Jerry Goldman wears many hats. As AGM at SMG¬managed U.S. Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, he’s in charge of all of the stadium rev¬enue and responsible for every¬thing from marketing to coordi-nation with concessionaire Aramark and ticket provider Ticketmaster and the box office, but it’s in his role as head of bookings that Goldman found his niche, and for those efforts Goldman has received Venues Today’s Hall of Headlines Bookings Award.
In 2017, Goldman secured four huge sta-dium shows and 600 other events; booked the Summer X Games and 2020 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Wrestling Championships; and the crown jewel of events— Super Bowl 2018— is com¬ing in February.
Locking in Luke Bryan and Metallica to open the venue proved Goldman knew the tricks of the trade: experience and contacts.
“We had Luke Bryan, but we needed a show,” recalled Goldman. “Metallica had not played in the states in seven years. They were thinking about playing arenas. We thought maybe we could convince them they could fill a stadium. We reached out to the Frank brothers [Frank Productions] and they’re good friends with Q Prime, Metallica’s people.”
“Metallica sold out in 10 minutes,” said a tickled Goldman. “The concert was so success¬ful, the band turned the tour into a stadium package.”
Scoring Metallica is a perfect example of Goldman’s philosophy of “focusing on things that are unique.”
“One of the good things about Minneapolis is that it’s a great concert market,” said Goldman, “but there are only a handful of artists who can sell 50,000 tickets. So I looked for the biggest, best acts that were touring, that I could lure to play here.”
With only a handful of acts to compete for, Goldman wound up with major gets.
Guns N’ Roses, Coldplay and U2 all played and, combined, pulled 147,000 fans into the facility.
“This is very much a relationship busi¬ness,” stressed Goldman, who spends his day “on the phone with promoters and agents and managers. Staying in contact with people and staying close to Live Nation, AEG, the Frank Brothers and other players is the key.”
“There are many different options in our market,” he explained. “They can play Target Field or TFC Bank Stadium or here.” Of the three, U.S. Bank Stadium is the only one with a roof and Goldman plays the weather¬card to great advantage. “It’s always 70 degrees in here,” he tells potential clients.
Goldman went after X Games and the NCAA Wrestling Championships aggressive¬ly even though neither have ever been hosted by a National Football League (NFL) stadium.
“We got the whole city behind us to get the contracts,” he shared. “We worked in con¬junction with Sports Minneapolis and other inter¬city agencies and pushed hard.”
X¬Games brought 30,000 people to the building and was a huge success. The contract was for two years. Goldman wrangled the NCAA Wrestling contract by “pitching a con¬cept that they would have everything under one roof.”
As if major concerts, Minnesota Vikings home football games and 125 days of baseball make sure he is not only on the minds of the promoters but the agents as well. He has made sure U.S. Bank Stadium is always in the con¬versation for a stop.”
“He sees the vision of an event others might not see and manages to convince others that his concept will see a jump in ticket sales and deliver an unprecedented experience.”
Talty is even more impressed that
“We got the whole city behind us to get the contracts.” — JERRY GOLDMAN
weren’t plenty on the plate, U.S. Bank Stadium hosts everything from business meetings to bar mitzvahs, an extraordinary amount of bookings for a sales team of three, including Goldman.
Goldman’s best day was having U2 play the building. His worst was losing a show he thought he had secured but went to another venue.
A canceled Justin Bieber date, just 10 days before the play date, was a major headache. “We had it budgeted; we hate to disappoint fans; and it’s not a good look for any venue when an artist cancels,” said Goldman, clearly still annoyed by Bieber’s bailout. “The build¬ing was tied up for a week and got nothing.”
Attesting to Goldman’s twin skills of communication and relationship building, GM Patrick Talty said, “Jerry’s contacts in the industry are extensive which allows him to Goldman does it “all with a great sense of humor and isn’t afraid to laugh at himself or allow the team to joke with him.” Goldman’s colleagues still rib him about the time he was called ‘Jerry Johnson’ in a local news story. “As a prank, someone gave him a Coke with ‘Johnson’ on it— Jerry took it and placed it on his trophy wall. “That’s the kind of great per¬sonality that has allowed him to build all the relationships that make him successful.”
Goldman’s been with SMG for 15 years; previously he was the GM of Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale, N.Y. He’s married to social worker Heather and has three kids.
“I do want to acknowledge John Drum, the other AGM at the venue, who is in charge of operations. “I make the money and he spends it,” added Goldman, showing off his wit and wisdom. “We’re a team here.”
↧
Tricks of the Trade
↧