J.C. Poma: How to Build a New Sports Commission

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J.C. Poma spent almost seven years with Richmond Region Tourism, working his way up from manager to director to vice president before leaving earlier this year. He didn’t venture far, as he went about 20 miles south of Richmond to the small city of Chesterfield, Virginia. Since arriving in Chesterfield, his task has been to build up the Play Chesterfield brand within the Sports, Visitation, & Entertainment department, and both utilize and upgrade the various facilities in the area. Poma’s philosophy of building from within has Play Chesterfield focused on creating spaces for residents to play and interact, while also looking to bring in tournaments and events from outside the county to drive revenue. We talked with Poma about what his short and longterm goals are, how he and his team are promoting the new Play Chesterfield venture and the delicate balance of keeping the locals happy, while establishing the destination as a prime spot for sports tourism.

Topics discussed in this episode:

• Overview of what Play Chesterfield has started with the Sports, Visitation, & Entertainment department (2:00)
• What initially drew Poma to the Chesterfield job and to want to take on this challenge (6:45)
• How Play Chesterfield has gotten the word out to event owners and operators (11:15)
• What Poma has learned in the seven months since taking over at Play Chesterfield (15:37)
• Small goals that have been accomplished, and big goals on the horizon (17:55)
• Advice for somebody who’s starting a sports commission from scratch (20:12)

This episode is sponsored by: