Connecting eCommerce and Entertainment

Martin is the Managing Director and Founder of Nimbus Disability; a Queen’s Award for Innovation winning consultancy service working across a range of industries providing practical and tangible support in meeting and exceeding legal obligations toward disabled people.

Nimbus offers a range of services including The Access Card: the first scheme of its type to offer a universal and consistent way for disabled people to evidence and communicate their access requirements to providers quickly and discreetly.

Martin was named in the New Year’s Honours List 2020 as an MBE for services to Accessibility in the Tourism and Entertainment Sectors.

He boasts a brilliant career in the Sport Industry, particularly in Football. Before Juventus, in the latest stage of this path, he has covered the role of Venue Business Director at AS Roma. Previously, from 2018 and until 2021, he was Corporate Hospitality & Ticketing Manager at AC Milan. His first experience in football was at FC Internazionale as Ticketing Manager, where he joined in 2016. He also had an important experience in basketball at the beginning of his career: from 2010 he worked at Pallacanestro Olimpia EA7 – Emporio Armani Milano where he held roles of increasing responsibility until taking on the position of Manager – Ticketing, Hospitality and Merchandising.

Sarah‘s career has spanned 25 years across the Attraction, Leisure, and Hospitality sectors, from hands-on front-of-house roles to senior commercial and operational positions, before honing her ticketing/membership/EPOS/CRM software knowledge. This cross-sector and industry experience provides 360-degree insights, enabling you to select the right tech or deliver the operational and commercial practices that will grow your business.

As a supplier, Sarah led the strategy and delivery of sales and marketing, development roadmap, and client engagement and retention. Suppliers partnering with ReWork gain a dedicated strategic advisor with firsthand industry expertise and a deep understanding of their unique challenges.

Through ReWork, Sarah ensures that both operators and suppliers make informed, strategic decisions that lead to sustainable growth. Leading to Happier operators, suppliers, and guests/visitors.

Shah-Zeib Ahmed, or, Shah, as we all know him, is a #TBF regular and also a known name in the world of sports ticketing. Having practically worn all types of hats one can wear in the industry, he is now in the third year of running his ticketing consultancy, glosancon-sports, which has taken him to some of the biggest and best events out there including FIFA World Cups, Olympics and Paralympics and many more.

With over a decade’s worth of experiences spanning the globe, Shah personifies the ticketing chameleon that can be dropped in any environment. From youth football tournaments to FIFA World Cups, a Northern Rugby League club, the Olympics, and the Paralympics, he continues to add value for his clients and make memories – one ticket at a time.

Shah, having found his calling in the world of sports ticketing has also made it his mission to bring ticketing also closer to those, who aspire to work in the world of sports business by lecturing at numerous academic institutions and through his CPD accredited online course that could not be named better: Sold Out – An Introduction to Ticketing Sports Events.

With all he has done so far, he still remains eager to learn and share with all old and new friends at the Ticketing Business Forum his pride of being in the business of making memories.

Su Jella is a visionary leader who harnesses the power of data and AI to drive innovation and transform challenges into enlightening journeys of discovery. Her work fuels smarter business decisions and catalyses transformative growth in top-tier organisations.

Recognised globally for her contributions, Su has received numerous prestigious awards, including being named among the Global Top 100 Innovators in Data and Analytics, winning the Women in AI (Asia Pacific) award, and being listed as one of the Top 25 Leaders in Australia.

Tim Chambers is a Mentor, Advisor and Consultant. He currently works with a number of organisations seeking to enter, redefine or expand their operations within the live entertainment and ticketing sectors, advising on corporate development strategies and directing transactions. Tim also has a number of advisory posts including NED roles with various start-ups and emerging companies.

Simon Weber is the Co-Founder of vivenu, the technology-leading primary ticketing software for major organizers around the world such as the Grammy Awards, FC Schalke 04, Stanford University, Hockenheimring, ESL, and many more. With a focus on business expansion and stakeholder engagement, Simon drives vivenu’s mission to become the backbone of the global ticketing industry.

At #TBF24 Simon will be presenting Unlocking the Power of Data in Ticketing: Navigate the Data Rush of the 2020s. He’ll explore how harnessing data revolutionises ticketing industry strategies, enhances customer experiences, and drives business growth in an era of unprecedented digital transformation.

