Stadium Kicks Off Promotional Push

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Stan Kroenke’s Los Angeles Sports and Entertainment District is a few years away from its debut, but the stadium owner is not waiting that long to begin selling sponsorships and suites for the $2.6 billion, 300-acre Inglewood development.

Enter the Los Angeles Sports and Entertainment District Premiere Center, a showcase for the complex that will open this week in Playa Vista with the goal of attracting VIP customers.

“This is the broad showcase for Kroenke’s entire project at Hollywood Park – it’s equally about both teams,” said Chris Hibbs, chief revenue officer for the Inglewood project, of the efforts for the future home of the Los Angeles Rams and Los Angeles Chargers.

The facility is managed by New York-based Legends Hospitality, which was hired by Kroenke.

The Inglewood stadium is set to open in 2020 and will host the National Football League’s Rams and Chargers. The venue has already booked the 2022 Super Bowl and 2028 Olympic Games Opening Ceremonies. Hibbs said they are also in discussions to host dozens of other major national and international sports and entertainment events at the complex.

The center’s location on the top floor of Belkin Corp.’s headquarters was chosen over locations in downtown and various sites along the 405 freeway stretching from around the Los Angeles International Airport to Brentwood, he said.

Playa Vista’s proximity to Silicon Beach tech companies, as well as the office’s outdoor patio space, were also big factors in the decision, according to Hibbs. The center’s design mimics the indoor-outdoor flow of the stadium itself, which will be about a 15-minute drive away.

The preview center is similar to those built for major buildings, such as the recently completed Wilshire Grand Center. It will be used to showcase the retail, office and residential space in the development in addition to the stadium. The center will house the sales team charged with selling sponsorships, suites, and personal seat licenses.

Hibbs said having a preview center is important to showcase the venue’s design and highlight the Inglewood development’s many unique amenities. For example, the roofline was designed to reflect the curvature of a wave, as well as the shape of Santa Monica Bay. It will be covered by a clear roof to allow natural sunlight into the stadium.

While stadiums in many large cities are built with one or two suite types catering strictly to large companies, the Inglewood structure’s 260 suites will come in seven different sizes. Most traditional stadium suites can hold between 20 and 30 people, but some of the suites at the Inglewood venue will be designed to handle lower and higher occupancy levels.

– David Nusbaum

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