering to go to the open-top bus parades if we had ‘only’ won the league. Things aren’t quite the same nowadays.

Last Tuesday I was back in the city for the first leg of our UEFA Champions League quarter-final tie against FC Porto. Quite unlike my unfortunately rare childhood visits to the ground, I was there last week as a guest of UEFA.

Icons have been an official UEFA’s licensed partner for memorabilia for seven years now and it’s the most successful licence we have. With our unrivalled roster of European superstars, we created an official UEFA Champions League range which is sold all around the world. Most recently we had a large order from MasterCard, who are using our signed memorabilia to promote their sponsorship of the tournament in Singapore and Thailand.

Our licensing manager, Ben, is also a big Liverpool fan. So, he and I take full advantage whenever we are invited to watch the Reds by our friends at UEFA. I was at last season’s quarter-final as Liverpool beat Manchester City and I was there for our epic UEFA Europa League semi-final triumph over Villarreal in 2016. I’ve seen some pretty huge Jurgen Klopp-inspired victories over these past few years!

Point is, here at Icons we are all huge football fans at heart. I grew up very rarely being able to get into Anfield and now I have been lucky enough to go three years in a row. We wanted the UEFA Champions League licence because we love the competition and we thought we could bring something unique to the party. The same goes with our official FIFA licence, which we’ve had for nine years now.

We love our teams, our stars and the iconic nights under the lights. It’s what football is all about and it’s exactly why we do what we do: always aiming to bring other fans closer to their heroes.

See the full range of Official UEFA Champions League signed memorabilia by clicking here.

Follow Icons on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for all our latest blog posts, special offers and competitions.


From Our CEO: Experience The World’s Best with Icons XP

October 19, 2018
From Our CEO

One of the pivotal moments of my life happened in Barcelona. It was 2001 and I was drinking cheap cava in a hillside terrace bar overlooking the city. Dusk fell and the cityscape turned sparkly. I had a job I hated for a dotcom startup in London and I was on a football tour in the Catalan capital.

“Why don’t I just quit my job and come and live here? It’s got sun, sand and sexy football – what more could you want?” I asked.

Five months later I’d left everything behind to move to Barcelona to play, watch and teach people how to talk about football. Some of my friends were incredulous. They said: “You’re just going out there for the experience. Why would you do that?”

Fast forward to 2018. I’m reading an article written by the founder of Airbnb, Brian Chesky. He’s talks about how his company have been able to create a trust platform, unlocking the spaces left vacant in people’s spare rooms and empty houses. Their next step, he explains is to create 100 million entrepreneurs, unlocking the potential not of spaces but of people. “We’re creating Airbnb experiences where people all over the world offer their talents, skills and knowledge to others to buy as they travel. Hidden city tours, salsa classes, art history lessons, Airbnb can use its trust platform to put consumers together with suppliers,” Chesky says.

Now, what that got to do with memorabilia?

Well, firstly, if we can bring memorabilia together with memories, we are tapping into what Generation XP want more than anything: stories to tell. At Icons, we have access to the world’s biggest superstar footballers and we can get to the world’s greatest sporting events. Hey, it’s why I do what I do.

So, this month we’re launching Icons XP with the tagline ‘Experience The World’s Best’. As with lots of these ideas, we start in Barcelona. Icons now have a private corporate box at Camp Nou. If you love Leo Messi, you can now buy Experience Memorabilia package from Icons.com and be our guests at his next game to see him play in the flesh. We were in the box for the Joan Gamper Trophy earlier in the year and the little magician we love so much scored right in front of us. Imagine watching El Clasico or a UEFA Champions League semi-final and seeing Leo, Luis Suarez or Philippe Coutinho doing something truly iconic? Maybe we can even get them to pop into the box after the match to say hello… we’re working on it.

Now wouldn’t that would be an iconic experience?

While it starts with Barcelona it most certainly does not end there. Icons are co-promoting a speaker tour that brings Manchester United legend Eric Cantona to London, Manchester and Ireland throughout October. Icons founder Edward Freedman worked with Eric at United and, in fact, Cantona was the first player he got to sign shirts, making him the very first on a long and ever expanding list of Icons. For Eric’s tour, Icons XP is offering VIP and VVIP tickets that allows fans to come backstage to meet Eric himself. When we did this two years ago a grown man fainted upon meeting Le God. That’s what it means to our customers.

Memories plus memorabilia. That has a nice ring to it, I think.

If we can bring fans closer to their heroes through events, tickets, boxes or meets and greets, we will. Our roster comprises the biggest names in sport and we have a reputation for running the best competitions and giveaways for money-can’t-buy prizes. If The FC Barcelona Experience and Eric Cantona Live work, we’ll expand, offering more and more experiences to our customers. Maybe we can even put together those experiences in cities around the world with Airbnb’s local experts. A Diego Maradona tour around Boca in Buenos Aires, for example. Maybe a Steven Gerrard framed memento from a trip to Anfield or a native New Yorker talking you through the iconic nights of Madison Square Gardens.

