The Los Angeles 2028 Summer Olympic Games are about three years away and the Valley Industry Association provided information at its recent luncheon at College of the Canyons on how business owners can become authorized vendors for one of the largest and most prestigious events in the world.
Although official competitions will not take place in the Santa Clarita Valley, Olympic events are scheduled close enough to the suburban valley that they can serve “some really good opportunities for people depending what kind of business you have and how that may or may not be needed for the Games,” said master of ceremonies Ed Masterson during opening remarks.
But the volume of businesses across Southern California set to apply for authorized vendor positions is expected to be high and speakers Mark Crear, a former Olympic athlete and current director of the COC Employee Training Institute, and Tyler Pledger, a senior management analyst for the city of Santa Clarita, provided insight and tips how local businesses can stand out.
VIA Chairwoman/CEO Selina Thomas was scheduled to be a speaker but was unable to attend.
The city has been in conversations with various Olympic committees interested in hosting their pregame training camps in Santa Clarita, said Pledger, which is essential for the athletes to mentally and physically prepare before the official competition. Those committees include Brazil and South Korea, she added.
The city has also been looking into community events and volunteer opportunities for residents to get involved and be a part of the Games if buying a ticket doesn’t seem feasible.
To stay up to date with LA28 information in relation to procurement, ticketed events, or volunteerism, Pledger advised the public sign up for the organization’s official newsletter for the quickest and latest information.
Businesses are encouraged to register for the 2028 Olympics, and to apply with other entities like Los Angeles County and the city of Los Angeles for a higher chance in being selected as a vendor. Applying with other cities across Southern California is also encrouaged since the events will be fairly spread out.
“It’s a lot of registering that I’m talking about here, and it is kind of time-consuming a little bit,” Masterson said. “The Games are one of the most, one of the largest international events ever when they’re taking place. They are going to require a lot of information from you in order to put you into their database.”
Crear also advised individuals to research the venues, teams and Olympics significance for details that will make them stand out in their proposals when applying to be a vendor.
“What’s going to separate you from your competition is preparation,” Crear said.
“Just like athletes that are coming here to perform, you need to be competitive because there’s probably another business just like yours that’s going to be registering also,” Masterson added.
Crear also suggested business owners look into the needs of athletes to possibly fill that gap that not many may think about.
“I think that every business in here could benefit from, not just surveys, but just start asking your local athletes what they would like to see. We are talking about mental health, physical therapy, to external entertainment to nutrition,” Crear said.
Before the luncheon was set to end, guests were able to have a look at how extensive the applications to become an LA28 vendor were through a presentation by Hillary Broadwater, VIA’s vice chair of marketing.
Masterson also emphasized to the audience to get a head start on the process and if any questions or concerns arise, VIA members would be available for assistance to point them the right direction.