Vivid Seats

Vivid Seats LLC is an independently owned and operated online ticket marketplace.[6]

Vivid Seats
TypePrivate
IndustryTicket exchange
Ticket resale
Founded2001 (2001) in Chicago, Illinois, United States
FoundersJerry Bednyak and Eric Vassilatos
Headquarters
Chicago, Illinois
,
United States
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
  • Jerry Bednyak (co-founder,[1]co-chair of the board)
  • Eric Vassilatos (co-founder,[2]co-chair of the board)
  • Stan Chia (chief executive officer),[3]
  • Geoff Lester (chief commerce officer),[4]
ProductsTickets for sports, concerts, theater, entertainment events
Revenue$1.5 billion
Number of employees
500 (2018)[5]
Websitewww.vividseats.com

The privately held company does not disclose financial information. In 2017, it was reported to have a turnover of $1 billion[7][8] and to be the third-largest online ticket reseller.[9][10]

History

Vivid Seats was founded in Chicago, Illinois, in 2001 by Jerry Bednyak and Eric Vassilatos.[11]

Vivid Seats has been invested in by two private equity companies, Vista Equity Partners in 2016 and GTCR in 2017. GTCR bought a majority stake[12] for $575 million.[13]

Vivid Seats is a member of the Internet Association, which advocates for net neutrality.[14]

Operations

Vivid Seats is a middleman between ticket buyers and sellers, taking a 10% commission once tickets have sold[15] and additionally charging buyers service fees (circa 20 to 40%[16]) and shipping charges.[15]

Partnerships

In February 2017, ESPN made Vivid Seats its official ticket provider, replacing StubHub.[17]

In April 2017, Time Inc. made Vivid Seats the official ticket provider for Sports Illustrated.[18]

Also in 2017, Vivid Seats entered into partnerships with the University of Tennessee, the University of Rhode Island, and the Preakness Stakes. It has existing partnerships with entities such as the University of Notre Dame and Duke University.[19]

In August 2018, Vivid Seats was named the official ticketing partner of the Los Angeles Clippers[20] of the NBA.

Expansion

In 2014, Vivid Seats moved its corporate headquarters to Chicago's West Loop while also retaining office space for its operations team nearby[21] to accommodate new employees, 100 having been hired in the last year.[22]

In April 2019, Vivid Seats acquired Toronto-based software company Fanxchange. [23]

References
  1. Williams, Trey (May 16, 2017). "Private Equity Firm GTCR Invests In Live Events Ticket Seller Vivid Seats LLC". Fox Business Network.
  2. "Vassilatos, Bednyak Out at Vivid Seats, Grubhub Exec Named CEOdate=Oct 26, 2018". Ticket News. 26 October 2018.
  3. "The Thr33: OC Convention Center Reups with Centerplate, Vivid Seats Names Stan Chia CEO & Innings Fest Announces Lineup". Amplify. Retrieved Nov 2, 2018.
  4. Fisher, Eric (Jan 8, 2018). "Geoff Lester Joining Vivid Seats As CCO After Brief Stint With Fox Networks Group". Sports Business Journal.
  5. "Vivid Seats Company Profile". Built In Chicago. 2018.
  6. "Contact Us" Vivid Seats. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
  7. Yoshitsugu, Sachiko (2 June 2012). "Fast Fifty No. 8: Vivid Seats Ltd.". ChicagoBusiness.com. Retrieved 18 September 2014.
  8. Roof, Katie (23 March 2017). "Online ticket marketplace Vivid Seats is looking to sell for $1.5 billion.". Techcrunch.com. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  9. Elahi, Amina (24 March 2017). "Could Vivid Seats, a Chicago-based online ticket site, sell for $1.5 billion?". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 17 May 2017.
  10. Tan, Gillian (22 June 2016). "StubHub Is EBay's Next Ticket to Ride". Bloomberg. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  11. McLean, Tessa (March 3, 2015). "How bootstrapped Vivid Seats attracted 100+ new hires in each of the last 2 years". BuiltInChicago.com. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
  12. Ecker, Danny (16 March 2017). "GTCR buys stake in ticket reseller Vivid Seats"
  13. Paul Hastings (7 May 2018) ""
  14. Zhou, Li (15 March 2018). Net neutrality advocates bring expertise to state fights. Retrieved 16 March 2018. Politico.com
  15. Frequently Asked Questions Vivid Seats. Retrieved 16 May 2017.
  16. "Vivid Seats vs. StubHub – Which Ticket-Buying Platform is Better?".
  17. Fisher, Eric (16 February 2017). "ESPN signs deal with Vivid Seats, opting out of pact with StubHub". Sports Business Daily. Retrieved 16 May 2017.
  18. Velasco, Haley (8 April 2017). "Time Inc. chooses Vivid Seats as official ticketing partner for the Sports Illustrated Group". The Drum. Retrieved 16 May 2017.
  19. Staff (15 January 2018). Vivid Seats’ active dealmaking. Sports Business Journal. Retrieved 27 March 2018.
  20. "Vivid Seats Named Official Ticketing Partner of the LA Clippers". National Basketball Association. August 13, 2018. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  21. Ori, Ryan (21 May 2014). "Vivid Seats punches ticket to West Loop office building". ChicagoBusiness.com. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
  22. Boehm, Connor (29 May 2014). "With 400 percent growth, Vivid Seats expands its headquarters". BuiltInChicago.com. Retrieved 17 September 2014.
  23. John Pletz (11 April 2019). "Vivid Seats buys Toronto company, plans hiring spree". Chicago Business.
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