by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
At first glance, you would think Shawn Hegan has one of the toughest sales jobs in town.
Over the next year, his primary responsibility as sales manager for SMG will be to sell the 28 executive suites at the new $130 million arena. While Hegan admits there is exactly one scheduled event for the new arena — the first and second round of the 2006 NCAA men’s basketball tournament — selling the 12-seat suites isn’t like selling someone a house sight unseen.
“We know the track at the Coliseum the past year,” said Hegan, listing previous acts such as Elton John, tonight’s Cher concert and next month’s Bruce Springsteen show. “We know the types of events we’ll be having — I can’t go into any of them specifically — but with the new arena, Jacksonville will become a prime destination.”
With 14,000 permanent seats and room for up to 2,000 more, Hegan figures it’s unlikely Jacksonville will become home to a National Hockey League or National Basketball Association team in the foreseeable future. However, the new arena will be big enough to host music’s biggest acts while maintaining a sense of intimacy that can get lost in a 22,000-seat venue.
“Studies done on arenas our size indicate that acts like U2 and Dave Mathews find a facility this size very accommodating,” said Hegan, who’s been with SMG for five months.
“We know for sure the circus, the ice show and other family shows are coming. We also get sports events and a steady stream of marquee concerts,” said Hegan, explaining how he plans to market the boxes. “Bands playing in Atlanta that then head south have to go right through Jacksonville. The new arena will allow us to stage bigger shows and it will be easier to move equipment in and out. It will be a whole new ball game.”
And one that will require a lot bigger check. Hegan is selling the suites based on two different lease agreements. A five-year lease goes for $50,000 a year; three years is $55,000 a year. The suites also include 12 tickets to every event held in the arena. Of the 28 suites, four are “super suites,” which hold 24 people and can be leased by event.
Although they don’t officially go on sale until next week, Hegan said he’s received “a lot of unsolicited interest” in the suites from local businesses.
“I don’t have a date in mind to have them sold, but we have a limited inventory and they are a good value,” he said. “We anticipate the executive suites will sell out first.”
Once the suites go on sale, Hegan believes the Jacksonville corporate community will respond. The lure of a new arena combined with the ability to own one of the ultimate corporate entertainment venues should make the arena’s executive suites in high demand.
The Jacksonville Suns are also selling luxury boxes for their new $34 million ball park. Suns owner and general manager Peter Bragan Jr. has 12 boxes at his disposal. With opening day less than two months away, Bragan and his sales staff are busy, selling suites and season tickets.
“It’s going pretty good,” said Bragan. “I think we’ve sold four of them. We have 12 and the City wants to retain two of them for their use. And I’m going to keep one or two to rent by the night.”
Compared to the arena and the Jacksonville Jaguars, a Suns luxury suite could be considered a bargain. The $20,000 price tag includes the box, 12 exterior seats and 20 tickets to 70 Suns home games.
“That’s under $300 a night for 20 people,” said Bragan, adding he prefers to lease the boxes on three or five-year terms, but will do one-year agreements.
(The 90 luxury boxes at Alltel can run from $75,000 to $130,000 and include 20 tickets to each game, parking passes and four guest passes, meaning four other ticket holders can get a suite pass any time during the game. Owning a suite also includes any other event in Alltel. For comparison, luxury suites in Dallas and Washington, D.C. for Cowboys and Redskins games, respectively, go for $300,000 a year.)
Unlike Hegan, Bragan has somewhat of a built-in customer base. Longtime Suns fans and advertisers are fully aware of the product. The big difference heading for the 2003 season, obviously, is the new park. Bragan said he’s sold a couple of suites to longtime sponsors and a couple to new businesses attracted by the new park.
“If you can get them up there and sit and look at the ball park, it sells itself,” said Bragan. “It’s a great angle and you’re up real high. But you’re still close enough to hear the coaches and players.
“We have some good prospects and we are talking to people every day. I’ve got three or four salesmen and three or four saleswomen out selling ads and tickets every day.”
Glen Fisher’s in the luxury box business, too, and his product has the best name recognition on the planet — NFL football. He also may have the toughest job of all. He’s got the Jaguars as his selling point, but he also has 90 very expensive suites. While most are spoken for, Fisher said there are still several available and the economy, not the team’s record the past few years, is causing a little trepidation among the local business community.
“We still have about eight or nine and we like to keep two or three open for individual games,” said Fisher, who joined the team in November 1994 when most of the suites had already been sold, even before the team started play in 1995. “It’s slow right now because of the economy. The suites do not have that much to do with winning and losing on the field. It’s a chance to spend four quality hours with customers. They miss a lot of what’s going on on the field because they are doing business.”
Despite the slow economy, Fisher said there’s a solid customer base. The trick is finding them.
“Some companies are positioned to where they are not affected by the economy,” he said. “We sold six suites last year and that was a very, very difficult year. It’s only difficult because of the price. We get out, do our homework, understand the market and go after them.”