Building on a career spanning e-commerce and digital marketing across lifestyle sectors, Claire brings a unique blend of expertise to the ticketing industry as the General Manager of Ticketek UK. Since joining Ticketek’s parent company TEG in 2019, Claire has been instrumental in driving growth, fostering collaboration, and navigating the dynamic landscape of live entertainment marketing and ticketing.

With a strong understanding of the industry and competitive landscape, Claire has played a pivotal role in growing the business and establishing Ticketek UK as a leader in the UK market by creating strategic alignment with customers in event promoters and building a successful playbook for reaching ticket buyers.

With an unwavering dedication, organizational skills, and passion for the live entertainment industry, Claire continues to drive excellence and innovation in the ticketing industry, positioning Ticketek UK for continued success in the dynamic world of live entertainment.

Claire is also committed to supporting the careers of people from diverse backgrounds including as a mentor on the NOWIE (Network of Women in Events) ‘Level up’ programme and partnership with Bristol-based career coaching social enterprise Babbassa.

Jack Kenn joined Cirque du Soleil as Technical Director during the creation of “O” in 1997. Two years later, he went to work on Blue Man Group at the Luxor Casino and Hotel in Las Vegas, where he was Company Manager for five years. He then took on the position of Director of Technical Operations for the production Le Rêve at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas.

Jack rejoined Cirque du Soleil in 2007 as the Company Manager for KÀ. After one year in that role, he was promoted to the position of Vice-president and General Manager of the Resident Shows Division where he headed the general operations for the shows in Las Vegas. He handled overall operations, relations with partners, show calendars as well as general management.

In 2012, Jack Kenn became Vice-president – Arena Shows at Cirque du Soleil. Based in Montreal, he travelled globally. He managed the operations for five touring arena shows. The bulk of his responsibilities required a team building, big picture outlook on tour planning, with a view to opening new markets in outlying cities all over the world for arena shows.

In 2013 Jack rejoined Blue Man Group in their new home at the Monte Carlo Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas as the Vice President/ Senior Resident General Manager. In this role he is responsible for the overall operations, marketing, sales and partner relations for the production. In addition, Jack was part of the Business Development team for Blue Man Group globally.

In 2017 after the merger of Cirque du Soleil and Blue Man Group, Jack decided his 20+ years of large-scale Entertainment experience, skills and knowledge would be best served as a consultant. Jack opened Kenn Productions LLC and began working and promoting shows in South America, Middle East and China. Jack was selected to be a keynote speaker in the first ever Entertainment Conference in Saudi Arabia sharing his past experiences with resident and touring shows. This conference led Jack to be selected as the executive producer of one of the Entertainment Seasonal Festivals in Saudi Arabia in 2019. In addition, Jack consulted for a few creative content companies on their long-term business strategies and worked with them on creating successful touring plans and operations.

Beginning January of 2021, Jack joined the FlyOver team to setup, open and operate their newest flight ride on the strip in Las Vegas. FlyOver Las Vegas opened September 1, 2021, and is an extremely successful attraction. 

In April 2022, Jack transitioned from the General Manager of the Las Vegas FlyOver location to the Director of Business Development for FlyOver Attractions. In this role he was responsible to oversee construction and project manage the 2 new Flyover’s in Chicago and Toronto. 

In March of 2023 Jack rejoined the Cirque du Soleil / Blue Man Group family as the Managing Director of Blue Man Productions worldwide. In this role he is responsible for the overall P&L for existing operations and charged with growing and expanding the brand globally. 

Bridget joined AXS in July 2019 in the role as Ticketing Strategist for Europe. Prior to joining the AXS family, she spent 3.5 years at Manchester City FC as Commercial Product Manager in their newly formed digital team. While there, she oversaw development for ticketing, retail, and fan data capture experiences. Before being at Manchester City, she spent ten years at Ticketmaster: with two years in the US and eight in the European business working with both sporting teams and arenas across the globe.

Joe Calnan is the Partnership Director for Live Entertainment Ticketing at Cover Genius, the insurtech for embedded protection. Together, Cover Genius and its partners protect the global customers of the world’s largest digital companies including Uber, Klarna, Amazon, Booking Holdings and Ryanair.

