Northstar Travel Group Adds Sports Travel Brands

Apr 09, 2017

What:
Northstar Travel Group (NTG), parent company of TravelAge West, has acquired one of the sporting event industry’s leading events and meetings brands, Schneider Publishing. Its president and CEO, Timothy Schneider, will now serve as founder and chairman of NTG’s new Sports Division, which will be a part of the Meetings Group.

Why It Matters:
NTG’s first foray into the sporting event industry furthers its authority in the travel and meetings space. Included in the acquisition are SportsTravel and Association News, as well as their corresponding conference and expo events, TEAMS and Meetings Quest, respectively. TEAMS attracts suppliers, sponsors, representatives and executives across the sports-event industry. Meetings Quest holds the title of longest-running series of trade shows for meeting planners in the U.S.

Fast Facts:
- Preeminent golf tournament Shamrock Shootout Golf Classic will also fall under the NTG umbrella. It was recently named the exclusive golf tournament of the IMEX America trade show, to be held Oct. 10-12, 2017, in Las Vegas.

- Launched in 1998, TEAMS is now in its 19th year. TEAMS ’17 will be held Oct. 30 to Nov. 2, 2017.

What They Are Saying:
“Sporting events are an exciting, fast-growing, specialized meetings-industry segment, catering to diverse audiences with distinct needs,” said Tom Kemp, chairman and CEO of NTG. “Schneider Publishing’s SportsTravel brand and their TEAMS Conference have built a reputation as a key partner to sports-event organizers and the destinations and hoteliers who serve them. This acquisition is another important step in the transformation of Northstar into a marketing solutions company serving all key segments of the travel and meetings industries.”

“Our strategy to serve the widest variety of meeting planners, and the suppliers who serve them, is further enhanced with the addition of Association News and the Meetings Quest conferences,” said David Blansfield, executive vice president and group publisher of NTG’s Meetings Group. “Schneider Publishing’s extensive databases and relationships complement and expand our capabilities in the corporate, association and specialty meetings markets, as well as provide an immediate leadership position in sports.”

“Finding the right strategic partner with the necessary capabilities over a range of areas — event management, digital media, and database marketing, to name a few — was important to me to scale the business,” Schneider said. “Working with Tom, David and the Northstar team, we’ll be leveraging Northstar’s strengths to enhance and expand our offerings in service of our customers.”