Ticket resale company Razorgator, which has been struggling as of late in the ultra-competitive secondary ticket market, has laid off 30 employees and decided to give up reselling its own ticket inventory to concentrate on being a commercial ticket exchange, the company announced today, July 15.
The layoffs represent 24 percent of the company’s workforce and is only the latest round of dismissals, which began in late 2009. The company has shut down some of its satellite offices over the past several months, and President and CEO Brendan Ross told TicketNews that Razorgator’s PrimeSport division, which was headed by ticketing veteran Sam Soni, will be spun off as an independent entity under Soni’s direction.
Soni left the company in the summer of 2008 and returned a year later.
“Sam has been a tremendous contributor since Razorgator acquired his sports travel and hospitality businesses in 2005,” Ross said. “We look forward to executing a seamless transition and wish him the best of luck.”
Razorgator recently unveiled a redesigned ticket exchange Web site, and in addition to continuing to operate it, the company will also continue to sell its TicketOS software product to brokers.
“By narrowing our focus, we’ll ensure that our talent and creative energy is focused on the activities where we are best positioned to grow and create value. I look forward to continuing to build a stronger Razorgator based on our most exciting, core assets,” Ross said.
Concentrating on the core business will also likely end the complaints of some of the company’s broker clients, who believed Razorgator competed with them to sell tickets instead of helping them sell their inventory. As a result, the company had been slowly losing broker clients to StubHub, TicketNetwork and other exchanges.
In an email sent out today to broker clients, Ross explained the moves.
Dear Valued Partners,
I wanted to take this opportunity to inform you about some exciting news at Razorgator.
We have adjusted our corporate strategy to focus on the core, scalable portion of our business: selling your tickets. Going forward, we will no longer sell proprietary inventory on our exchange. Our PrimeSport business unit will be spun off to become independent once again, owned and operated by its founder, Sam Soni.
The secondary ticket market continues to evolve at a rapid pace, and we are confident that our strategic direction will enable Razorgator to become a stronger player.
Although we know this move is the right direction for our customers and for the broker community, this change has necessitated a staff reduction. The personnel decisions were necessary to realign our operations and restructure our organization around our new strategy.
As we proceed with this new corporate strategy, our top priority remains providing a positive experience to the broker community, our marketing partners, and our customers. In addition to being one of the leading online ticket exchanges in the world, Razorgator wants to be your preferred marketplace and top reseller of tickets.
Jackie Martinoski, Christi Hurst, Anna Chan, Pakshi Desigar and I look forward to attending this weekend’s NATB conference, where we will have the opportunity to see you and answer any questions you may have. Also, I will be participating in a panel discussion where I will discuss how our new strategy will benefit our broker partners.
On behalf of Razorgator, thank you for your continued business and support.
Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions/concerns.
Sincerely,
Brendan Ross
President & CEO, Razorgator
Last Updated on July 17, 2010
37 Comments
Comments are closed.
First of all, 24% really means more than 75%. There’s a lawsuit pending (perhaps it settled) claiming $5m in damages against Razorgator by a ticket broker in Texas. My suspicion is that Brendan has used the world cup losses as a cover story for this and perhaps maybe he is in kahoots with Sam Soni on the mutual split. The story he gave the people that were laid off differs in extremity beyond your imagination. He himself has blamed Sam Soni for “screwing the company” and that this was not at all in his favor or by his decision. He proceeded to present this very press release (heavily modified) to the ‘surviving’ set of people that are expected to maintain the company as purely a secondary ticket exchange sales front. Brendan, don’t expect the remaining tech department to sustain your company – there simply is not enough man power. Secondly, you’re so blind you think the website is the only component to selling tickets. Good luck supporting your internal systems. This company gives the secondary market a bad name, they truly are ticket scalpers just at a corporate level.
Ticketnews, the opinions stated here are among a general consensus of current/ex employees of Razorgator. The facts stated here are from valid sources and also spoken directly from the horses mouth (if you dare confront him on any of these statements, pay close attention at his demeanor in response). I ask you kindly not to remove this comment as the public deserves the truth, and this in fact is THE news site for the people concerned. Brokers, and customers buying tickets.