In his role, Joe is responsible for seeking and developing high value partnerships in the live entertainment and ticketing industry – Cover Genius is integrated with 70+ ticketing partners, including Ticketmaster, AXS, See Tickets, Seat Geek, Vivaticket, Audienceview and Tessitura.

Joe has spent 10+ years in the live entertainment and ticketing industry in a variety of senior leadership roles overseeing strategic partnerships at AXS, before this Joe worked for technology provider DXC Technology.

Thomas Willdridge is On Location’s Vice President, Global Head Of Pricing Strategy for the Olympic & Paralympic Games. Ahead of Paris 2024, he has been responsible for setting up and launching the pricing and revenue management strategy for the first ever official Olympic and Paralympic Games hospitality programme.

Thomas has more than 15 years’ experience in ticketing and live events across music and sports. Prior to joining On Location in March 2022, Thomas served as Vice President of Global Pricing at Ticketmaster, where he was at the forefront of pricing innovations in the ticketing industry, launching and managing Ticketmaster’s dynamic pricing solutions.

Georgia is Partnerships Director & Co-Founder at Lovetovisit.com, the UK-based tech start-up that achieved over £4million in its first year of trading.

Lovetovisit’s proprietary API means the company already sells over 2,700 (and growing) products for attractions, theatres, events and experiences across the UK, by integrating with multiple ticketing systems and channel managers. Georgia heads up the Partnerships Team responsible for getting these amazing businesses onto the platform and selling tickets.

The UK has so many incredible things to see and do, Lovetovisit’s mission is bring discovery and booking convenience to busy consumers.

Matt Thorley is Head of Sales for Tate, a collection of four galleries aiming to increase the public’s engagement and understanding of British art. Matt leads on growth and development of products, Tate’s contact centre and financial operations working closely with colleagues across the organisation to drive forward the roadmap for our sales proposition to be consistent across all channels and to support in building a multi-experience visit.

Since 2006 Matt has worked closely with ticketing operations starting with 10 years at Alton Towers Resort developing the foundations of sales and customer service across a number of roles. Matt passionately believes that sales should be underpinned by excellence in customer service and experience he spent 4 years exploring customer focused roles on the railway, opening a new museum in London and even a nature reserve giving a deeper understanding of what drives customer behaviour and what they want from experiences before taking on his role at Tate in 2020.

When not working you’ll find Matt playing or watching almost too many team sports and this comes through in the work Matt does where he sees technological developments as key, but supporting and developing the people and teams who bring them to live is the true USP of any omnichannel offer.

Edmund brings over 25 years of unparalleled service delivery in the attractions industry, spanning operations, process improvement, productivity, and bottom-line financial results. His dynamic leadership style drives business planning, execution, and strategic alliances, resulting in profit growth and operational excellence.

Edmund’s extensive tenure in the attractions sector has exposed him to a diverse range of ticketing companies and systems installations. His oversight of tenders and system implementations has contributed to seamless operations and enhanced guest experiences.

Having worked with world-class attractions and events, including Frameless, The View from The Shard, and Dubai Expo 2020, Edmund has honed his leadership skills. His ability to think outside the box has led to innovative solutions and exceptional outcomes.

Edmund possesses an expert-level grasp of corporate governance, event and exhibition management, financial stewardship, and operations. His proficiency in digitalization and cutting-edge technologies ensures that attractions stay ahead of the curve.

With a people-centric approach, Edmund’s commitment to guest satisfaction is unwavering. Consistently high scores reflect his dedication to creating memorable experiences. He has adeptly managed both large teams (over 200 members) and smaller, specialized groups.

Edmund’s enthusiasm for new technologies, music, and the arts fuels his drive to transform the attractions landscape. Frameless – the multi-sensory immersive art experience in central London, where innovation meets art – stands as a testament to his vision.

Phillipa Hicks is the Co-founder and Head of Product at Seat Unique, the leading provider of premium tickets and experiences. She spearheads all technical aspects, product development, and strategy, with a key focus on managing the product roadmap to align with the company’s vision. Having built a talented technical team, Phillipa’s exceptional leadership style has contributed immensely to Seat Unique’s growth and success. As a trailblazing force in tech and a prominent female leader, she is committed to driving change and paving the way for future generations of female tech leaders.

