Managing Director, Motorsports & Outdoor Group

Managing Director, Motorsports & Outdoor Group - Remote Position

Reports to Bonnier CEO

About the Role:

Bonnier's Motorsports & Outdoor Group is seeking a Managing Director to lead a portfolio of four consumer and trade event brands — the Sand Sports Super Show, Off-Road Expo, Open Season Sportsman's Expo, and Street Machine Nationals. This is a full P&L leadership role responsible for revenue growth, operational excellence, and long-term brand strategy across events that collectively engage more than one million enthusiasts annually. The ideal candidate is an experienced event operator who combines strategic vision with hands-on execution and a genuine passion for the motorsports and outdoor communities these events serve.

The Ideal Candidate:

• A hands-on operator with a bias toward action and strong commercial instincts
• Comfortable in an entrepreneurial, mid-sized company environment
• A decisive leader who holds teams accountable while developing talent
• Passion for or deep familiarity with motorsports, outdoor, or enthusiast categories

What You’ll Do

P&L Ownership & Financial Performance

• Own full P&L across all four event franchises, with accountability for revenue growth, cost management, and margin expansion
• Develop and manage annual operating plans and budgets
• Monitor performance across all revenue streams — exhibitor sales, sponsorship, and ticket/attendance revenue
• Identify and execute opportunities to improve profitability and operating leverage

Revenue Leadership 

• Drive growth across all revenue lines with direct oversight of sales team performance
• Ensure strong pipeline development, consistent pacing against targets, and effective pricing and packaging strategies
• Own exhibitor and sponsorship renewal strategy, with accountability for protecting and growing the existing client base
• Align marketing and sales activity to maximize demand generation and conversion across all franchises

Event Strategy & Portfolio Management

• Set strategic direction and competitive positioning for each event franchise
• Evaluate market performance and make decisions regarding expansion, consolidation, or repositioning of underperforming events
• Identify and execute opportunities for geographic expansion, new event launches, and format innovation

Operational Oversight 

• Ensure high-quality execution across all live events, overseeing timelines, vendor relationships, and production
• Negotiate and manage multi-year venue contracts and institutional relationships, including those with state and county fairgrounds facilities
• Serve as the senior escalation point for operational issues across the portfolio

Attendee Experience & Community Stewardship

• Champion the quality and authenticity of each event as a product, recognizing that enthusiast loyalty is the foundation of long-term exhibitor and sponsor value
• Ensure each franchise reflects and serves its specific community — from sand sports and off-road to street performance and hunting — with programming, activations, and experiences that deepen engagement

Multi-Market Operational Complexity

• Manage simultaneous event production cycles across California, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Illinois, running spring through fall
• Coordinate staffing, vendor relationships, and logistics across multiple markets to ensure consistent execution and operational efficiency

Team Leadership & Organizational Management

• Lead and develop a cross-functional team spanning sales, marketing, and event operations
• Establish clear accountability, KPIs, and performance expectations across all functions
• Recruit, develop, and retain high-performing talent; foster a culture of execution and continuous improvement

Data, Reporting & Decision-Making

• Establish consistent reporting across revenue pacing, attendance, and marketing performance — and use those insights to drive pricing, event optimization, and resource allocation.

About You:

• 10 years of experience in trade shows, consumer events, or experiential marketing
• Proven track record of owning and growing event P&Ls, including exhibitor and sponsorship revenue
• Experience managing multi-event or multi-market portfolios
• Strong commercial instincts with a demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional teams

About Bonnier:

Bonnier is an outdoor adventure company that fuels passion for big-game fishing, motorsports, and hunting. Through its Motorsports & Outdoor Group, Bonnier engages more than one million outdoor enthusiasts annually via a nationwide series of experiential events — including the Sand Sports Super Show, Off-Road Expo, Open Season Sportsman's Expo, Street Machine Nationals, and professional watersports shows. Bonnier also owns The Marlin Group, the world’s largest big-game fishing network, publisher of Marlin Magazine, and operator of international big-game fishing tournaments. Bonnier is owned by Sweden-based Bonnier AB, a globally operating conglomerate with more than 200 years in publishing. Learn more at bonniercorp.com.