The first direct Arena in Leeds, the 13,000-capacity venue, marked its first birthday when Jake Bugg performed.
It also marked the 25th anniversary of the venue’s sponsor, the Leeds-based bank, first direct.
From the outset, Showsec were contracted by SMG Europe to provide their stewarding and event security services for the Arena and have worked on such events as the BBC Sports Personality of the Year.
The Arena’s General Manager Ben Williams said: “During the launch year of the first direct Arena, SMG have relied upon the scale, expertise and professionalism delivered by Showsec. As a company, they have not only embraced but pro-actively committed to the venue’s vision to put the customer at the heart of everything we do.
“The first direct Arena has quickly established a reputation as a friendly, customer-focused environment for event-goers and Showsec have contributed significantly in achieving this. We look forward to working closely with them to continue to improve our service provision over the coming years.”
The Arena has hosted many performers such as Elton John, Bruce Springsteen, Prince, Kasabian, Michael Buble, Miley Cyrus, Ed Sheeran and The Kaiser Chiefs.
With Sam Hodkin now operating as the Arena’s Head of Security, the security company says that it has developed a team of supervisors, SIA badged staff and stewards.
Julian Kumah is Showsec’s Area Manager for Yorkshire. He said: “The emphasis has been on ensuring that the experience for all visitors to the first direct Arena is the very best one and the fact that we have been to deliver that level of service is due to the tremendous commitment and professionalism of our staff.
“We have received some very positive feedback from customers and clients, which only spurs us on to raise the bar even higher. The development of our service at the first direct Arena has involved us being innovative in order to create the best possible operational systems in line with the design of the venue and to use the latest technology.
“This gave the staff the confidence and ability to fulfil their roles, and the upshot of that is a very customer-focused approach.”