Daniel Gianmarco Križan is the Co-founder and CEO of TruCrowd, a recent spinoff from the global biometric vendor Innovatrics. With over a decade of extensive experience in the football field as both a player and a coach, Daniel spent the last two years at Innovatrics, initially as a Marketing Specialist and later as a Program Manager. In the latter role, he led the development of a customer portal and CRM, integral components of the company’s digital transformation towards a new ERP system. Throughout this journey, he combined his sports expertise with biometrics to create solutions aimed at empowering sports clubs to deliver exceptional fan experiences. Leveraging his entrepreneurial background and leadership skills, Daniel is driving team success and steering TruCrowd towards becoming a global leader in the event industry.

Chris has spent the last 25 years operating in the Commercial world of Sport, Entertainment and Music.

He was part of the Talent Management business, Proactive Sports Group that became Formation Group when it floated in 2001, where he was Head of Sports Marketing.

He also held the role of Group Marketing Director at James Grant Group, now YMU.

Having been Executive Vice President at Sportfive and Lagardere Sports, as well as Chief Commercial Officer at The Rugby League and The Scottish FA, where he was also a member of the UEFA Marketing Committee

He has now joined the team at Secutix, to lead on Business Development and building relationships with Rights Holders and Venue Owners in the Uk and Ireland. Secutix is the Ticketing partner of UEFA, FIFA, The Open, Wimbledon Championships and Silverstone amongst many others.

With over 20 years’ experience in Box Office, Sales & Ticketing in the West End. Martin now heads up the ticketing business at LW Theatres, over the last seven years helping transform their sales, use of data science, tech ecosystem, ticketing services and the in-house teams to optimise the whole operation.

Before joining LW Theatres, Martin worked as a ticketing & sales strategy consultant for 100s of producers, plays, events and musicals while working at AKA marketing agency for over 9 years after previously managing a number of West End Box Offices.

Martin cares about building audiences, creating extraordinary experiences, seamless interactions and long-lasting productive relationships.

Nicolle is Head of Insights at Dewynters, the leading UK advertising agency for live entertainment.

Nicolle’s career in ticketing started as a box office assistant at the Leicester Square Box Office in 2010, where her passion for finding the right audience for the right production began. After 3 years at See Tickets, she moved to Dewynters taking on the role of Sales and Ticketing Development Manager. Her passion for data, audiences and consumer behaviour led her to establishing the Insights department in 2021.

Fred joined Wicket in 2023 as VP Global Sales. Fred oversees Wicket’s sales organization for ex-US sports and the global conference vertical at Wicket. He has spent 25 years in the identity and biometric industry, previously held senior leadership positions with Tascent, NEC, Vision-Box, American Express, and SureID. Fred was a member of the founding leadership team at CLEAR. He is a passionate Bayern Munich club member and a college and high school basketball referee.

Innovation Director in charge of Digital, Business Intelligence/Analytics, Fan Experience at Spain’s Valencia CF since June 2018. Responsible for all data/business insights of the club while also managing tickets/pricing, fan experience, and customer support departments from a data-driven angle.

Segarra has contributed significantly to the club’s ambitious digital transformation and cofounded the Innovation HUB project.

A former bank manager and Chief Technology Officer, Segarra has over 16 years of professional experience in different sectors, but with a continued focus on applying technology and performing digital transformations in various businesses. I’m an accomplished leadership football executive that studied the 1st FIFA Diploma in Club Management.

Passionate about data-driven culture, user experience, and patron-centric management, Tiffin brings with them more than 10 years of experience in CRM administration, leadership, sales & customer service, and data management. They hold a Master of Music degree from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, a Bachelor of Arts in Music from Lee University, and they are a graduate of the Holmberg Arts Leadership Institute. When they are not working, they love writing songs, DIY projects, and spending time with their family.

While their passion is performing arts, Tiffin has worked with a variety of businesses and organizations from small non-profits with no budget, to multi-million-dollar touring companies and venues. Using their well-rounded experience, they love to build strong relationships with customers by offering the best possible experience.

