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Paul Garofolo
Hi, I am Paul Garofolo, a 25 year sports executive, married to Sharon, Father to Dillon, Austin and Isabelle.
PAUL GAROFOLO, Vice President, Business Development Paul Garofolo joined Premier Partnerships in March of 2007 after serving as President and CEO of Wolstein Sports & Entertainment Group, a Premier Partnerships client. Paul is a 25-year veteran in sports marketing, athlete representation, and event management. He is currently leading the efforts for Premier’s business-to-business platform, which he initiated with Insurance Office of America (IOA), the 8th largest privately-held insurance brokerage firm in the country. With his help IOA has grown to become the most sought-after expert by professional sports teams and venues for quality insurance representation. Paul’s most recent acquisition for the business-to-business platform is Eco Lumens, a state-of-the-art, emerging technology company that has patented the first stadium/arena LED sports lighting to exceed the currently underserved lighting capacity for sports events broadcast in HD/3DTV. To date, a number of business-to-business agreements have been completed including: San Francisco 49’ers, Washington Wizards, New Jersey Devils, Florida Panthers, Six Flags Entertainment, Michael Waltrip Racing (NASCAR), Oakland Raiders, Charlotte Bobcats and Atlanta Hawks. Other firms featured in Premier’s business-to-business platform include Bear Data Solutions and Coloredge. Garofolo started his professional career in 1978 with the Pittsburgh Spirit (MISL) as Director of Operations. In 1981 he joined the Cleveland Force as Director of Public Relations and rose through the ranks to become Vice President and General Manager. The team averaged nearly 15,000 spectators per game and holds attendance records at the Richfield Coliseum (former home of the NBA Cavaliers) with crowds in excess of 20,000 fans. In 1988, Garofolo joined the sports marketing firm, ProServ, Inc. At ProServ, his responsibilities included overseeing many of ProServ’s events and marketing efforts. The events included , The Volvo Tennis Tour, The Budweiser 3 on 3 Challenge, The AT&T Challenge, The Caribbean Sports Festival, and the Hawaiian Punch “Punchy Sports” Program. While at ProServ he worked with top client agents David Falk and Jerry Solomon in conjunction with their clients including Michael Jordan, Dominique Wilkins, Patrick Ewing, James Worthy, Greg Lemond, Jimmy Connors, and Ivan Lendl. In addition, Garofolo served as the Executive Director of the Professional Association of Water Skiers Tour, a ProServ client. After leaving ProServ, Garofolo teamed up with the Wolstein Group and Jack Nicklaus as Sr. Vice-President of Sales to develop Barrington, a 600-acre, private master-planned residential community and private golf club around a Nicklaus Signature design. In 1992, Garofolo founded Signature Sports with a goal of developing three areas of business as the foundation of the firm. The first was in athlete representation. The second was as a consultant to corporations, sports properties, and leagues in their strategic planning, marketing, licensing, and execution. The third was in the field of event management and marketing. The firm was approved by the PGA for oversight of two Nike Tour events. Garofolo was hired as a marketing consultant to World Cup ’94, the Major League Soccer City Bid process, and the 1998 Major League Soccer All-Star Game in Orlando in conjunction with Disney Sports. The ’98 All-Star Game still stands as the crown jewel of the MLS All-Star Game showcases in attendance with over 34,000 fans in a non-MLS city. Garofolo was a founding partner of the International Basketball League and served on the Board of North American Soccer Camps, (NASC) the largest youth day camp program in the USA. NASC operated for thirteen years under the brand MLSCamps as part of a youth grassroots program that Garofolo initiated with MLS in 1996. In 1999, Garofolo organized an ownership group, which acquired the Cleveland Force. Garofolo served as President of the team through