The Nashville Predators NHL ice hockey team has formed a new organisation, Sabertooth Sports & Entertainment (SS&E), to engage in operational and sales opportunities outside of Bridgestone Arena.
SS&E will provide services across project management, consulting, sales, marketing, event booking and production, ice rink operations, venue operations, special event creation, economic development and all administrative support and other services related to sports, events, venues, and entertainment.
SS&E will manage external partnerships between the Predators and local events covering sales, marketing and sponsorship expertise. Partnerships have been formed with events such as the Simmons Bank Open golf tournament, Pilgrimage Music & Cultural Festival, EAMOTION’s Jingle Beat, Music City Winterfest and CMA Fest.
SS&E will manage the most notable ventures outside of the Bridgestone Arena, Ford Ice Center Antioch and Bellevue, with the new company to further extend the impact of the Scott Hamilton Skating Academy and other programmes that originated at the Ford Ice Centers.
One of the first venues to be operated by the company will be the soon-to-be-named Montgomery County Multi-Purpose Event Center. The arena is scheduled to open during the 2022-23 season and will have a capacity of around 6,000 with two sheets of ice, one of which will be convertible to a full event venue.
The new arena will serve as the home of Austin Peay State University’s basketball teams and will also be used to stage a range of entertainment events.
Sean Henry, president and chief executive of the Predators, said: “We have been working on the SS&E concept for quite some time. Due in part to the success of the Predators, Bridgestone Arena and our Ford Ice Centers, we have garnered attention from others in the community asking us for assistance with sales, marketing and event operations.
“As we take this new step forward, we are pleased to not only help our partners, but to elevate our Middle Tennessee communities and accelerate economic development across our region.”
Henry added: “SS&E will be visionary; it will work without fear of failure. Just as we do at the Ford Ice Centers, SS&E will have dedicated staff with a great deal of expertise and experience. They will share the same business philosophies and values of the organisation and they’ll have the arena, the Preds and our leadership team behind them, supporting all key decisions and operations.”
Image: Stephen Yeargin/CC BY-SA 2.0/Edited for size
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