James has worked at the Scottish Event Campus for over 18 years.  He has vast ticketing experience managing the ticketing of a wide variety of Live Entertainment events across the SEC’s three venues – OVO Hydro, Armadillo and SEC Centre.  The campus plays host to many homegrown and international music mega stars, as well as many family, comedy and sporting events.

His current position is that of Team Manager – Ticketing Live Entertainment.  This involves working with and managing a team of six ticketing managers, working in close collaboration with other internal departments and many different promoters to ensure the successful delivery of events which come to the Scottish Events Campus.

James has also worked on many stadium events at Scotland’s national stadium, Hampden Park, 35 to date to be exact!

Prior to 2005, James worked in the telecoms industry.

Thomas oversees Commercial Operations at Planet Fans, a membership-based business specializing in live events aimed at identifying and rewarding fans with personalised experiences in real time. With a career spanning roles as a promoter, live performer, and record label owner in the live music industry, Thomas now leads the venue and hospitality sector at Planet Fans.

Collaborating closely with grassroots venues, clubs, and hospitality groups across the UK and US. Noteworthy among his achievements is securing deals with key entities such as the Music Venue Trust in 2024. Thomas continues to gain invaluable experience as Planet Fans expands its reach.

Noel has worked for over two decades in the world of ticketing. His journey started right after college, in the NEC Group contact centre, working in a myriad of roles and progressing through the ranks, he found his niche in business development and played a pivotal role in the inception of The Ticket Factory. What began as a pure venue box office grew into a nationwide ticket agency.

Wanting another challenge, Noel moved on, beginning with the disruptive Artist ticketing startup CrowdSurge, which eventually merged with concert discovery platform Songkick. Noel further expanded his horizons with a stint at Kaboodle, accumulating insights into festival dynamics and travel packages. In 2019, he returned to The NEC and today is the Ticketing Director for the Group.

Sophie Beattie is a twice award-nominated sales and ticketing professional, who has had the great privilege of working in London’s West End for 16 years now, starting work with Ambassador Theatre Group, where she worked on respected productions such as Blood Brothers, Grease, La Cage Aux Folles, and Legally Blonde. She then shifted focus to the charity sector, working for over a decade at The Old Vic, working her way up to department head of the Box Office team. Most recently, she has shifted back to the commercial sector, now currently working as Sales and Ticketing Director for Sonia Friedman Productions for the last two years, where she specialises in sales and marketing strategy, data analytics, business intelligence, B2B relationships and business development in behalf of some of the most prestigious productions running in the West End, including Jerusalem, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Book of Mormon, Patriots, and the upcoming Jez Butterworth production: The Hills of California.

John joined AXS UK as director of business development in 2021. Formerly Head of Sales for Island Records (Universal Music Group), John moved from recorded music to ticketing when he joined Ticketmaster / Live Nation Entertainment. From 2015 to 2020 he oversaw business development for the international artist services and major label division, delivering bespoke service tour campaigns for acts including Stormzy, Liam Gallagher and The 1975. At AXS he targets new venue and festival partners all over the UK and was instrumental in the signature of new AXS partners The Mayor of London, Bristol Ashton Gate Stadium and Giles Cooper Entertainment.

Billy Partridge is a ticketing wizard (not his words, but those of several others). With over twenty years’ experience in audience management, he has lead on ticketing strategy and operations at major live events for most of that time.

Previous employers, events, and clients include: Manchester International Festival 2007 to 2019, Coventry UK City of Culture 2021, the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 for the BBC, Birmingham Festival, and Lumiere – the UK’s Light Art Biennial.

n addition to ticketing, his freelance work includes event management, marketing, data analysis and evaluation.

Tom Dawson is Director of Digital at the Association for Cultural Enterprises. Tom works on digital content, membership, sustainability, mentoring and strategic partnerships. The Association for Cultural Enterprises is the only organisation dedicated to supporting the cultural sector with sustainable income generation, with a membership representing over 1,800 sites.

