Alliance welcomes Feld exec

LAKEWOOD RANCH — Lakewood Ranch resident Jeff Meyer will take Lakewood Ranch entrepreneurs through a walk in time July 15, as he shares about Feld’s evolution from a small family business — a record store in the Washington, D.C., area — to a global giant in the entertainment industry.

Meyer, Feld’s senior vice president of event marketing and sales for North America, will speak to the Lakewood Ranch Business Alliance July 15, at the Polo Grill and Bar, 10670 Boardwalk Loop.

Meyer manages six regions within the North American territory and oversees more than 100 in-house marketing and sales professionals responsible for promoting all Feld properties playing in 175 markets. Feld produces shows such as Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, Monster Jam, Marvel Universe LIVE! and Disney on Ice. 

Meyer has been with Feld for 28 years. He started with the company as regional marketing director in 1987. During his tenure, Meyer's leadership has helped grow the business domestically from playing 160 annual engagements to more than 800 — about 3,200 total performances.

“I’ve seen a family-run operation grow to what it is today and seen the ups and downs along the way,” Meyer said of Feld. “I hope to give people some history of Feld Entertainment, how it started, really with the rock-and-roll era, and walk through the music industry and how that built our business.”

Meyer said one of the company’s unique selling propositions is its focus on the long term. 

“Our decisions are made looking to the future,” he said. “We’re not beholden to quarterly stock reports. It allows us to make decisions in a little bit different way. I think that applies to anybody. Short-term decisions are not always the best.”

Meyer and his family moved to Lakewood Ranch in summer 2013, when Feld relocated its corporate headquarters to a roughly 600,000-square-foot building in Palmetto.