Venue Solutions Group

What Venue Solutions Group does

Venue Solutions Group (VSG) is an independent advisory firm founded in 2011 by three former Populous and Bridgestone Arena operators — Russ Simons, Mike Wooley, and Tom Williams — and headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee. The firm advises leaders of public assembly venues, including stadiums, arenas, ballparks, performing arts centers, convention centers, and municipal facilities, and reports having served more than 200 venues nationwide. Richard Andersen joined as Chief Illuminations Officer, extending the firm into recurring training through the Advantage Training partner entity.

VSG delivers six core advisory services: Facility Condition Assessment (a comprehensive physical evaluation culminating in a 20+ year Capital Expense Matrix), Business & Operations Advising (independent operational reviews, organizational assessments, RFP/RFQ development, and executive search support), Pre & Grand Opening Advising (readiness planning and opening-day execution), Safety & Security (risk assessments, emergency operations planning, and crowd management), Guest Experience Benchmarking (structured full-journey evaluations benchmarked against industry best practices and repeatable annually), and Advantage Training (leadership and frontline development delivered through a partner organization). Engagements are scoped to client needs and typically begin with a single service before expanding.

The business model is professional services / engagement-based advisory. Revenue is generated through project fees for defined deliverables rather than recurring subscriptions or product sales. The firm explicitly positions itself as vendor-independent, with no products or equipment to sell, and emphasizes senior partner involvement on every engagement. GTM is sales-led and direct, driven by partner relationships, referral, industry association participation (IAVM, Stadium Managers Association, NCS4, TEAM Coalition), and a content-marketing presence via webinars, the company website, and LinkedIn. Marquee engagements include SoFi Stadium & Hollywood Park, Chase Center, Allegiant Stadium, PNC Park, Acrisure Stadium, NRG Park, Rocket Arena, Las Vegas Ballpark, and the Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts. The firm has also disclosed cross-border work in Dublin, Ireland, and Saskatoon, Canada.

Name

Venue Solutions Group

Legal name

Venue Solutions Group, LLC

Website

https://venuesolutionsgroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Venue Solutions Group is an independent advisory firm serving leaders of public assembly venues. Founded in 2011, it delivers facility condition assessments, operations advising, pre-opening readiness, safety planning, guest experience benchmarking, and training to professional sports, collegiate, performing arts, and municipal venues across the U.S.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Venue Operations Consulting

NAICS

Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events with Facilities (711310)

SIC

Services-Facilities Support Management Services (8744)

akta.pro primary industry

Venue Operations, Management & Facility Services (MPAKAEAN)

akta.pro secondary industries

Theater & Performing Arts Venue Operations (Playhouses, Opera Houses) (MPAGALAB), Venue Management & Booking Services (Third-Party Operators) (MPAGALAJ)

Keywords

• Venue advisory services
• Facility condition assessment
• Guest experience benchmarking
• Venue operations consulting
• Public assembly venue management

Headquarters

HQ city

Brentwood

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Advisory Services: Professional advisory and consulting services provided to public assembly venues. Revenue is generated through engagement-based fees for services including facility condition assessments, business and operations advising, pre and grand opening advising, safety and security consulting, guest experience benchmarking, and training programs.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Venue Solutions Group is an independent advisory firm that helps leaders of public assembly venues — stadiums, arenas, performing arts centers, convention centers, and municipal facilities — improve operations, safety, guest experience, and long-term performance. Its six core services include Facility Condition Assessment, Business & Operations Advising, Pre & Grand Opening Advising, Safety & Security, Guest Experience Benchmarking, and Advantage Training, all delivered by senior partners who are former venue operators. VSG explicitly does not sell products and is structured to be free from vendor influence, providing unbiased strategic guidance to facility leaders.