Jamie (on the left) has worked in the theatre industry, specifically ticketing, for many years. Having started in the box office and worked his way up through Head of Ticketing to Business Development, he has experience at all levels of the industry. He has worked for festivals, ticket agents, theatres (including West End), as well as ticketing software suppliers and in marketing, giving him a breadth of knowledge and a wealth of experience.

Will is an e-commerce professional with 14 years experience working in the arts and design industry. After studying Cultural Studies at the University of London in Paris, Will spent 8 years managing the UK,  French and Japanese websites for the design brand, The Conran Shop, growing the online business to a multi-million pound turnover, increasing the CRM base and social media following. Will helped manage a major re-platforming to Magento and a front-end rebrand project.

Will joined the Tate in 2019, as Group E-Commerce Manager, overseeing the retail operation online and supporting the growth of Membership and ticket admissions. Will became Head of E-Commerce in 2022 and now oversees both the customer experience on the Salesforce Commerce Cloud platform, as well as the Visual Merchandising and displays in the physical shop spaces across all 4 galleries in London, Liverpool and St. Ives, to create a truly omni-channel experience for Tate’s visitors. Among the Will’s highlights are establishing a new programme of artist takeovers for the experimental shopping experience, Tate Edit, both online and at Tate Modern, with British artist, Chila Kumari Singh Burman and US activist group, Guerrilla Girls.

Will recently joined the Board of The Hepworth Wakefield Enterprises, the commercial arm of the Yorkshire art gallery. When not at work, alongside visits to art galleries and museums, Will enjoys decorating at home, window-shopping, long walks and city breaks.

Matt Rothman is based in the London office and is focused on European venues as part of international business development. He has worked at technology companies providing key consumer services in the US and UK.

Greg Loewen is the CEO of Digonex – the leading provider of automated dynamic pricing solutions in the live entertainment and attractions sectors.

Greg has been CEO since 2014 during which time the company has achieved rapid growth and developed a robust network of ticketing partnerships. Greg is also actively involved in his local arts community, currently serving as the Board Chair of the Indianapolis Symphony.

Prior to leading Digonex, Greg held a variety of leadership roles in the North American media industry. He is a graduate of Queen’s University (Kingston, Canada) and holds an MBA from Harvard Business School.

Brandon is a senior executive with over 25 years of experience working within the sports industry. Holding senior commercial roles at both Nottingham Forest and Derby County along with working at Director level within a global, market leading SaaS tech business, supplying ticketing solutions across the English Premier League, EFL, Eredivisie and US Leagues. Brandon has a proven track record of enhancing the commercial efficiencies and business to consumer revenues.

Rob has worked in senior commercial roles in Live Events across Ents and Sports for the last 20 years. Starting with Liverpool Capital of Culture he has been lucky to be involved in some of the major event highlights in the North West.

He’s very proud of bringing Iggy Pop to the historic Chester Racecourse for the first Chester Rocks  recruiting M&S Bank for a seven-figure Arena naming rights deal, delivering a £1.5m VIP Lounge and developing one of the first Covid-19 events action plans which received national & international PR coverage.

For the last two years he has been running an Events Consultancy business focussed on providing strategic insight on the commercialisation of events and venues.

He has also developed and launched a successful startup business in GIGMATE basedd on his passion for Live Music events. The platform connects artists, fans and venues to drive incremenatla ticket sales and SPH while supporting Grass Roots venues.

He is currently the Managing Director for Sound City, who deliver a two-day industry conference and two-day music festival in Liverpool city centre (aka the ‘Northern Great Escape’), with aspirations to become Europe’s SXSW.

With a career that began as a lighting technician in the West End and in the first years of the Barbican Centre, Jonathan Brown went on to spend several years as a stage manager and production manager taking tours of plays to the Far and Middle East and to theatres around the UK.

He moved into theatre management in 1990 when he was appointed Associate Producer and subsequently General Manager at the Theatre Royal in Windsor.

In 1997 he became a director of Hardsell, a full-service theatre marketing and advertising agency. In addition to working on West End shows, he also acted as a consultant on various projects, including the launch of the Society of Ticket Agents and Retailers (STAR). He subsequently took on the administration of STAR, alongside his work as a producer for small and mid-scale regional touring productions, before becoming Chief Executive.

