Kit Suppliers and Sponsors
Rovers first used an official kit supplier in 1977, and the club's first official kit sponsor followed in 1981. Rovers' longest running kit suppliers are Bukta who supplied the club kits for seven years. The club's longest running kit sponsorship was from local company Cowlin Construction who sponsored the club for a total of 11 years before ending the deal in 2009.
The Cowlin deal came to an end during the late-2000s recession. Faced with the prospect of having no shirt sponsor for the 2009–10 season, the club came up with the idea of a raffle to raise the funds required. Tickets were sold at £1,000 with all 96 available being sold meaning the club raised £96,000 for one season of shirt sponsorship, more than some Premier League clubs. First prize in the draw went to local training and recruitment company N-Gaged whose logo appeared on that season's home kit. Second prize went to Bristol based solicitors Stevens, Hewlett & Perkins whose logo appeared on the away kit. The raffle proved so successful that the club replicated it for the 2010–11 season with Smart Computers becoming the new home kit sponsors and Stalbridge Linen the away sponsors. Despite initially planning to return to the tradition form of sponsorship, the club again ran a sponsorship raffle for the 2011–12 season. McCarthy Waste and ITS becoming the new kit sponsors.
| Period | Kit Supplier | Home Kit Sponsor | Away Kit Sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977–1981 | Bukta | No sponsor | |
| 1981–1983 | Great Mills | ||
| 1983–1984 | Toshiba | ||
| 1984–1986 | Hobott | ||
| 1986–1987 | Henson | Peter Carol | |
| 1987–1988 | Design Windows | ||
| 1988–1990 | Spall | Design Windows | Universal Components |
| 1990–1992 | Design Windows | ||
| 1992–1993 | Roman Glass | ||
| 1993–1995 | Matchwinner | ||
| 1995–1996 | Le Coq Sportif | Elite Hampers | |
| 1996–1997 | Cica | Bradshaw's Snack Box | |
| 1997–1998 | The Jelf Group | ||
| 1998–1999 | Cowlin Construction | ||
| 1999–2001 | Avec | ||
| 2001–2005 | Strikeforce | ||
| 2005–2009 | Errea | ||
| 2009–2010 | N-Gaged | Stevens, Hewlett & Perkins | |
| 2010–2011 | Smart Computers | Stalbridge Linen | |
| 2011–2012 | McCarthy Waste | ITS | |
| 2012–2013 | Opus Recruitment Solutions | CR Windows | |
Read more about this topic: Bristol Rovers F.C., Colours and Badge