Supporting the lawsuit claim:
https://www.ticketnews.com/Beijing-Olympics-ticket-lawsuit-Broker-seeks-six-million-in-damages-from-RazorGator9091456
Unless you can back up these “facts” and supposedly credible sources with citations, do you really expect us to believe that this is the rambling opinion of just one online poster? And one who prefers to remain “Anonymous” at that?
And whom is it you speak on behalf of, Mr Anonymous (double standard here?). I don’t plan to speak names. That’s a pretty valid thing to do to protect those affected.
I’ve never been one to hide behind any kind of Anonymous, so I’ll share some perspective if anyone cares.
I’m just a bit saddened by what I see as the slow demise of Razorgator since I had big hopes for the company when they purchased our brokerage back in 2005.
During my 3-years as Razorgator, I watched a company desperately struggle to figure out who they are, what they want to be, and how in the heck to get there. One thing I learned as Encore Tickets is that when everyone in the organization has faith in the man or woman running the show, success soon follows.
We loved, respected and trusted our fearless leader – and we, in turn, we rewarded handsomely.
It wasn’t easy, but being recognized as one of the best never is. Not me, personally, but the organization as a whole.
I never once believed anyone at Razorgator ever had faith in its various leaders – from top to the bottom. It always felt like people completely unfamiliar with tickets were put in position to make decisions over and above those who really had strong ticket knowledge and experience.
The business school guy vs. the old skool ticket broker almost always ended in the latter getting the least respect, and his/her ideas trampled.
I, for one, am bummed because the demise of Razorgator affects me personally, and some of my friends, but I will always stand up for Sam Soni and those closest to his organization as from day one in all this chaos, this is where the brightest ticketing minds, best ideas, and shear balls were displayed.
…all the rest was just fluff.
Good luck to all involved as I truly wish success for everyone I know in these organizations, and in the business.
Yours “big mouth” truly,
Christian Griffith
“proudly ticket-trained by the old skool”
http://run100miles.com
Least Soni did not get all of his world cup tickets “stolen” like they did in France.
This had nothing to do with it being a tough market. Sam Soni embezzled the $5 million and should be prosecuted. And Brendan is trying to cover it up. I worked at Razorgator for several years so I know. They laid off over half the staff, including me. Now Razorgator is collapsing. Thank God I no longer take a check from this small group of scam artists.
BTW keeping anonymous is important, Razorgator will sue anybody disparaging the company.
As someone who was there @ the layoff meeting yesterday morning @ 10:30 AM, I can back up everything this person said. Systems are down and accounting cannot pay brokers. They will probably file for bankruptcy soon.
But believe what you want to believe.
You must not know this guy. He is the key definition of a ‘dirty scalper’. End of story. Anyone who has had to deal with this guy knows it’s not fun, and he is one shady business reptile. As stated above he embezzled over $5m in procurement funds for the world cup series. Go ahead, stand next to him. Brendan isn’t off the hook here either, they are both cold blooded, scandalous individuals.
No matter how much you spin it, “We have adjusted our corporate strategy…”, it doesn’t change the fact that several people lost their jobs yesterday with little or no warning. It is incredibly insulting that Brendan Ross wished Sam Soni, the man responsible for this mess, “…the best of luck.” What about wishing luck to those who lost their jobs and didn’t ruin the company?
The bottom line is Razorgator made a lot of bad business decisions (and are still making them) and a lot of people are suffering because of it. To all those who were let go yesterday, good luck and I hope you all find yourselves better jobs.
I had fun burning the T-Shirts that were given out with Brendan’s face on it.
You fired your entire product/creative and technology departments. Good luck “focusing your talent” as there is very little left.
Razorgator will be closing shop this year i warn any broker or affiliate with exclusive RG deals. Sever your ties now or you may end up writing off Razorgators losses.
As a former employee of RazorGator working in the finance department I’m not surprised to hear about the lay-off. The Controller and the CFO know how messy the books are at RazorGator and how hard it was to reconcile the books to Sam Soni purchasing plan. I’m sure Sam Soni tricked RazorGator into giving him full control of Primesport in order to save the company from bankruptcy. And now all of those employees were laid off last week because of the bad decisions made by Finance. I wish all of those folks good luck in finding a job in this big recession. Especially Jack McGill that use to be in the AP Department….he was the worst.
