Industry News

Event Genius appoints Lytle as head of operations

Event Genius has brought in former Frontgate executive Lauren Lytle from the Texas-based firm to become its new head of operations.

The UK ticketing and event technology firm, which is based in Leeds, appointed Lytle after a “worldwide search” for the right candidate.

Lytle joins Event Genius after seven years as senior client operations manager and director of international operations at Frontgate, which is owned by Ticketmaster. In her role, she worked with major brands such as Coachella, C3 Presents, Outside Lands, X Games Los Angeles and Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival.

As an industry-leading expert in delivering point of sale (POS) solutions to the festival market, Lytle will spearhead the 2018 expansion of the company’s cashless point of sale solution, Event Genius Pay.

“It’s great to be working on Event Genius Pay.” said Lytle: “The company is at the forefront of developing this type of technology and I’m hoping to bring new ideas to the table that reveal unexplored verticals to not just that product, but the entire Event Genius portfolio.

“Event Genius is a natural fit with my operational skill and desire to grow into the international festival space. My time at Frontgate offered me the chance to work with some of the biggest brands in North America, directly managing huge clients like Coachella, Outside Lands, Bonnaroo, and EDC Las Vegas, so bringing that knowledge overseas to a new company and helping it grow was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up.”

Event Genius Pay is a cashless POS solution that was built to meet the needs of the festival market. The firm claims that the technology helps to increase customer spending by up to 25 per cent. Event Genius Pay accepts payments via cash, contactless and chip & pin card payments, as well as Google Pay and Apple Pay.

The funds are then loaded as credit onto secure RFID/NFC enabled wristbands to pay for drinks, food and merchandise at the event with a simple tap. It features options that boost pre-event revenue generation; enable customers to top-up via mobile or self-service terminals, and a reporting and analytics suite.

Reshad Hossenally, managing director at Event Genius, said: “We cast our net far and wide to find the absolute best candidate for the role. In our industry, it’s difficult to put a price on the sort of experience and know-how that Lauren can bring to the company. We were excited to hear she was interested and it’s a real coup to make her part of the team.”

Image: Event Genius