Boasting an impressive portfolio of fully-managed venues,
SFM has a presence at the Myrtle Beach Sports Center
(Myrtle Beach, SC), Rocky Top Sports World (Gatlinburg,
TN), the Rocky Mount Event Center (Rocky Mount, NC),
Adrenaline Monkey (Cleveland, OH), and the Warinanco
Sports Center (Roselle, NJ), to name a few. These venues
range from local adventure centers to 100,000+ square-foot
indoor sports and events facilities. Each year, an estimated
20 million visitors grace the fields and courts of SFMmanaged
venues. It’s a statistic SFM CEO and Co-Founder
Jason Clement is proud to share:
“We’re really blessed to be able to do this work for the
communities we serve”, says, Clement. “It’s a privilege to
provide safe, healthy activities for kids and families as well
as drive economic development through tourism. It’s lifechanging
for communities to be able to bring one of these
projects to fruition and operate it sustainably.”
The impact and success of these sister companies has
not gone unnoticed. In 2018, the Clearwater Chamber of
Commerce named the SFA the 2018 Large Business of the
Year. And that’s not all: the staff and the work of SFA &
SFM have won awards in everything from advertising (2018
Addy Gold), to Reader’s Choice Top Sports Destinations
(Sports Events Magazine), to professional recognition
(Sports Business’s People on the Move, Connect Sports’ Top
Women in Sports Tourism). Additionally, Pathik is widely
regarded as the industry expert in the youth and amateur
sports spaces. In 2017 alone, Pathik was featured on HBO’s
Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, numerous Forbes articles,
and the TODAY show.
Though the companies continue to find success, the focus
never strays far from their mission. “There are still kids
getting left behind.” Says Pathik, “Not everyone can afford
to play travel sports or use their expendable income on
club fees. Creating access to sport for all kids and families
is critical to fulfilling our mission. We have to find ways to
create space for those who simply cannot afford it.”
In an effort to create change, SFA and SFM have joined
forces with companies like Target, Dick’s Sporting
Goods, Nike, the MLB, the NBA, and many more via the
Aspen Institute’s Project Play 2020 initiative. These elite
companies have rallied around several key shared goals,
the culmination of which is creating access to sport for all
children, regardless of zip code or ability.
“This represents our commitment to the future, to kids, and
to communities.” Says Pathik, “It’s more than business, it’s
changing the outcome of children’s lives through sport.”
FLocal Magazine • March 2018 13