Ticketsmarter
TicketSmarter is an online ticket resale marketplace serving North American consumers for concerts, sports, and theater events, partnering with 300+ professional and collegiate teams. A subsidiary of Kustom Entertainment (NASDAQ: KUST), it also operates a hotel and travel booking service via Lexyl Travel Technologies.
- Company typePublic
- Founded1995
- HeadquartersOverland Park, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Ticketsmarter does
TicketSmarter is an online ticket resale marketplace operating as the primary subsidiary of Kustom Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ: KUST). The platform lists more than 125,000 live events across concerts, sports (NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, NCAA), theater, and family events, and serves as primary and secondary ticketing partner for 300+ professional sports teams and collegiate athletic departments across North America. The company positions itself as independent from Ticketmaster/Live Nation, with a 100% Ticket Guarantee buyer protection program, transparent pricing, and a seller-friendly fee structure as core differentiators. Distribution runs through ticketsmarter.com, native iOS and Android apps, and a dedicated Ticket To Cash seller portal.
The company's product surface has expanded beyond ticketing into travel via a partnership with Lexyl Travel Technologies, LLC (operating as HotelPlanner) at travel.ticketsmarter.com. This subdomain offers access to 250,000+ hotels, car rentals, flight search, and group bookings for 9+ rooms per night, monetized through referral fees of 10% (standard) or 7% (preferred membership). The travel business is supported by AI-powered voice representatives, chatbots, generative itinerary tools, fraud detection, and recommendation engines, with compliance scaffolding under TCPA and California AI disclosure laws. HelloSign (Dropbox) integration enables electronic contracting with hotels and travel vendors.
TicketSmarter monetizes primarily through marketplace commissions on ticket transactions (both primary and secondary), with an ancillary affiliate/referral stream from the travel subdomain. It does not publicly disclose pricing on tickets. The company employs 11-50 people, is headquartered in Overland Park (with Lexyl Travel Technologies' HQ in Palm Beach Gardens, FL), and reports US and Canada as its served markets. Co-founders Heather Goodman (President) and Jeff Goodman (CEO) lead the business.
Ticketsmarter firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Ticketsmarter
- Legal name
- Lexyl Travel Technologies, LLC
- Website
- https://ticketsmarter.com
- Company type
- Public
- Founded year
- 1995
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- TicketSmarter is an online ticket resale marketplace serving North American consumers for concerts, sports, and theater events, partnering with 300+ professional and collegiate teams. A subsidiary of Kustom Entertainment (NASDAQ: KUST), it also operates a hotel and travel booking service via Lexyl Travel Technologies.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Ticketsmarter industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Online Ticket Resale Marketplace
- NAICS
- Used Merchandise Retailers (459510)
- SIC
- Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Live Event Ticketing (Concerts, Festivals, Comedy) (HSACALAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Primary Ticketing Platforms & Box Office Systems (MPAGAJAA), Ticketing, Box Office & Access Control (MPAGAAAD), Ticketing Platforms & Primary Ticketing (MPAIAFAD)
Keywords
Where Ticketsmarter is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Overland Park
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Ticketsmarter business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Ticket Sales Commission: TicketSmarter earns revenue as a marketplace by facilitating ticket transactions between buyers and sellers, taking a commission on each sale. The platform serves both primary ticketing (direct from venues) and secondary market (resale) transactions.
- Hotel/Travel Referral Fees: The travel subdomain (Lexyl Travel Technologies) charges hotels a 10% referral fee for bookings, reduced to 7% for preferred membership program hotels. Individual bookings of 9 rooms or less are serviced through API connections with online travel agency partners.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Standard hotel referral fee |
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Preferred membership program |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels4 records
Ticketsmarter product offering
Product offeringCore offering
TicketSmarter operates an online ticket resale marketplace that connects buyers and sellers of live event tickets, including concerts, sports games, theater productions, and family events. The platform aggregates inventory from third-party sellers including sports teams, venues, and individual ticket holders, offering buyers a 100% Ticket Guarantee on validated purchases. In addition to ticket resale, TicketSmarter runs a co-branded travel booking service operated by Lexyl Travel Technologies that packages event tickets with hotel accommodations.
