SAINTS chief commercial officer Charlie Boss insists owners Sport Republic offer "complete certainty" that the club's long-term future is strong.

Boss adds his bosses encourage the club's leadership to "be bold and take risks" as they look to improve the organisation's prospects. 

Boss joined Saints from The Jockey Club in early 2023, having worked as Disney's commercial director for sports and leading ESPN's UK office. 

Sport Republic, an investment firm founded by Dragan Solak, Henrik Kraft and Rasmus Ankersen, made sweeping changes at board level since acquiring the club in January 2022. 

Boss, in a new interview with SportsPro Media, revealed Sport Republic's key communication, insisting: “The biggest message is to be bold and take risks, we’ve got your back.

READ MORE: Saints CEO Phil Parsons explains how he is managing club finances 

“That’s why I have this complete certainty that the long-term future of this club is so strong. They are hugely committed to the project both on the pitch and off it.

“Not all football clubs and businesses are like that, I’ve certainly worked in organisations that were more risk-averse culturally," he continued.

"We are the opposite. We are determined to have a go at doing things differently. In club football, that’s so important. Even in the Premier League you’re still one of 20 (clubs), you are a commodity.

"If you can’t strike out and do things differently you become a commoditised asset and that means that the market sets your price." 

Boss also went on to detail the difference in the club's commercial ventures as a Premier League club to a Championship side. 

Southampton's revenue dropped around 50 per cent immediately following relegation, with broadcast revenue and sponsorships a huge factor. 

“The actual job of generating revenue yourself stays pretty similar,” Boss explains. “The ticketing business, the retail business, those things don’t fundamentally change in what league you’re in.

Daily Echo: Saints experienced much-improved season ticket sales this campaignSaints experienced much-improved season ticket sales this campaign

“The area that is most affected is sponsorship because, essentially, the proposition changes from ‘I’m selling a global Premier League audience’ to ‘I’m selling a Southampton Football Club audience’. That has a difference in value.”

Saints have used the opportunity to reconnect with local businesses, taking on the likes of fan-favourite Draper Tools and Mairon Freight UK this summer. 

“Local businesses feel like it’s their club again,” Boss insists. “I’m convinced there’s a way of us getting back to the Premier League and not losing that.

“I think if we were being self-reflective towards the end of our time in the Premier League, there had been a growing disconnect with our fanbase, with the community.

"Something had slightly broken that relationship, probably a few years of really tough results.

“The biggest thing we focused on as a commercial team since I came here six months ago was rebuilding that connection.

"We see it, we feel it. We’ve got this fan advisory board who are much closer to the club and helping us make decisions.”