Product overview

Venue Solutions Group offers a portfolio of six independent advisory services designed for public assembly venue leaders. The core offerings are: Facility Condition Assessment (physical building evaluation and 20+ year capital planning), Business & Operations Advising (comprehensive operational evaluation and improvement), Pre & Grand Opening Advising (opening preparation and readiness), Safety & Security (strategic planning and risk management), Guest Experience Benchmarking (mystery-shop style evaluation against industry standards), and Advantage Training (leadership and guest experience training delivered through a partner). All services are delivered by former venue operators with no products to sell, providing vendor-independent guidance tailored to each client's needs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Facility Condition Assessment Detailed evaluation of a building's physical condition covering architecture, interiors, ADA/life-safety codes, structures, entertainment electronic systems, foodservice and retail, MEP systems, security systems, vertical transportation, and roofing; culminates in a 20+ year Capital Expense Matrix for long-term capital planning. Designed for public assembly venue operators and owners who need an independent, vendor-free baseline of facility condition and prioritized capital expenditures.
• Business & Operations Advising Independent, comprehensive evaluation of how a venue operates, including RFP/RFQ development, organizational reviews, SOP development, executive search, design plan reviews, revenue structure analysis, and marketing/event-booking opportunity assessment. Built for venue leaders of stadiums, arenas, ballparks, performing arts centers, convention centers, and municipal facilities who need an independent read on operations and a clear path to improvement.
• Pre & Grand Opening Advising Hands-on guidance for preparing new or renovated venues to open successfully, covering pre-opening budgets and checklists, FF&E reviews, storage planning, operating procedures, vendor coordination, event staffing, emergency-plan training, and premium seating service plans. Targets venue operators and owners launching or re-launching stadiums, arenas, or performing arts centers.
• Safety & Security Strategic readiness planning covering venue-wide security reviews, risk assessments, emergency operations and incident response planning, screening and access-control configuration, first-responder coordination, crowd management, and staff training on emergency procedures. Built for public assembly venue operators that need practical, vendor-neutral safety and security planning.
• Guest Experience Benchmarking Structured evaluation of the full game-day guest journey from arrival through departure, including website and reception, parking, guest services, entry and circulation, security, cleanliness, concessions, facility condition, and quality of personal interactions; delivers recommendations benchmarked against industry best practices and is repeatable annually. Designed for venue operators seeking an independent measure of guest experience quality.
• Advantage Training Guest experience, leadership, and organizational development training delivered through a VSG partner organization, including frontline performance improvement programs, well-being practices for leaders, and evaluation and feedback systems. Co-founded by Richard Andersen and Russ Simons to extend VSG's service offerings in human capital development for venue teams.

Quantifiable outcome

• 110+ combined years of industry expertise and 200+ venues served nationwide
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers11 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Advantage TrainingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVSG partner organization delivering guest experience, leadership, and organizational development training programs. Richard Andersen serves as Chief Illuminations Officer for VSG and leads Advantage Training, extending VSG's service offerings in human capital development.
• Howe EngineeringminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerVSG worked as a subconsultant to Howe Engineering on a life safety analysis project for Simsbury Meadows Performing Arts Center, providing safety-related documentation review and assessment services.
• IAVM (International Association of Venue Managers)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVSG team members are active members and instructors in IAVM, including serving on the Board of Regents and teaching at the Venue Management School at Oglebay. VSG co-founded the Venue Operations Summit with IAVM in 2015.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• AECOM: AECOM is a global infrastructure consulting firm with venue and sports facility advisory capabilities, including facility condition assessments and operations consulting. Its scale and bundled service offering position it as a broad incumbent competitor on large municipal and franchise engagements.
• Populous: Populous is the global architecture firm that designed many of the venues VSG advises on, and the former employer of three VSG co-founders. It offers facility operations consulting alongside its core design work, making it both a peer and a historical source of VSG's talent.
• HOK: HOK is a global design firm with a notable Sports & Entertainment practice that provides venue planning and operational advisory. It competes with VSG for major venue engagements and has a broader service portfolio spanning architecture and engineering.
• Gensler: Gensler is a global architecture and design firm with a Sports & Entertainment practice that advises on venue experience, operations, and guest journey design. Its reach into large entertainment districts and convention centers makes it an adjacent competitor for high-end advisory work.
• ASM Global: ASM Global is the world's largest venue management company, operating more than 350 venues globally. While its primary business is operating venues rather than advising, it competes with VSG for senior-level engagements around venue openings, operations, and guest experience benchmarking.

Direct peers

• Elevate (Elevate Sports Ventures): Elevate is a sports business consulting firm that advises teams, leagues, and venues on strategy, operations, and commercial opportunities. It overlaps with VSG's Business & Operations Advising and market-facing work for sports venue clients.
• Legends Hospitality: Legends provides venue consulting, hospitality, and merchandise services across sports and entertainment properties. It overlaps with VSG in venue operations advising and guest experience benchmarking and is a leading competitor for major-league venue work.
• CAA Icon: CAA Icon is a venue advisory and feasibility consulting firm serving sports and entertainment facility owners and operators. Like VSG, it provides independent advisory without operating venues, making it a direct competitor for the same enterprise clients.
• Brailsford & Dunlavy: Brailsford & Dunlavy is a venue management and consulting firm providing operations, security, and event-day advisory services for arenas and stadiums. It is a direct competitor for venue operations and guest experience engagements, particularly in the NHL/NBA arena segment.

Others

• International Association of Venue Managers (IAVM): IAVM is the industry's primary membership and education body for venue managers. It is not a commercial competitor but is a strategic partner and ecosystem anchor, with VSG partners serving on its Board of Regents and as instructors at the Venue Management School.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

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Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Venue Solutions Group