Women Of Inspiration Honoree - Karen Swan

In 1974, Karen Swan began her professional arena career when she was hired by Bob Reid, Director of Met Center, which was home to the Minnesota North Stars NHL Hockey Team.

During her 16-years at Met Center, Karen worked side by side with Bob Reid and Gigi Pilhofer, to create an in-house marketing and sales department to attract live shows. Met Center became one of the first arenas to offer this service to touring events. Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Karen’s dedication and passion for Group Sales and the live industry solidified. Karen was an integral part of the internal sales and marketing team for Met Center. She also marketed Olympic figure skating, indoor Minnesota Striker Soccer games, Harlem Globetrotters, Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus, Disney On Ice, Rodeos and the world premiere of the very first Sesame Street Live stage show. In addition to family entertainment and sporting events, Karen marketed legendary musical artists such as Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson, Aerosmith, Journey, Bon Jovi, Diana Ross, Neil Diamond, Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton. During her formative years at Met Center, Karen devoted herself to her arena job and absorbed as much industry knowledge as she could through, as she calls it, “the College of Osmosis.”

In the early 1990s, Karen was recruited from Met Center to Target Center arena, which opened its doors in downtown Minneapolis on October 13, 1990. Karen became the Director of Group Sales for the venue and the NBA team. Target Center became her home for the next 30 years where she sold group tickets and marketed hundreds of events including professional and collegiate sports, national touring concerts and live family entertainment.

Karen’s role as Director of Group Sales allowed her to create a network in her community where she met and maintained relationships with group leaders for corporations, schools, senior citizens, churches, childcare centers, clubs, Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts. These relationships helped Karen reach and exceed sales goals, year over year, and solidify her as a key asset to Target Center’s sales and marketing team.

Additionally, throughout her career, Karen served as an active member of many local organizations including the Twin Cities Tourism Attractions Association, MERSC (Minnesota Employee Recreation Services) and the Minnesota Field Trip Library. She was a volunteer for Gilda’s Club Twin Cities and she continues to serve on the Planning Committee for the annual Event Arena Marketing Conference (EAMC).

As Karen reflects on her career, she is grateful for the mentors who influenced her along the way and she maintains grand appreciation for her sales teams at both Met Center and Target Center. Karen’s unwavering work ethic and strong relationships transformed client relationships into true friendships, which enhanced her career and made her daily work enjoyable.

Karen recently retired and currently resides in Plymouth, MN where she is surrounded by her children, family and friends who continue to support her and celebrate her esteemed career.