Thanks Michelle.
Thanks Vernice. Definitely hope you have time to talk on your cell at your new job
Sounds like RG is heading down to “crush depth” …
Where is Kirby or Reece when you really need them now?
Vernice will probably not get to take as many (coughcough) *sick* days as she did at RZG.
Leon Perry was completely out of his depth. We (2 former ‘Gators here at the keyboard)
worked for him for a year, and noticed he has a tendency to blame (and then fire) anyone who points out his (numerous) errors and mistakes. He is a ruthless man, and knowingly participated in the fleecing that was happening on an ongoing basis.
Poor Steamboat folks – You’d think any organization affiliated with Disney would be smarter than to hand out cash to these clowns!
It’s sick and sad, too – the bottom line is, simply, a wonderful business was flipped into a tailspin by a crap economy and ruthless self-aggrandizers.
RIP, Razorgator! The few poor souls remaining are being told to look for work elsewhere!
Yeah that must have been posted by Verniece-Jack McGill is a great A/P guy and when our organization starts hiring again, he’s at the front of the line in our A/P department. If you get a resume from Verniece, steer far clear of her – she’s more likely to spend 6 hours’ time yakking on her cellphone, picking her nose, or going to some “important family meeting”. Or simply calling in sick. Again and again. Jack McGill, on the other hand, showed up on time, worked his a** off, dotted his I’s and crossed his T’s. Verniece doesn’t even know what a three-way match is!!!
Yup thats what Leon Perry did to Cecilia. I sat at the North end of the office just as
she left the building. That man is trecherous!
This company is now in the hands of Stevie wonder and Jose feliciano, poor guys like Steve cucci who gave his heart and soul to this company and now has squat in return. Soni made out like a bandit with all the goodies in hand, hooray for SAM and his clan. he kept the company in the chips 3 years longer than they should have, if u are a broker put them on credit card or u will get stiffed.. buyer beware, i worked for this company for 5 and a half years and now have nothing to show for it.
I must agree that Leon Perry is very unprofessional and dishonest about everything. He lies about everything and to everyone. Even when it’s not necessary to lie….he lies. He’s one to watch….I wouldn’t be surprised if you turned his short butt upside down and shook him that you would find some of the company’s missing money drop-out. And even when you confront him on his lies he’s not even Man enough to come clean. All he does his laugh it off and make you seem like you’re so far from the truth.
He comes in at 9am walks around the office laughing and talking to everyone the whole day. Then when he gets tired he sits down to work at 5pm and leaves around 8pm with nothing completed. Only to come back in the next day to come up with excuses why he hasn’t completed anything or points the finger at someone else near by.
Brendan and Investors….Beware!! I feel so sorry for those left behind…pretty soon Leon will have no-one else to point the finger at…and then what.
I feel sorry for Steve Cucci. The guy has a lot of heart, but unfortunately he is a
very trusting man, suckered by a coven of thieves and vipers. The saddest thing about
the demise of this company is that what I like to call the “misleadership” wandered
around, poking here, lunging there…peripatetically, never really achieving anything,
never really finishing a viable project. For SO LONG now, it’s been shoot-and-loot,
grab the cash, and screw everyone else. There are so many bodies — so many good
souls — left in the wake of this company — so much malfeasance, so much willing
deception…and Cucci and his guys and gals are the victims.
Really, it’s kind of a metamodel for the rest of the corporate world today, and it
saddens me. This was one HELL of a great company not too long ago, and someone
with some balls should step up and put a bullet in this beast. It’s dying slowly,
and watching the agonies of so many is really gut-wrenching.
God bless every one of you, former (and soon-to-be-former) workers of Razorgator.
Just about every single one of you kicked a** and took names. It’s such a shame you
were all deceived and misled. They are the ones who took the food from your cupboards
and the dignity from your lives.
I miss Vicky V. She is so flippin’ HAWT!
Seriously? Really? LOL….It’s a clown fest and get’s better…keep them coming!
Hahahaha! Looks like the Assistant Controller had all the posts about him pulled!
