Movers & shakers: ASM Global, NEC, Ziggo Dome
ASM Global has promoted three senior executives in the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region.
Mark Jan Kar has been promoted to senior vice president of entertainment, content and programming for the region, in addition to his current role as general manager of Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai.
Kar joined ASM in 2018 as commercial director of Coca-Cola Arena. The following year he was put in charge of live entertainment at the venue and, in 2021, he was promoted to general manager.
Elsewhere, veteran Deb Rogers has been promoted to vice president of people and culture for Asia and the MENA region.
Her time with ASM Global began with Suncorp Stadium in 2002 as HR and training manager and since then has included the Burj Al Arab, Qatar National Convention Center, Coca-Cola Arena, Dubai, and Exhibition World Bahrain.
In addition, Iain Wooldridge, finance director of Coca-Cola Arena since 2019, has been promoted to chief financial officer for MENA. Wooldridge has two decades of experience in financial leadership and strategic management across the UK and the Middle East.
“The combined expertise of these professionals will generate enormous growth across our MENA region”
“The combined expertise of these professionals will generate enormous growth across our MENA region which is powerful for the joint success not only of our venues but for the developing entertainment industry across the region,” says ASM Global (APAC) chairman and chief executive, Harvey Lister AM.
The new hires come shortly after Martin McGougan was named ASM’s regional director of business development for the MENA Region.
Elsewhere in the industry, Sir Nick Varney has been appointed as the new chair of NEC Group, based in Birmingham, UK.
Varney has over 30 years of experience working in the tourism and leisure industry and was CEO at Merlin Entertainments from its inception in 1999 to his retirement in November 2022.
He has previously served as chair of UKHospitality, the trade body representing the UK’s hospitality and tourism industry, and is currently a non-executive on the board of Marstons PLC, a senior advisor to Blackstone Private Equity, and a non-executive chair of Bath Rugby.
In the Netherlands, MOJO’s senior financial project manager Lorien Kramer has been appointed as the new director of operations at Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam.
In addition, the position of director of commercial affairs will be reintroduced at Ziggo Dome. This will be filled by Birgitte de Winter, the current general manager of AFAS Live.
She will be succeeded at AFAS Live by the current general manager of operations, Jan Willem Ruijs. Rick Gemser, the current head of commerce at the Ziggo Dome, will become the new director of commercial affairs at AFAS Live.
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ID&T, Mojo announce post-pandemic party (date TBA)
Dutch promoters Mojo and ID&T, along with Heineken, are organising the Netherlands’ first large-scale event without restrictions which will go ahead as soon as it is permitted.
The event, dubbed ‘Celebrate Life’, will take place in Amsterdam venues Ziggo Dome (cap. 17,000) and AFAS Live (6,000) on an unspecified date in the post-pandemic future.
“We haven’t danced together for over a year. Not partied for a whole year. As soon as the corona measures give us free rein, we will see you at the front of AFAS Live and Ziggo Dome! The moment the government gives the starting shot, we are shoulder to shoulder again. This can be during the weekend, but also take into account a weekday. We will of course inform you immediately,” reads a statement on the Celebrate Life website.
“The moment the government gives the starting shot, we are shoulder to shoulder again”
De Jeugd van Today, Maan, Ronnie Flex & the Fam and Vunzige Deuntjes Soundsystem have been announced for the four-and-a-half hour AFAS Live event, which is open to all ages.
Benny Rodrigues, Freddy Moreira, Kris Kross Amsterdam, Lucas & Steve and Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano have been announced for the 18+ Ziggo Dome event, which will run from 21:30 pm and 06:00 am.
Dutch residents are able to pre-register for tickets now which cost €50.40 and €61.60 respectively, or €89.60 for a combi ticket.
An event similar to Celebrate Life was announced at the beginning of the year by Live Nation Belgium, Studio Brussel and the Subs.
Billed as Belgium’s biggest “post-Covid party”, ‘I Want to Dance Again‘ will also take place in Antwerp as soon as restrictions on major events are lifted.
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Covid-19 lay-offs hit Dutch live market
Promoter Friendly Fire has become the latest Dutch concert business to make redundancies following a challenging summer, according to local media.
Amsterdam-based Friendly Fire, part of CTS Eventim’s Eventim Live grouping, organises festivals such as Best Kept Secret (25,000-cap.), Indian Summer (30,000-cap.) and Tuckerville (30,000-cap.) and promotes both local and international artists, including the 1975, Fontaines DC, alt-J and Pip Blom. The National, the Strokes and Massive Attack will headline the company’s flagship event, Best Kept Secret, next year; the festival, like all major events, was axed in 2020 because of Covid-19.
