Andrew Dreskin, the co-founder of TicketFly, is stepping down as president of Eventbrite Music but will continue to act as a consultant for the company, according to Billboard. The move comes two years after Ticketfly’s acquisition by Eventbrite from Pandora, and follows in the wake of major stock price drops in recent months for Eventbrite, which went public just last year.
“After more than a decade at Ticketfly, two acquisitions, and all told almost 20 years running ticketing companies, it feels like the right time for me to transition into a different role,” Dreskin told Billboard. ”It has been a tremendous honor to lead both Ticketfly, and Eventbrite’s music division for the past couple years. I have mad respect for the team at Eventbrite and continue to believe that we are building the best music ticketing platform in the world.”
Dreskin will reportedly transition his role on or around June 7, and has indicated that he will not seek reelection to Eventbrite’s board of directors.
“I’m stepping down, but I’m not stepping out altogether,” he tells Billboard. “I’ve entered into a new multi-year advisory agreement with Eventbrite, which will allow me to stay involved and focus on the part of the job I cherish the most — spending time with our clients,” adding that he’ll “continue to be the main point of contact for my existing roster of clients and I’ll continue to deliver new clients to Eventbrite.”
The change comes amid a rough patch for the ticketing company (NYSE: EB), which has seen its stock prices plummet from around $33 a share in early March down to $15.89 as of Wednesday morning. In the wake of a 30% drop following a poor first quarter earnings report was issued on May 1, the company faced a series of class action lawsuits from investors over the bottom falling out.
Dreskin rose to prominence leading Ticketweb to an early position of prominence as the secondary market expanded in the online era. That company was purchased by Ticketmaster in 2000. He founded Ticketfly with Dan Teree in 2008, growing that company through several rounds of investment prior to its sale to Pandora in 2015. Two years later, it was purchased by Eventbrite.
“We’re grateful for Andrew’s dedication to leading Eventbrite’s music division since Ticketfly and Eventbrite came together nearly two years ago, culminating in the release of the Eventbrite Music platform late last year,” Eventbrite CEO Julia Hartz told Billboard. “Today’s news does not change our fervent commitment to the independent live music community both in North America and globally, and our clients and the team that serves them remain our highest priority.”
