UK Athletics Selects Elevate on Campus to Support Ticket Strategy, Sales, Service
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Sept. 10, 2018 – Elevate Sports Ventures (Elevate SV), the best-in-class sports and entertainment consulting firm providing proven, innovative solutions to organizations across the global sports and entertainment landscape, has announced today the formation of Elevate On Campus. The new joint venture with Mark Dyer, Founder and CEO of Taymar Ventures, will provide comprehensive ticket sales strategy and execution for intercollegiate athletics departments, conferences, bowls and other organizations in the space. Concurrently, the University of Kentucky has selected Elevate On Campus to support the ticketing strategy, sales and servicing for men’s basketball at the soon-to-be-renovated Rupp Arena, football at Kroger Field and the more than 100 ticketed sporting events hosted annually by the Southeastern Conference school.
Dyer, a college sports industry veteran, will serve as President of the new venture. An architect of IMG College Ticket Solutions and IMG Learfield Ticket Solutions, Dyer has worked with some of the college and professional sports industry’s biggest brands, including the NFL and NASCAR. Renowned as one of the most connected sales experts in the college sports ecosystem today, Dyer led the IMG College Business Ventures division to unprecedented growth from 2011 to 2017. With an eye toward developing an innovative agency to provide comprehensive ticket sales strategy and management to the collegiate market, Dyer formed Taymar Ventures upon his departure from IMG a year ago.
“The addition of Mark and the University of Kentucky to the Elevate family represents a continuation of our strategy to build this business with the best people and brands in sports,” said Elevate Sports Ventures CEO Al Guido. “Elevate on Campus will allow us to bring our proven ticketing sales and service strategies to the college sports space and deliver improved revenue for our clients.”
“Building attendance in football and basketball is the greatest revenue challenge facing collegiate athletics departments,” said Elevate On Campus President Mark Dyer. “Elevate On Campus will offer a combination of college and professional sports ticket sales expertise the market hasn’t seen until now. The Kentucky athletics program is a perfect first client because Mitch Barnhart and his staff understand our unique assets and share our vision and strategy.”
“We are in a changing marketplace when it comes to the way fans buy tickets to sporting events,” University of Kentucky Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart said. “For that reason, it’s important that we are both innovative and personal in the way we connect our fans to our teams and convey to them how important their support is to our success. We are proud to have a proven partner in Elevate Sports Ventures as they bring their expertise to the college level.”
Elevate On Campus is dedicated to providing individualized ticketing strategies, ticket and customer analysis, and comprehensive sales plans and servicing capabilities to university athletic departments. Backed by the resources of Elevate SV and its notable roster of partners, Elevate On Campus provides unmatched access to professional sports sales and event best practices. With an emphasis on sales team development, Elevate On Campus is poised to become the industry leader in sales executive recruitment and training.
Prior to the start of the 2015 season, the University of Kentucky completed a $126 million renovation of Kroger Field, resulting in an enhanced fan experience through a striking new external appearance, revamped concourses, more comfortable seating and new premium areas. In May 2018, the UK released details surrounding the next phase of renovations to Rupp Arena scheduled to be completed in the coming seasons. Renovations include upper-level chair-back seating along both sidelines and new club areas. The project comes on the heels of the installation of a new center-hung scoreboard, ribbon boards and sound system at Rupp Arena.
ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCKY ATHLETICS DEPARTMENT:
UK Athletics, representing the Commonwealth of Kentucky’s flagship university, is a proud member of the Southeastern Conference, fielding 22 varsity sports teams. UK Athletics boasts a championship tradition and the support of the Big Blue Nation, one of the most passionate fan bases in the country, and is in the midst of an era that has seen the department achieve unprecedented comprehensive success. UK has finished in the top 30 of national all-sports standings in seven consecutive seasons, including a school-record 10th-place finish in 2016-17. Along with its pursuit of competitive excellence, UK Athletics is singularly committed to serving its fans and enriching the lives of its nearly 500 student-athletes. Wildcat student-athletes have combined for a grade-point average of better than 3.0 in each of the last six years, with nearly 100 graduating each year before pursuing careers in myriad fields. UK student-athletes enjoy the support of one of the most passionate fan bases in America, the Big Blue Nation.
ABOUT ELEVATE SPORTS VENTURES:
Elevate Sports Ventures is a best-in-class sports and entertainment consulting firm, providing proven, innovative solutions to organizations across the global sports and entertainment landscape. Elevate SV taps into the extensive resources, relationships, and expertise of its partners to innovate and execute comprehensive strategies and solutions in Venue Renovations, Stadium Licenses, Premium Ticketing, Corporate Hospitality and more. Formed in partnership between the San Francisco 49ers and Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (HBSE) in 2018, Elevate SV welcomed Oak View Group (OVG) and Ticketmaster and Live Nation as partners in June 2018. Elevate SV serves as OVG’s established representative in premium sales and service for its more than nine current and future OVG development projects, including the $700 million transformative redevelopment of the current Key Arena at the Seattle Center. In September 2018, Elevate SV launched Elevate On Campus, a joint venture created to support ticket sales, strategy and service for intercollegiate athletics and university venues. For more information, visit: www.ElevateSportsVentures.com and www.ElevateOnCampus.com or follow @ElevateSV and @Elevate_Campus on Twitter.
