The vision is clear for Albion owner-chairman Tony Bloom.

As the Seagulls embark on their second season in the Premier League, he wants them to still be in it next season, the following season and the season after that.

He is laying foundations for the jewel of his sporting empire, the club he adores and has lavished with around £300 million of his personal wealth.

He does not want Albion to meet - and beat - Manchester United for points, as they did at the Amex in May to secure survival, for just a year or two.

"In five years' time we'd have been in the Premier League for five years," he told The Argus. "That is by far the most important thing. We can have hopes, we can have a good cup run - we had one last year.

"We'd love to win a cup and we'd love to finish in the top ten. You can hope for these things and we're always looking to improve. But to have the goals any more than that is not helpful.

"Let's say you finish 11th and stay in the Premier League for five years I think that's a brilliant result. If you say you want top ten it may be considered a failure. I think we just want to always improve."

Bloom (below) is not your typical Premier League owner, other than the size of his bank balance. How many watch an away game every season with their children in amongst the fans - last season it was at Watford, the opening hosts this time.

The Argus: How many were born locally and group up supporting their club. Bloom would prefer to be the norm, rather than an exception.

He said: "Certainly that is the case lower down the leagues. I think in the Premier League it’s the biggest league in the biggest sport in the world and the money is huge, particularly in the big six.

"Even the six below that in terms of their turnover and the money they spend. So it would be great if there were more clubs owned by fans, perhaps like Huddersfield is another example, Stoke, although they got relegated, with the Coates family.

"But the reality is it's very expensive and if you are not in the Premier League it costs a lot of money to try and get in. And it's the reality of the situation. And it's very attractive to wealthy people from abroad."

Albion have looked mainly overseas to recruit players since they were promoted.

It worked well last season, the likes of Mathew Ryan, Davy Propper, Pascal Gross and Jose Izquierdo establishing themselves as influential regulars.

Bloom is optimistic the second season batch, Bernardo (below), Martin Montoya, Leon Balogun, Yves Bissouma, Alireza Jahanbakhsh, Florin Andone, will maintain the trend.

The Argus: "I'm delighted with the players we've brought in, we've really strengthened the squad depth," he said. "Chris (Hughton) is happy, the players have settled in well and we spent a lot of time on recruitment just to check all things out. Paul Winstanley, as he has for many transfer windows along with his team, has done a really good job.

"As much as one can say before the first league game of the season, we're in good shape."

Albion have spent around £60 million strengthening the squad, including a record £17 million for Iranian World Cup winger Alireza Jahanbakhsh. Needs must in the Premier League - promoted Fulham's outlay is more than £100 million.

Bloom said: "When a club's got a player wanting to be sold and it's X million euros, when you go in as a Premier League club there is a 30 per cent or 50 per cent premium, that's just the way it is.

"It has changed a lot, but we know what the income is going in and we're hoping to be in the Premier League for a while.

"Typically when we're spending a lot of money on a player we're trying to get the right age, profile, so if they do get sold on, they get sold on for a profit.

"It's not always possible but overall if you look at the players we've signed this season for money, they're the right side of 25."

Bloom arguably made his most important signing as soon as safety was sealed, awarding Hughton (below centre) another new deal.

The Argus: "We started discussing it when we were 100 per cent safe after the Manchester United game," Bloom said. "He's a huge asset to us, he's done phenomenally well and so we wanted to get it agreed and he was delighted to do it. It was one of the easiest deals of the summer."

Bloom conducted one of his rare interviews at the Lancing training complex he financed along with the Amex.

Infrastructure matters when you have come from groundsharing in Kent and as tenants in an athletics stadium to climb the leagues - but not as much as getting the right people.

"Recruitment is absolutely key," Bloom said. "Getting that right and getting the manager right is absolutely key.

"Things like the training ground and all of that is very important but it's no good having a place like this with the wrong players or the wrong manager.

"We spend a lot of time at it. Ever since I took over the club nine years ago, it's gone well. Certainly it's improved as time has gone on and you learn a lot.

"The one summer it perhaps didn't quite go so well for one reason or another was when Sami Hyypia was in charge.

"But every transfer window since then has gone very well, including the January windows which I'm not such a fan of. But we have done more business than I would have envisaged in January. It's sometimes need must.

"As long as the process is right and we feel we're ticking all the boxes and we're looking at everything, then if someone comes in and it doesn't work out or they get an injury, these things can happen."

The Argus: In May, Bloom (above) became the major shareholder of another club in Belgium, Brussels-based Royal Union Saint Gilloise, with "an old stadium which is a mix between the Withdean and the Goldstone Ground which has just been renovated." Like Albion, he wants to restore them to former glories.

In November, the husband of an Australian hopes to win the Melbourne Cup, the race that brings a nation to a standstill, with ante-post favourite Withold from the small but high-class group of flat and jumps horses he owns.

Bloom said: "Winning the Melbourne Cup would be pretty special, pretty unbelievable, but I don’t think anything is going to compare to taking Brighton into the Premier League."

And keeping them there.