A job in sport. Martin Bronstein talks to Andy Bunting about the job many people would like to have.

If you were to be asked the question "Who is one of the most popular and knowledgeable men in squash?" chances are you wouldn’t be saying Andy Bunting, but this quiet unassuming man fits the bill very well. His popularity (at least among professional squash players) comes from his job: International Squash and Badminton Sponsorship Manager for Prince. Bunting is the man who decides which players wear Prince clothing, use Prince rackets and get paid to do so. Naturally, when Bunting turns up at a major tournament - and he turns up quite a lot - he tends to get a warm smile from any player who knows him. And once they get to know him, they like him even more. He has a ready smile, a quiet wit and a straightforward, no nonsense attitude to his job. He has to tell players that their contracts are not to be renewed, which means his plain talking approach helps to retain respect.

While he loves the game of squash and still plays (‘Knees are beginning to give me signals’) Bunting doesn’t allow his love of the game to get in the way of his real job - business. He has a good pedigree in that area, gained by working his way up to marketing manager of Berger Paints. "I got to the usual crux; spending too much time working, I wasn’t seeing the kids grow up and was probably heading for a divorce. So in 1982 I packed it in and bought a squash club in Cambridge," he recalls. The club was a good challenge for his marketing skills: it was losing £1,200 a month and it had one junior member. In less than six years, he built up the membership and started making a profit. It was during this period that he laid the foundation - without knowing it - for his present position. "I got involved with the SRA looking at development with the late Clare Chapman and at my club I used to do a lot of clinics and exhibition evenings, so many of the top players used to come to the club and I got to know them. When Prince came along with an offer to help them with their marketing in 1988 - about the time of the launch of the Extender line, I thought it was a good time to move on," Bunting says.

Two years after joining Prince UK, the parent company in the USA said: "Why don’t you come and work for us?" which is how the word International got tagged to his title.

Bunting scouts the players, negotiates contracts, manages them, makes sure they get paid, and that they get their equipment. He also organises clinics and exhibitions, and links overseas players with the local Prince distributors in foreign countries. He has seen things change drastically in the last seven years; at one time Prince had 70 squash players on their books. "We wanted as many people as possible to have a Prince racket in their hand. Now we are looking for quality." The roster is now down to 34 players, 20 men and 14 women. Five of the top nine men, and nine of the top 12 women. Before the recession players were paid a retainer with small bonuses. (At the height one player was picking up around $150,000 a year.) But the recession of the early 90’s hit hard. Tennis racket sales dropped by 50% in the US, and squash racket sales dropped 20% worldwide.

The players had to bite the bullet and, Bunting says, were very understanding. Now contracted players get almost no retainer - instead, all earnings are based on performance. Once they reach the quarter-finals of major tournaments they get bonuses based on the prize money. "For example, if a player wins a tournament and the top prize of $20,000, he could get about $10,000 from Prince," Bunting explains. Players also get a one year bonus based on their PSA ranking. Another big change has been the appearance of agents. "When I started there were no agents and now all the top players have one," Bunting says. The top players will have 2-3 year contracts; others are on a one year contract so that there is always room for new players.

When a player approaches Prince for sponsorship, Bunting goes through a checklist: Are they the right sort of player? Are they the right sort of person? Do they have the potential? And do we have the money? "Peter Nicol was a good example of the right way of going about getting sponsorship. He sat down and worked out what he wanted to do, and decided that he needed help. He outlined very clear objectives for himself and then found ways to meet them. He went to Neil Harvey for training and worked hard for his sponsor," Bunting claims.

Bunting doesn’t confine himself to the elite. He is constantly looking for the next generation of Khans, Eyles and Nicols. Although he doesn’t sign them himself, he makes sure the local Prince agents help out until the player progresses up the rankings. Adrian Grant is a good example. A member of England’s junior team that won the world title in Cairo last year, he moved to Dubai to work with Abbas Khan for a year. "I got in contact with the Prince agent in Dubai and told him Grant had great potential and that he should look after him. He signed a contract in August. He’ll get equipment and rackets and perhaps a few hundred dollars to help with travel. Now, if and when Grant progresses up through the rankings, then I’ll take him internationally," promises Bunting.

Young players are the future of the sport Bunting believes: "You must get more people coming into the sport. The major companies in the racket industry have to invest in grass roots level. They’ve got to get out to the various countries and get the local distributors in each country to bring new young people in to the sport," he emphasises.