Richmond-based South London Movers Ltd has announced a two-year official sponsorship deal with local League One football club AFC Wimbledon.

The 104-year-old club recently moved to a brand new £35 million 9,000-seater stadium in Wimbledon’s Plough Lane, just a few miles from South London Movers’ offices.

Managing Director and football fan, Barry Challis, is delighted to be one of AFCW’s three official partners and is looking forward to watching the club from the home stand that now bears the company’s name for at least the next two seasons.

Barry explained how he got involved. “Like a lot of moving companies, we’d seen a surge in business during the COVID crisis, especially in our storage business - We Pack & Store Ltd - which I run with my business partner Anthony Monger. We were looking to increase our visual profile in the local area and this seemed like a great opportunity.  We considered advertising on buses and taxis or going big on Google Ads, but sponsoring a football club seemed so much more exciting.”

As well as having the company name on the home stand and LED advertising around the pitch, Barry and Anthony are also able to entertain guests on match days and use their hospitality box for client meetings whenever the stand is open.  “It’s almost like having another office,” said Barry.

It’s early days, but after only a few home games so far this season, enquiries have been very encouraging. “If it carries on like this, I’m not sure how we’re going to handle it,” said Barry with a smile.

Photo: (Left to right) Anthony and Barry in front of The South London Movers Stand.