Tireless volunteer Dominic Teuma has been clocking up the miles to engage local people in the Wimbledon way – and now he’s asking for your help to spread the word.
‘Dom’ has certainly devoted himself to the Dons cause by pounding the streets in SW17 to make businesses fully aware that we’re back home.
He’s made it his personal mission to deliver fixture posters to local shops, showing unwavering support for the Club at a time when we’re aiming to attract new fans.
If you’re impressed by Dom’s story below and can show a similar level of passion for the Dons, please let him know by e-mailing dteuma@gmail.com .
We’re looking for people to devote some time to the cause as Small Business Liaison volunteers.
Read the article below on Dom that featured in Tuesday’s programme and watch the video from earlier this year when Chris Thorpe filmed his tour around Wimbledon.
Building a “Womble Vibe” - One Man’s Mission
As a passionate believer in fan ownership I realised many years ago that I needed to personally engage to support the Club, and I needed to help in a way that was making the best use of my abilities. Having undertaken various small ad hoc volunteering roles, I then stepped up with supporting the Plough Lane Bond 1 leafleting campaign. I followed this up as the Volunteer Lead for the PLB 2 campaigns, driving my hardy compatriots to deliver 60,000 leaflets to homes across local boroughs.
Having made and created a successful business through targeted leafleting I knew putting a leaflet in a person’s hand or through a letterbox was a powerful promotion with an ability to make a meaningful impact in raising the funds we needed. With brilliant like-minded fans we knew there was a powerful value in doing leafleting and it was an important factor in raising funds for the Club. We had no hesitation in saying we were proud of our efforts. I can't thank enough every single person who pounded those streets and stood outside shopping centres.
During the PLB2 leafleting campaign I was asked to put fixture posters up in pub washrooms and shop fronts. This was my chance! I wanted to bring my past business and marketing skills directly to the busy high streets and local areas - weaving AFC WIMBLEDON into the fabric of the community.
I remember as a child being open eyed at the Red and White vibe around London N5. I wanted to recreate a similar vibe for AFC Wimbledon in the local area. Yellow and Blue and our famous two headed eagle everywhere - The Fixture Poster campaign was born!
Setting out with large A3 posters tucked into my homemade cardboard pouch, together with scotch tape (recommended not to leave sticky marks on windows) and ‘shopkeepers favourite’ Blu Tack, I headed off from my home in Merton to my prime target. This was Garratt Lane, Earlsfield, with the bijou eateries and, to my pleasant surprise, a collection of close-to-my-heart Italian restaurants, including Pizzerias and Cafes. I quickly realised that I was selling a £40 million pounds stadium to the community - and I was telling that them that it was theirs!
The shopkeepers and businesses bought into it, and you could tell they were delighted that the Fans Club had reached out to them. No glossy or glitzy marketing brochure, just me with my homemade cardboard bag, filled with posters, plus a warm welcome for them to bring their friends and families to enjoy their new Plough Lane stadium.
There was a beating heart in our community and I was there at the centre. I was meeting barbers, restaurant owners, plumbers, hairdressers, delicatessen owners, glaziers and all manners of shop keepers who were happy to join the fixture poster campaign.
Sam at the Morden Cafe said that every Saturday over many years a group of Womble fans had their pre-match meal at his business and Ganleys, the famous Irish Pub in Morden, was another stop off that offered to promote us.
Moving closer to the stadium, Fabio at Figli di Vusuvio Pizza Restaurant, loved to tell me that Ayoub Assal's relative was a patron. Kenno, the owner of Phokas Barbers in Wimbledon Broadway, proudly showed me his Dons team photo and gleefully told me he was there when Kedwell scored that clinching penalty at Manchester!
So many shopkeepers were happy to recount their stories and connections with the old Wimbledon.
Even the flower stall owner at Wimbledon station told me she was a regular at The Sportsman, but she was a bit reluctant to tell me how often she visited the popular Wimbledon watering hole!
I also came across people who followed us for different reasons. “I worked as a volunteer for DLAG, they do brilliant work,” said Jamie at Coolangatta Cafe in Kingston Road.
The local area has changed much since we were last home 31 years ago, but what is the same since we last left Plough Lane is that there is a need to build attachment and belong. We are back home in South West London and the shoots of Wimbledon’s Football club and the community are once again becoming entwined. I look forward to the ‘Womble Vibe’ and our Yellow and Blue truly flourishing. Let's really feel that passion as we make those walks to the stadium on matchdays.