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A premiumon new clubsA Premium Club: ProgressiveField’s new 5,000-square-footpremium product combines aloft theme with a sports bar,incorporating high ceilings, darkgrey floor tile and carpet, maplewood paneling, solid surfacecountertops, and brown and blueaccent tile.There exists an industry-wide conflict between a surplus of suites and a lack of venuesadapting with innovative premium products. On Opening Day 2013 at Progressive Field,the Cleveland Indians will usher in the exclusive new Premium Club which serves asanother leading example of addressing changes in premium customer demands.By Amanda Verhoff, Executive Director, ALSDQuick HitsThe Cleveland Indians willdecrease the suite total atProgressive Field by 15 in 2013,replacing this inventory with anew Premium Club.The Premium Club, whosefinal name is still being decidedupon, is a new product whosequality and value is somewherebetween a club seat and a suite.The Premium Club price pointis $150/seat per game. Onlyfull-season packages are sold, but3-year contracts do offer escalatorprotection, and shared packagesare available.The Premium Clubincorporates all-inclusive foodand beverage concepts, including8-12 menus rotating during theseason and changing each game.When Progressive Field was built in 1994, it had132 suites. By 2012, that number had droppedto 111. And with lingering concerns over anindustry that is not operating like it did in the1990s, when suites sold out on 10-year leases, the home of theCleveland Indians will again decrease its suite inventory by 15in 2013. In response to clients unable to tolerate long-termleases and still too much suite supply, the Indians are unveilingwhat they hope is a solution to the current climate in sportseconomics: the Premium Club.The construction of Progressive Field’s new Premium Club,located directly adjacent to the Press Box, on the first baseside of home plate, follows an industry trend to decrease thenumber of luxury suites in North American sports venues. “It’snot a Cleveland issue,” says Ryan Robbins, Director of PremiumSales & Service for the Indians. “It’s an industry-wideissue to decrease suites.” Because the Indians are embracingevolving trends and diminished customer budgets, Robbinsbelieves the organization will deliver a desirable atmospherein the Premium Club’s inaugural year.A New WaveThe Cleveland Indians Premium Club, whose final name isstill being decided upon, appeases some customers’ desires fora new product whose quality and value is somewhere betweena club seat and a suite. What’s more, the new Club will helpthe team’s bottom line as well. At $150/seat per game, Robbinsfavorably asserts that the Premium Club “will fill a gapin current ticket inventory while also accomplishing the team’sgoal of generating additional revenues.”To determine the price point and amenities for the5,000-square-foot, climate-controlled, fully furnished PremiumClub, the Indians researched other MLB ballparks,including Great American Ballpark (Cincinnati Reds), PNCPark (Pittsburgh Pirates), Safeco Field (Seattle Mariners), andComerica Park (Detroit Tigers).The Silver SuiteRyan Robbins is versed in selling a suite turned club. Whilewith the Oakland Raiders as Director of Premium Seatingfrom 2009 to 2012, Robbins sold the Silver Suite, which64 | S E A T | www.alsd.com | #SEATWinter2013