Jonathan has an extensive knowledge of legislation and regulation affecting ticket sales and has represented STAR and the ticket industry in the press, on radio and television and as a speaker at industry events for many years. His work for STAR includes a continuing dialogue with other industry bodies, government departments, law enforcement and regulatory bodies on ticketing matters.

STAR has always offered a dispute resolution service for its members and their customers. Since 2016, that service has been approved by the Government under the Alternative Dispute Resolution for Consumer Disputes Regulations and STAR is accountable for its work to the Chartered Trading Standards Institute. STAR has handled over 8,600 disputes since 2019.

Simon Hennes is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of vivenu, the technology-leading primary ticketing software for ambitious organizers around the world. As CEO, Simon is responsible for the company’s overall strategy and key stakeholder communication in furthering vivenu’s mission to become the backbone of the global ticketing industry.

Simon holds a Master Degree from Bocconi University and a Bachelor in Business Administration from Goethe University. Before founding vivenu, he gained experience with, Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and had his own event company.

Chris’ background is in product design and he has over 12 years’ experience in designing and developing digital ticketing products that have been used by millions, worldwide. As a co-founder of Line-Up, Chris has led the growth of the company’s client base from zero to having processed almost half a billion pounds worth of tickets.

Chris is passionate about user experience and the use of technology to improve this, wherever possible.

Line-Up provides Exceptional Ticketing for Exceptional Venues. The world’s best venues require flexible, reliable ticketing that scales. That’s why they choose Line-Up.

Line-Up was shortlisted for Best Technology Provider at the British Media Awards, won Seedcamp London, and is a London Web Summit Best European Startup Finalist and has been Featured by BBC, Forbes and TechCrunch.

Chris has been at the forefront of music data for the past decade and is passionate about empowering people with data. He is the founder of FastForward data consultancy and the FastForward music conference. He is also the Chief Economist for UK trade body LIVE, representing the UK live music industry. Chris previously worked for EMI Music, Universal, Sony, The O2 Arena, LW Theatres and Hipgnosis Music.

Georgia is the Senior Ticketing Manager for Everton FC. Georgia is looking after all things Ticketing across both Goodison Park and the new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock, which is currently under construction.

Georgia started her career with the Olympic and Paralympic Games, “Athens 2004”, in Tennis, before moving to Panathinaikos FC where she fell in love with Ticketing. Next, her career brought her over to the UK for British Athletics, as Head of Ticketing Operations, where she delivered the “London 2017” IAAF and World Paras Championships, the 2018 World Indoors in Birmingham and the 2019 European Indoors in Glasgow. Last stop before Everton FC was at Edgbaston for a short, but very impactful period, delivering pilot events after Covid and the first matches for The Hundred.

Francis Casado is one of the founders of Mobile Media Content – 3D Digital Venue and is currently serving as Head of Business Development. Prior to founding MMC- 3D Digital Venue, that revolutionized Interactive Digital Venue Management for Sports and Entertainment Venue Industry, Francis made his career around the beneficial application of 3D Technology and Virtual Reality for various sectors. A true entrepreneur, Francis’s previous time at Barcelona Media was primarily focused as a product manager responsible for developing innovative 3D solutions for use in construction of new urban developments by Barcelona Smart City Council.

Emil R. Ljesnjanin is a highly accomplished entrepreneur who has demonstrated his ability to succeed in business. After establishing a successful real estate company, he self-funded the development of tixbase (previously NFT-TiX), a blockchain-based ticketing platform aimed at solving real-world problems for both event organizers and attendees. Motivated by his past experiences with counterfeit tickets, Emil’s vision was to create a platform that is both secure and transparent, offering instant payouts and automatic collection of royalties from the secondary market. His commitment to innovation and problem-solving led to tixbase/NFT-TiX being recognized with the Best Innovation Award at the UK Festival Awards.

Mark founded Music Venue Trust in 2014, an award-winning charity which works to protect, secure and improve Grassroots Music Venues across the UK. MVT represents over 900 venues and has campaigned to change laws and policies, to gain greater recognition for the vital work GMVs do and make them more sustainable. Mark has co-owned Tunbridge Wells Forum for over 30 years, spent 20 years as CEO of the award-winning music charity Rhythmix and owns Outstanding Music, a 360-degree music company. Mark is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, a regular speaker at international conferences and was NME’s Person of the Year in 2020.

