Following a tour of the new arena, a short ceremony took place and the Lord Mayor and Mr Sakurai, President and CEO of Ricoh Co. Ltd., exchanged some symbolic gifts in front of a group of senior Ricoh managers from the UK, Europe and Japan, as well as several key councillors.

Commenting on the Ricoh Arena, the Lord Mayor said, “The Arena heralds a new age of business in Coventry and Ricoh’s support to this project has been instrumental in contributing to the regeneration of the area. Paul Fletcher, Chief Executive of the Ricoh Arena added, “The Ricoh is setting a benchmark for future developments of its kind across the country.”

Mr. Sakurai. President and CEO of Ricoh Co. Ltd., added “We are extremely proud to be associated with Coventry, a city that has welcomed us so wholeheartedly. As a market leader in our field with businesses across the globe, we are an ideal partner to one of the country’s most prestigious arenas and exhibition centres. We plan to elevate Coventry and Ricoh together on the map of commerce and culture.”

The sponsorship of the Arena will act as a launch pad for Ricoh’s major UK expansion initiative over the next few years. In December, Ricoh plans to move into its new offices at the Arena, which will become the UK headquarters for a new division called Ricoh Global Services. The company already employs approximately 1,000 people at their Telford offices and the opening of Ricoh Global Services will result in at least a further 100 jobs at the Arena.

For further information on: 

Ricoh
The Communication Group: 
Nicki Glancey, nglancey@thecommunicationgroup.co.uk;
Natasha Behrouz, nbehrouz@thecommunicationgroup.co.uk;
T: 020 7630 1411

City Council
Fran Collingham, fran.collingham@coventry.gov.uk;
T: 024 7683 1088