Miami to Host Tennis Event

The tennis industry will come together on March 23 in Miami for the 2016 State of the Industry Forum. The event, which will be held at the Hilton Miami Downtown, will run from 10 to 11:30 a.m.

Prior to the start of the State of the Industry Forum, a “Tennis Tech Fair & Resource Center” will open at 9 a.m. and offer the opportunity to learn about key new trends and products in the marketplace to help industry businesses run more effectively and help boost member and player engagement.

At the Forum, top tennis officials will present the latest news and data about the industry, including participation research, consumer and technology trends, tennis marketplace data, an update on grow-the-game initiatives, and updates from the U.S. Tennis Association (USTA), including the progress at the new USTA National Campus in Orlando, Fla., and the renovations at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York, home of the US Open.

The Forum also will outline ways to better define and boost the economic growth and impact of the tennis industry, and effective ways to distribute clear, consistent messaging of health, fitness and the reasons to play tennis.

Immediately following the State of the Industry Forum on March 23, Dr. Jack Groppel, an internationally recognized authority and pioneer in the science of human performance and the co-founder of the Johnson & Johnson Human Performance Institute, will address the “Challenge to Change Behaviors” when it comes to health and fitness, and how tennis should play a key role.

Speakers at the Forum will include Kurt Kamperman, the USTA’s chief executive of Community Tennis & the USTA National Campus; Jeff Williams, TIA president and managing partner of the Tennis Media Co.; John Suchenski, ESPN’s senior manager of programming & acquisitions; Keith Storey, vice president of Sports Marketing Surveys USA; Mark Byrd, chief customer officer for RetailNet Group; and other executives.

Presented by the Tennis Industry Association (TIA), the State of the Industry Forum is free for those in the industry to attend, however space is limited, so registration is required (visit TheTOMConference.com). The Forum is being held in conjunction with the Tennis Owners & Managers (T.O.M.) Conference, which continues through March 25.

Forum attendees also are invited to attend a lunch on March 23 that will benefit PHIT KIDS, which is dedicated to getting kids physically active. The cost of the lunch is $75, and a portion of the proceeds will go to PHIT KIDS to support PHIT America GO! Grants, which help to jumpstart physical activity in schools. (Visit PHITAmerica.org for more information.)

To register for the Forum, go to TheTOMConference.com site and select “State of the Industry Forum.” (For those also attending or exhibiting at the Tennis Owners & Managers Conference from March 23 to 25, the website has registration and sponsorship information, among other details.)

About the TIA: The Tennis Industry Association, the not-for-profit trade association for tennis, is THE unifying force in the tennis industry whose mission is to promote the growth and economic vitality of tennis by working closely with the U.S. Tennis Association and industry partners to develop and implement initiatives to increase tennis participation and improve the health of industry businesses. Core TIA activities include producing more than 70 research reports annually on participation and consumer/trade research, in addition to Grow the Game Initiatives such as PlayTennis.com, 10 and Under Tennis, the GrowingTennis System™, Tennis Welcome Centers, Cardio Tennis, Careers in Tennis and Tennis Tune-Up Campaign. Visit TennisIndustry.org or call 866-686-3036.