Matt Johnston has stepped into the role, aiming to strengthen community ties and build on the club’s legacy.
Toronto Diggers Club has appointed Matt Johnston as the new chief executive, following the retirement of Cathy Hancock after 35 years with the club.
Johnston officially started at the Diggers Club on July 8, succeeding Hancock who served as the club’s chief executive for the past decade.
Johnston, who has been in the industry since he left high school, was most recently the operations manager at Club Maitland City. He has also served as the general manager of Norah Head Sports Club and Camden Golf Club, and brings extensive experience in hospitality and gaming sales to his new role.
Speaking with Club Management, Johnston expressed his excitement about joining Toronto Diggers Club, highlighting how it has always been a career goal to work his way up to the top.
“It’s a well-run club with a highly respected management team, particularly in the Hunter Valley. It was just always something I wanted to be a part of,” he said.
While it’s still early days for Johnston, he has a few priorities to tick off his to-do list. One of them consists of continuing the work of the club’s strategic and diversification plans.
“The club’s very [financially sound] at the moment … we have a property in the mid-north coast that a DA has been approved for, so whether we decide to sell or develop, I’ve got to get through that,” he explained.
Currently, the club operates the Alec Rice Centre, a fully tenanted multidisciplinary medical centre that’s located next door. The club established the centre in 2014 to provide additional medical services to the local community.
“It’s a good second little revenue for us, and it’s almost set and forget, and so we could go down that path [for this second property] … there’s a lot of due diligence to do and it’d be interesting to see what eventuates to be the best dollar amount and the best benefits for the members.”
Another focus for Johnston is to further embed the Diggers Club into the community.
“I hope to really entrench the Diggers Club into the community, and to support local schools, sporting organisations and the like. I want it to be seen as a community asset that is owned by the community and the members,” he said.
“In my previous role, we started a couple of academic scholarships and were dispersing funds to charities, and I think there are a lot of opportunities there. I think it’s important that clubs continue their good work. We can always do more.
“Of course, the focus will still be on our gaming, catering, and bar revenues, but it’s thinking about how we can best support the community. I’d like to see every kid running around with a Toronto Diggers logo on their sports gear.”