Icons XP is a new way to get closer to your heroes. And we couldn’t be more excited to bring it to you. See you in Barcelona soon.

  • FC Barcelona Experience Memorabilia packages are available for matches throughout FC Barcelona’s 2018/19 campaign, including the world-famous El Clasico derby plus crucial La Liga clashes, thrilling Copa Del Rey ties and, of course, those epic UEFA Champions League nights. Contact experiences@icons.com for prices, match availability and further information.
  • Eric Cantona kicks off his UK speaker tour on October 24th with a show at the Hammersmith Apollo in London. VIP and VVIP tickets are available for all dates. Click here for more information.

Press Release: We’re pioneering blockchain tech in the fight against fakes

September 20, 2018
Announcements

  • Market leader Icons worked with digital agency Zone to launch blockchain application
  • Revolutionary tech will enhance consumer trust by tracking the provenance of signed items
  • App will also be used in the fight against fakes and frauds
  • Leo Messi signed shirts among the first items to be ‘b-locked’

London, 18 September 2018 – The world’s largest football memorabilia company has become the first application of a pioneering blockchain solution that underpins the value of signed items with the aim of securing consumer trust.

Icons, the world’s leading originator and supplier of signed football memorabilia, has joined with digital experts Zone to create Icons b-locked, an online ledger that tracks the provenance of signed items.

The first items to be used in the Icons b-locked application will be shirts autographed by Lionel Messi during a private signing session with the FC Barcelona superstar in mid-September.

Icons b-locked uses blockchain – the distributed ledger technology that sits behind cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin – to create a permanent record of signed items, including details of when and where each item was signed.

Consumers use a unique code assigned to their product to view specific details of the item and its associated signing.

The technology comes at a time when the sports memorabilia market, estimated to be worth $2-4billion, is under threat from the rise of fraudsters manipulating online auction websites, as well as the emergence of automated robots capable of replicating signatures for fake products.

Icons CEO, Dan Jamieson, says: “At Icons, we’ve always gone to extraordinary lengths to provide evidence of the authenticity of our goods – not only for our customers but also for the integrity of the market.

“Every day we’re asked if our products are really signed by the players themselves. Consumers need more reassurance than ever. That’s why we’ve worked with Zone to create this world-first product. We want this to be the gold standard which ultimately helps the market grow.”

Edward Freedman, Icons founder, added: “I truly believe that Icons b-locked will put to rest the question of authenticity. It will revolutionise our industry and hopefully it will take us to a level that everyone will be aspiring to.”

Icons has been working with the world’s biggest sports stars since 1999 and has entered into exclusive contracts with the likes of Lionel Messi, Diego Maradona and Eden Hazard.

The company has long-term relationships with Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar Jr and Eric Cantona, among many others. It has had the exclusive official UEFA Champions League memorabilia license for the past six seasons and the worldwide deal was recently renewed for the 2018-21 cycle. Icons also has official memorabilia licences for the FIFA World Cup and FA England.

Jon Davie, Chief Client Officer at Zone, commented: “For all the hype about blockchain, practical applications so far have been few and far between.

“Working with Icons, we had an opportunity to create a blockchain application that ordinary customers can experience, understand and benefit from. The opportunities are endless. Not just in the sports memorabilia market, but in art, antiques, collectables – any market where establishing authenticity and tracking provenance is important.”

For more information please contact Icons CEO Dan Jamieson (dan@icons.com or +44 20 7267 3934).

Stay up-to-date with Icons b-locked by joining us on Telegram. Click here to join our channel.

About Zone

One of the UK’s leading technology and customer experience agencies, Zone is part of global professional services giant Cognizant, who acquired the agency in October last year.

Recently hailed by the London Stock Exchange as one of the UK’s most inspiring companies, the agency’s 250+ strategy, content and technology experts helps ambitious brands such as Adidas, BMW, Aviva, Barratt Homes, Electrolux, Lloyds Banking Group, Maersk and Unileverwin in a world where digital is mission critical.


Take a tour of our brand new warehouse and operations centre!

September 11, 2018
Videos

Honesty and transparency are at the heart of everything Icons does. It’s in every decision we make and every item we sell.

On our twenty-year quest for truth, which has led us now to the exciting world of cutting-edge blockchain technology, our aim has always been to be as open as possible.Which is exactly why we want to take you inside the ropes at our brand new operations centre. Take the tour with our CEO, Dan Jamieson, and learn more about why we do what we do.