Terry Conlon, ECM, has had an interesting year. For the past 15 years, he has been the director of concessions at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, where he is responsible for football, baseball, softball, volleyball, soccer, gymnastics, track, tennis and wrestling concessions. This year, however, has been quite a bit different.
In addition to his normal routine, Conlon has been the director of concessions for a major league football team - the NFL's Chicago Bears. While the Bears' home, Soldier Field, is being renovated, the Bears have called U of I's Memorial Stadium home.
The path to the major leagues for Conlon and his team has involved a glut of new products, a labyrinth of new procedures, detailed press scrutiny, a new state law, and one heck of a weight loss plan. "I've lost 20 pounds!" laughs Conlon.
From Chicago
to Champaign
The planning for the Bears influx into Champaign began in October of 2001,
long before the University was even chosen for the Bears' home. The University
sent Conlon and three staff to Chicago to three Bears home games to observe
"just to get a good idea of what to expect."
The official announcement from the Bears came in February of 2002, and
Conlon was off and running. "The big issue was whether or not we
would be allowed to sell beer," he stated. "That really wasn't
decided until May or June."
As a state school, the University is prohibited from selling alcohol on school property. In order to sell beer at Bears games, a virtual necessity at a pro stadium, there needed to be a state law. The Illinois State legislature passed a law enabling beer sales at Memorial Stadium for Bears games during the 2002-2003 season, with the possibility of extending that should the Bears need to play additional games in Champaign at the beginning of the 2003-2004 season. "The amendment was passed only for Bears games, and only for beer sales," explained Conlon.
With the Bears and the University's Illini football team sharing a stadium, Conlon became one of a select few people who have run college and professional concessions from the same football venue. Three other universities have hosted both - Arizona State University with the Arizona Cardinals; the University of Washington with the Seattle Seahawks, and Vanderbilt University with the Tennessee Titans. Vanderbilt and Washington, however, did not serve beer.
"I flew out to Arizona to observe how to switch from a college to pro game overnight. ASU is handled by Fine Host, and Sue Boettcher, ECM, was very helpful to me." Conlon got feedback from Grant Reed at Vanderbilt on what to expect from the crowd. Conlon also relied on industry contacts, including members of the NAC board, of which he is a member. "One day, when I was socializing at the NAC convention, Randy Collins, ECM, of the Charlotte Coliseum Authority gave me some hints on operating a pro venue. Other people on the board like Nick Biello of Sportservice and Carmen Torzon of Volume Services America were also helpful. My NAC colleagues definitely came in very handy - value for my membership!"
This is
a partial version of the complete story that appeared in the Winter 2002
issue of Concessionworks, the newsletter for NAC members. To
become a member of NAC
click here. Members that would like to receive the complete story
can call the NAC office at (312) 236-3858.