Jamie Loeb
Senior Vice President, Marketing | Nederlander Concerts
For top boutique independent promoter and venue operator Nederlander Concerts, COVID was a time of reflection and preparation.
When society’s return to normalcy finally happened, Jamie Loeb made sure they were ready.
“Anyone who could play a kazoo went on tour,” said Loeb, recently promoted to Nederlander Concerts senior vice president of marketing. “Patrons were still a bit hesitant to go out, unless it was something they had to see, and there was a plethora of shows for them to choose from. Breaking through all of the traffic to get our message heard was challenging, but we were able to make 2022 one of the best years on record for Nederlander Concerts.”
Business was and still is booming for Nederlander, which programs shows for mid-sized venues such as the Vina Robles Amphitheatre in Paso Robles, Denver’s Bellco Theatre and Hollywood Pantages Theatre in Los Angeles. In a competitive market with so many acts on the road, Loeb said her team “got creative with packaging” and “took calculated risks” that helped the company thrive as the industry recovered from the pandemic.
“Though we experienced some falling off in touring inventory in the beginning of 2023, we are still enjoying a bit of a rebound,” Loeb said. “Our team’s creativity has paid off and ticket sales are better than ever. Thankfully, no-shows are now back down to pre-pandemic levels, so they are no longer an issue. As we’ve gone into the second half of this year, we’ve been seeing more inventory and are well into booking for 2024.”
The future is certainly bright for Loeb, who was recently elected to the National Independent Venue Association’s board of directors, and Nederlander, with two new venues on deck: The Backyard Rock & Brews, a 3,000-4,000-cap venue in Sacramento that opens next year and San Pedro’s West Harbor Amphitheatre, a 6,000-cap. site on the waterfront that is going debut in 2025.
“Both of them are going to be very unique and special places for artists to play,” she said, “and I’m excited about helping to move the Fix the Tix bill forward and leading the programming team for the NIVA 2024 conference in New Orleans.” — Oscar Areliz
