Destination Spotlight, Sean Walter, Punta Gorda Englewood Beach CVB

What circumstances led you to begin working at Punta Gorda/Englewood Beach?

There was an opening when Sean Doherty moved into the Visitors Bureau Director role. At that point I had spent eleven years at a destination to the north of Port Charlotte. I was intrigued with the Punta Gorda Englewood Beach area being home of the Tampa Bay Rays Spring Training facility, building a new 786 room Sunseeker Resort Hotel, new competitive pools with indoor basketball facilities and their Harborside Event & Conference Center.

The destination also offered a quant walkable downtown on the Harbor that provide opportunities for visitors to stroll into shops, restaurants, and attractions. The growth of the destination and the timing was perfect.

What was the first thing you did when you learned you got the job?

I spent the day in the community driving around looking at the various assets I could offer to promote the destination. I stayed around into the evening and went to the various fields and sports complexes to gain an understanding of the destination dynamics while getting acquainted with our local leagues and top sports. I hit the ground running with a grass roots effort to meet the players and organizations within the community that will ultimately be able to support and assist my goals of leveraging sporting events and tournaments to the destination.

Tell us about the “bread and butter” sports Punta Gorda/Englewood Beach caters to?

Are these due to specific state-of-the-art facilities? We are very fortunate to have an aggressive non-profit that operates a 24- court pickleball complex. Their goal is to maximize their offering to the local community while balancing state, national and international tournaments.

This enhances the way of life in Charlotte County while supporting our industry partners. We are also fortunate to own and operate Charlotte Sports Park, a five-field and stadium baseball complex that is home to Spring Training for the Tampa Bay Rays. And we own a 44K Sq. Ft. Event & Conference Center and host various indoor sporting events and banquets.

Our community is a little unique compared to a larger destination in that we do not have as many fields or courts to accommodate a large event in one specific place. With that said, I need to get creative by securing multiple locations as well as focus on non-traditional sport.

The non-traditional sport still provided our residents a chance to participate or cheer as a fan and still supports our hotels, restaurants, and attractions. These include Cornhole, Martial Arts, Fishing, Ultra Running Races, Beach Races, Dance/Cheer, Canoe & Kayak Races, to name a few.

How does seasonality affect your annual book of business?

We still see the usual drop off in the hot summer, but I tend to shift gears and utilize our indoor space. I market the entire destination in hopes they participate in an indoor event and still enjoy our beautiful white sand beaches, preserves and Harbor.

It is always a challenge to secure a tournament during peak season as our hotel pricing increases due to the demand of being a leisure destination for vacationers during this period. It’s usually a balancing act and having those relationships with our hoteliers.

I try to leverage events that come with ancillary options, such as team outings, catering, team meals, fishing excursions, etc. Providing this additional guaranteed revenue to the hotels tends to drop the rate slightly since they will make up the revenue on the back end.

Describe why Punta Gorda/Englewood Beach events are so meaningful to you.

They mean a lot to me since everything I do enhances the way of life for our residents. After all we are public servants. Tourism in our destination saves the homeowner $1046 a year in taxes. And the tournaments and events I leverage provide an opportunity for our residents and their kids to come cheer as a fan or participate as an athlete.

I also think it is special to support the various business that support our tourists. I enjoy working with our hotels, restaurants, attractions, and sports facilities daily. Another great day is seeing the laughter and cheering of the athletes and families that travel to our destination and knowing I made an impact on creating memorable experiences for them.

Sean, you are known in the industry as someone who does exactly what they say they’re going to do. Your commitment to clients is second to none. In what ways has your passion led to increasing the overall portfolio within the Punta Gorda/Englewood Beach sports tourism effort?

I like to challenge myself to become a friend of a potential rights holder first and foremost. I like to not only learn about their organization and event, but about them, their family and what motivated them.

I also make sure they understand that if you host an event in our destination, it’s a partnership and a long-term partnership. I truly appreciate the opportunity they are providing me and the risk they are taking on myself and the destination. Since our industry is weighted heavily on word of mouth, these are important characteristics that must be top of mind.

I also enter the conversation making sure they understand I am the expert within my destination and will assist them with navigating through opportunities and assist with overcoming hurdles, as we all face from time to time.

What was the most significant moment you experienced thus far as Punta Gorda/Englewood Beach’s sports tourism lead?

I was truly humbled to receive a customer service award from our Administration and Board of County Commissioners. It was presented during our Tourist Development Meeting in front of my peers. Unbeknownst to me, the Mayor of Punta Gorda called the Board of County Commissioners to show her gratitude on how I handled an issue with a BMX racer participating in our USA BMX Nationals.

The racer was told to leave a specific parking area due to heavy rain and flooding. He refused to leave the parking spot and there became an altercation with a representative from the track. He ended up calling the mayor to explain his dismay and bad experience in her city. The mayor called me, and I told her I would take care of it and apologized she was involved.

After meeting with him onsite twice, I rectified the situation and he continued to race and was happy with the outcome. I then called the mayor to update her on the status. It was a great learning experience for all involved.

In what way, or ways, are you a different person today because of your experience working at Punta Gorda/Englewood Beach for the past 4 year(s)??

I really value the support and the ability to approach our administration and County Commissioners. It so rewarding to work with community leaders that are approachable and enjoy learning about your area and how they can contribute.

I have worked for many large corporations in my career and this aspect tends to get lost or convoluted within the organization. Here, they actual listen, support, and work to help in any way they can.