With over 15 years’ experience in live music and ticketing, Leonie started her career with Ticketmaster, before moving onto the concert discovery and artist services platform Songkick.

After a brief hiatus from live working for a creative agency, she joined AEG Presents in 2019 as Head of Ticketing, working across UK & International Touring.

Now Director of Commercial Operations she works across AEGP Touring, Events and Venues, developing and implementing revenue streams, working on new business and sponsorship opportunities, managing cross-departmental operations and leading the UK ticketing team.

Gordon Morrison is the CEO of the Association for Cultural Enterprises (ACE), a trade body and charity that exists to support sustainable income generation within the cultural sector. The Association provides tangible, actionable advice, guidance, Education & training and support to almost 2000 cultural venues across the UK & Ireland (and beyond). Prior to working at ACE, Gordon spent 5 years as CEO of the Association of Scottish Visitor Attractions (ASVA), where he played a pivotal role in supporting the attractions sector in Scotland through and out of the pandemic. Alongside his role at ACE, Gordon sits on a number of industry groups including the Scottish Thistle Awards Industry Panel and the Tourism & Hospitality Skills Group. All in, Gordon has spent almost 20 years working in roles supporting cultural tourism. He is a passionate advocate for the sector and firmly believes that the worlds of culture and commerciality can co-exist in perfect harmony! 

Debbie McWilliams was appointed Director of Live Entertainment in March 2019, assuming responsibility for the overall management, commercial delivery, event booking and content creation of Scotland’s biggest entertainment complex which includes The OVO Hydro.

She began her career in 1989 as Assistant to the Operations Director at the SEC and played a key role in establishing the venue ticketing operation. Through the years she played an integral role in the team who delivered two iconic buildings to Glasgow in the SEC Armadillo in 1997 and the OVO Hydro in 2013. She has been instrumental in the growth and success of the live entertainment sector of our business due to her extensive knowledge, experience and proven track record across all aspects of live entertainment.

Delivering innovation, scalable solutions and partnerships is now the key to success for APT SKIDATA and our customers.

End to end customer experience with one pass / ticket for all access and services is our focus. With access, eticketing, e charging and parking under one roof this is an achievable goal for all venues.

Jeff’s experience bridges WiFi solutions, apps, beacons, locations services and software integration as well a deep understanding of the stadium/venue landscape.

Alistair has been in the sports industry for more than twenty five years, specialising in the fan experience at iconic stadia and events through the provision of best-in-class ticketing and hospitality products. From Wembley Stadium to the America’s Cup in Bermuda, via Spurs, Paris Saint-Germain and now Leicester City, Alistair’s journey in ticketing has encompassed technological innovations, challenging economic times and nuances in culture, language and supporter expectations. He has been a regular attendee and speaker at Stadium Busieness Summits and Ticketing Business Forums over the years and we are delighted to have Alistair on the judging panel for the first time

An established sports industry CEO for over ten years now, Daniel Gidney launched the first ever cricket bond as part of an innovative £12m fundraising to develop and operate a new 150 bedroom Hilton hotel, which will open summer 2017. Daniel’s time at LCCC has generated record profits and the securing of the largest ever naming rights in First Class Cricket, with Emirates. He also secured ECB International matches, including an Ashes Test and a World Cup semi-final in 2019. Daniel was also the 2011 Midlands Business Person of the Year, and the 2014 Trafford Business Person of the Year.

Ian is the Owner and Founder of TheTicketingBusiness Forum and its news channel TheTicketingBusiness.com – both presented by his Xperiology events and marketing agency. His working life began in sports events management (including Formula 1, horse racing and Wimbledon) before pursuing an award-winning career in B2B magazine publishing. He has co-launched and edited numerous B2B publications and meetings, ranging from energy and industrial processes through to airport design and Intelligent Transportation Systems. He has also founded many of the sports sector’s most respected publications and news sources – including Stadia magazine, TheStadiumBusiness.com and TheStadiumBusiness Summit. In his downtime from family and worklife, he takes his dogs on the Downs, rides his (motor)bikes and treks up the occasional mountain.