01/08/2013
NEWS STORY
Former Williams F1 chairman Adam Parr has put the brakes on his attempt to raise £9,000 through crowd funding website Kickstarter to finance a second edition of his book The Art of War.
Parr stepped down from Williams in March 2012 and has since become the chief executive of sported, the UK's leading sports foundation dedicated to securing the legacy of London 2012. Late last year he released the Art of War which is printed in the style of a graphic novel. "In the book I try to explore the strategic world off the track as I saw it over my five years in the sport," says Parr on his website.
A total of 2,500 copies of the first edition were printed in association with F1 magazine F1 Racing. Digital editions followed and at the start of this month Parr turned to Kickstarter to try to raise the money to print a second edition.
He explained that "the hardback First Edition has now sold out and I would like to print a new paperback version... The hardback sold for £25 a copy. The paperback will be priced at £12.50. But backers of the book through Kickstarter can order one copy for £10 (including UK postage) or two copies for £17 (including UK postage to the same address) and I will sign them with a personal dedication."
On his Twitter page he gave further details behind the decision and said "it takes out risk and Amazon fees so I can make it available at a better price. £17 for 2 dedicated copies (softback) including UK post." He added "(a) most people prefer the paper version (b) there are no hardbacks left (c) I haven't made a penny from this book."
Kickstarter provides users the tools to raise funds for creative projects through crowd funding on its website. Parr's funding period began on 3 July and was due to run for 30 days but was cancelled by him last week. By the time he did this it had attracted 53 backers who had pledged £780. According to Kickstarter, "when funding is canceled, all pledges are immediately voided."
Parr isn't the only person connected to F1 who has recently been involved with a public fund-raising process. Instead of taking to Kickstarter, Myles Mordaunt, the co-founder of F1 hospitality outfit Amber Lounge, decided to become a contestant on the 2013 season of the UK version of The Apprentice. The prize at stake was a £250,000 investment in a business of the candidate's creation. The money is provided by the show's host Alan Sugar who becomes a 50% shareholder in the business. Mordaunt was fired two weeks before the final which was won by 24 year-old doctor Leah Totton who is launching a high-street chain of cosmetic treatment clinics.