Nice. He’s still a sneaky snake.
I’ve been selling tickets to razor for years and haven’t run into any major problems yet. I deal with some really nice folks there who are always willing to help whenever needed. I was in Vegas for NATB’s conference and couldn’t believe some of the rumors circulating around this company. For what it’s worth, I hope all the negative rumors are just that, rumors. This exchange is by far one of the easiest to work with. They don’t charge a monthly fee and rely on ticket sales to make money. I hope the focus on selling tickets is a trend that takes off for them because I’d rather give them the opportunity to make money then pay outrageous fees like some of the other exchanges charge.
As for all the bitter sentiments by ex-employees, wouldn’t it be beneficial to dedicate more time to finding a new job then ripping into former co-workers? Just a thought from a longtime client.
Good luck to razor! I look forward to doing a lot more business with them.
Unless you have worked at Razorgator or currently work at Razorgator then you’ll never know what is like there. The company has been run into the ground by the current management. It is not if, but when everyone will lose their jobs. Today one of our executives was let go for asking too many questions at a company-wide meeting addressing the $3.5 (haha) to 5 million lost at the World Cup on tickets and hotel rooms (one hotel wasn’t even built by the time the WC started – good choice). The CEO addressed the room and then asked everyone to ask questions. The executive asked all the questions we wanted to hear the answers to. The CEO let him go 2 days later after telling him he would be there until at least August 3rd. This guy was brought over from one of the top sports agencies just 6 weeks ago. Sounds like he has a strong case against the CEO and Razorgator for being defrauded especially since he started after the World Cup had already begun. Word is a few more people are going in the next few days and the entire tech team is looking for jobs (2 have already find jobs and are out next week). This place seems doomed. Looks like the board made a poor choice in their CEO. Maybe they can put some money in to a time machine next instead of the imploding Razorgator.
Yeah I see that!!! But He’s still a Liar and that he can’t change no matter what. And he can call in and have as many comments about him to be removed as he wants…that still won’t change the facts.
Openfield might soon be on the block?
Wow…RAZORGATOR is INSIGNIFICANT. Major layoffs of more than 75% of the people. $$5Mil lost and noone knows where it’s gone (officially), but no major blogs sites (like TechCrunch) have picked up the story. It just goes to show noone really cares for the company except maybe those who lost their job. If StubHub were to loose people or money, it would be a major story. Just sayin’
And for those of you guys who spent number of years at the company – What losers all of you guys really are! Is it because you actually had no skills to find a job anywhere else or the titles given to you were so huge in your little world, that you felt you were on top of the world? Maybe they did you a favor by laying you off, now, you can step out of the box, and see the real (working) world. Good luck to all of y’all.
so as be able to identify others as being “losers” without any evidence to support such.
IMO, your doing so qualifies YOU as a LOSER.
That a poster CLAIMS that “24% really means 75%” does not make it so.
There is here no evidence to support such claim.
As A Past Employee Of Tyson Tickets And The Special Event Co.
(The Mothership Of Razorgator)It Is Dishartening To Read Of The
Challenges Ahead For Razorgator. A Company That Grew At A Alarming Pace.
Going From 10 Or 12 Workers Into The Hundreds. There Are Truley A Few People In This
Line Of Work That Lead And Many That Follow I Was Privelaged To Wittness The Leaders.
And Had The Pleasure Of Meeting And Working With Some Great Folks That Im Sure I Will
Stay In Contact With For The Rest Of My Time.
As A Past Employee Of Tyson Tickets And The Special Event Co.
(The Mothership Of Razorgator)It Is Dishartening To Read Of The
Challenges Ahead For Razorgator. A Company That Grew At A Alarming Pace.
Going From 10 Or 12 Workers Into The Hundreds. There Are Truley A Few People In This
Line Of Work That Lead And Many That Follow I Was Privelaged To Wittness The Leaders.
And Had The Pleasure Of Meeting And Working With Some Great Folks That Im Sure I Will
Stay In Contact With For The Rest Of My Time.
So, is there any new news coming from Razorgator?
I heard the rumor that they’ll be closing their doors at the
end of August or the beginning of September.