Product overview
TicketSmarter is a ticket resale marketplace and online ticketing platform operating as a subsidiary of Kustom Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ: KUST). The core product is the TicketSmarter Marketplace, which offers primary and secondary ticketing for concerts, sports, theater, and family events across North America. The platform connects to over 125,000 live events and 300+ professional sports teams and collegiate athletic departments. Supporting the core marketplace are: the 100% Ticket Guarantee (buyer protection add-on), the Ticket To Cash seller platform, the TicketSmarter Travel subsidiary (hotel booking at 250K+ properties, car rental, flights, and group travel via Lexyl Travel Technologies/HotelPlanner), and native mobile apps for iOS and Android. The company is not affiliated with Ticketmaster or Live Nation.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- TicketSmarter Marketplace
- TicketSmarter Travel
- Ticket To Cash
Quantifiable outcome
- Forbes top 10 ticket resale sites recognition in 2026
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Ticketsmarter
Customer profileSegments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Ticketsmarter technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
AI capability9 records
Feature3 records
Ticketsmarter partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Ticketsmarter competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- StubHub: StubHub is the largest dedicated secondary ticketing marketplace in North America, offering resale tickets for concerts, sports, and theater. It is the closest direct competitor to TicketSmarter's core marketplace model with overlapping buyer protections and inventory breadth.
- Vivid Seats: Vivid Seats is a publicly traded secondary ticketing marketplace serving the same concert, sports, and theater buyers as TicketSmarter, with comparable buyer guarantees and a similar North American event catalog.
- SeatGeek: SeatGeek operates a primary and secondary ticketing marketplace with mobile-first purchase flows and sports-team partnerships, directly competing with TicketSmarter's buyer experience and venue/team relationships.
- TickPick: TickPick is a no-fee secondary ticketing marketplace targeting price-sensitive concert and sports buyers, competing head-to-head with TicketSmarter on transparency and all-in pricing.
- Gametime: Gametime is a mobile-first ticketing marketplace specializing in last-minute sports and concert tickets, overlapping with TicketSmarter's sports fan segment and mobile app distribution strategy.
- Viagogo: Viagogo is a global secondary ticketing marketplace owned by Paddy Power Betfair, competing with TicketSmarter on cross-border ticket resale for concerts, sports, and theater events.
Broad incumbents
- Ticketmaster / Live Nation: Ticketmaster (owned by Live Nation Entertainment) is the dominant primary ticketing platform in North America with exclusive venue contracts. It is the principal incumbent against which TicketSmarter positions itself as an independent alternative.
- AXS (AEG): AXS is the ticketing arm of AEG, one of the largest live entertainment companies globally, providing both primary and secondary ticketing across major venues and competing for the same sports and concert inventory TicketSmarter distributes.
Emerging players
- Eventbrite: Eventbrite is a self-service ticketing platform targeting smaller, independent events rather than the major venue ticketing market where TicketSmarter primarily competes. Useful as a comparable for ticketing-platform economics at smaller scale.
- TodayTix: TodayTix is a mobile-first ticketing app specializing in theater and Broadway shows with last-minute inventory. It overlaps with TicketSmarter's theater enthusiast segment on a narrower, theater-focused proposition.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Ticketsmarter social profiles
Digital presenceTicketsmarter financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Ticketsmarter leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Ticketsmarter funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Ticketsmarter M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Ticketsmarter
What does Ticketsmarter do?
TicketSmarter operates an online ticket resale marketplace that connects buyers and sellers of live event tickets, including concerts, sports games, theater productions, and family events. The platform aggregates inventory from third-party sellers including sports teams, venues, and individual ticket holders, offering buyers a 100% Ticket Guarantee on validated purchases. In addition to ticket resale, TicketSmarter runs a co-branded travel booking service operated by Lexyl Travel Technologies that packages event tickets with hotel accommodations.
Is Ticketsmarter a public or private company?
Ticketsmarter is a public company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Ticketsmarter founded?
Ticketsmarter was founded in 1995. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Ticketsmarter based?
Ticketsmarter is headquartered in Overland Park, United States, in the North America region.
How does Ticketsmarter make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Ticket Sales Commission is the primary driver. The others are hotel/Travel Referral Fees.
Who are Ticketsmarter's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are StubHub, Vivid Seats, SeatGeek, TickPick, Gametime and Viagogo. Broad incumbents are Ticketmaster / Live Nation and AXS (AEG). Emerging players are Eventbrite and TodayTix.
Does Ticketsmarter have an API?
No public API is recorded for Ticketsmarter.
What industry is Ticketsmarter in?
Ticketsmarter's product category is Online Ticket Resale Marketplace. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HSACALAA, Live Event Ticketing (Concerts, Festivals, Comedy), with a secondary code of MPAGAJAA, Primary Ticketing Platforms & Box Office Systems. Its NAICS code is 459510 and its SIC code is 7900.