Of its 35 employees, Friendly Fire has been forced to let go of ten, reports public broadcaster VPRO.
The lay-offs at Friendly Fire follow redundancies at other Dutch live entertainment stalwarts
The lay-offs at Friendly Fire follow redundancies at other Dutch live entertainment stalwarts, including the country’s leading promoter, Live Nation-owned Mojo Concerts, which has laid off around a third of its staff, according to VPRO.
Other Dutch industry professionals to have lost their jobs in recent months include staff at arenas Ziggo Dome (14 of 34) and AFAS Live (10 of 25) and pro-AV company Ampco Flashlight Group.
The Dutch live music industry, united under umbrella group the Alliance of Event Builders, recently warned of a wave of bankruptcies of events businesses without further government support for the sector.
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Dutch concert revenue up 25% in 2019
New figures have shown that over 2.9 million people attended large concerts (over 3,000-cap.) in the Netherlands in 2019, a 16 % rise from the year before, with Amsterdam’s Ziggo Dome recording the highest footfall of any venue in the country.
The findings, presented by research agency Response and the Association of Events Makers (VVEM) at Eurosonic Noorderslag last week, show revenue generated by live music events equalled €165 million in 2019, a 25% rise from the year before.
According to the VVEM, the revenue increase is due in part to a 7% growth in the number of large concerts in the Netherlands last year, “regular price increases” and a rise in the tax levied on live event tickets from 6% to 9%. Ticket prices rose on average by 7% in 2019, to €56.60.
The 17,000-capacity Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam was the most-visited concert venue, welcoming over one million fans in 2019
The 17,000-capacity Ziggo Dome in Amsterdam – the city that took 75% of the national large concert market share – was the most-visited concert venue, welcoming over one million fans in 2019. Afas Live (6,000-cap.) offered 80 live events over the year, the highest number of any venue, and reported the second highest number of visitors at 412,000.
Mojo Concerts, which celebrated its 50th year in 2018, remained the “most important” concert promoter according to the report, with Amsterdam-based Friendly Fire recording the most growth.
Dutch singer Marco Borsato sold the most tickets of any artist, attracting 240,000 fans, with André Rieu’s concerts at the Vrijthof in Maastricht and Guus Meeuwis’ shows in Eindhoven also proving popular with 150,000 and 135,000 tickets apiece.
Photo: Shirley de Jong/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
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Sum 41 cancel Paris show due to explosion
Canadian rock band Sum 41 cancelled a show in the French capital on Saturday night (18 January) after an “explosive device” was detonated outside the venue they were to appear in.
Saturday night’s show, which was to be held at Les Etoiles (500-cap.) nightclub, formed part of the band’s ‘No Personal Space’ performances, “special shows in tiny clubs”.The band, currently on their Order in Decline world tour, played an arena date in Paris at the 6,800-capacity Zénith on Friday.
According to reports, the band posted the following statement on social media, which was later deleted: “During load in for tonight’s performance in Paris, an explosive device was detonated just outside of the venue door. Band, crew, the fans in line are all safe, there were no injuries.
“Due to the intimate nature of our ‘Personal Space’ performances, we are unable to guarantee the safety of the fans in attendance. We are deeply saddened to announce that tonight’s show has been canceled [sic]. More information to follow.”
“Unfortunately, the Sum 41 show at Les Etoiles is cancelled tonight”
The band later posted a new statement on the Twitter, saying “Unfortunately, the Sum 41 show at Les Etoiles is cancelled tonight. All tickets will be refundable with your tickets, Further details will be posted ASAP.”
The manager of the venue, Vincent Le Gall, told Franceinfo that the explosion was caused by a firecracker thrown by gilets jaunes (yellow vests) protesters. Thousands across France took to the streets last week for a new wave of the protests, which began in November 2018 in response to rising fuel prices.
Sum 41 are playing a second sold-out ‘No Personal Space’ show at the Dome (500-cap.) in North London, before heading to Amsterdam’s Afas Live (6,000-cap.), Dusseldorf’s Mitsubishi Electric Halle (7,500-cap.) and Zenith in Munich (6,000-cap.). Details of dates and ticket prices can be found here.
Photo: Stefan Brending/Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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