Anthony Schaaf, the vice president of sales for the Athens Pro Hockey LLC, doing business as Athens Rock Lobsters, is helping the company grow and develop during its inaugural season.
Q: What inspired you to pursue a career in hockey?
A: So when I was younger, I played, went to a lot of professional games, grew up in the St. Louis area, so I am a true St. Louis Blues fan since I can remember. Once I graduated from high school, went to college, got out of hockey for a little bit, and then went in the military. And when I was stationed in military, my first duty assignment was in upstate New York, but I was roughly six hours from six major NHL cities, so I got to see a lot of pro hockey by traveling, but then I also played again with a couple of the military teams at the duty station.
Q: What advice would you offer to someone looking to succeed and thrive in the sports industry?
A: Understand that sports is a business to you as an employee, but it is a relief from reality, as I’ll say, for a patron, right? I call them patrons. I don’t call them fans. They’re patrons. So when a patron comes into the building to see a Rock Lobsters hockey game, I want to make sure we create the best experience for them possible, and so they have a good time, they leave, they tell their friends, they bring their friends back. Ticket sales are up, then the Rock Lobsters as a business succeed.
Q: Which event or moment or something that’s coming up are you most looking forward to in this season?
A: Military Appreciation Night. As a vet, it’s every organization I’ve ever been with. It’s been kind of like my I gotta be 100% involved in everything that goes on.
Q: Was there anything else you would like to say or talk about?
A: We tell people we are a community organization first, and a professional hockey team second, whose goal is to grow the game of hockey here in Northeast Georgia, and as long as we continue to do that, we try to be community first. We try to do things for the community. We honor folks, Military Appreciation. Stick it to Cancer. We’re doing a first responders night. We’re doing a teacher appreciation night coming up at the end of the month. So we want to honor the folks in the community, because ultimately it goes back to what I said earlier. We are a business, and if we work close, hand in hand with the community, the community is going to support us, and the more people that support us, the better the business, the better the longevity of the organization here in Athens.
Comments trimmed for length and clarity.
Ally Gamber is a journalism major covering the business beat.
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