Michael Copeland | Courtesy of Woodbine
Woodbine Entertainment has made several changes to its senior leadership team, promoting Michael Copeland to President, Commercial and Tom Via to President, Operations. Both will report to CEO Jim Lawson.
“We have a lot of opportunities ahead of us to grow the horse racing industry and business in Ontario,” said Lawson. “I truly believe we have the right leadership and people – and now we have the right structure in place that allows us to maximize and make the most of those opportunities.”
Copeland, who joined Woodbine Entertainment in 2021 as Chief Commercial Officer, will lead revenue and brand-driven functions including horse racing, betting, technology, marketing, broadcasting, customer experiences and events. Previously, he ran his own consulting business in sports and entertainment, and served as president and chief executive officer of the Toronto Argonauts, as well as president and COO of the Football League. Canada.
Via joined Woodbine Entertainment in 2016 as COO and will now lead operations at both Woodbine Racetrack and Woodbine Mohawk Park, while overseeing hospitality, finance, human resources, legal, and project management. Previously, he served as president and chief executive officer of retail chain Brookstone, was president of operations for Toys R Us in Australia, and held senior management positions at Babies R Us in both the US and Canada.
Property Development at Woodbine Entertainment will continue to be led by Chief Development Officer Will Fleissig.
“While horse racing will always be at the core of everything we do, our business is becoming more and more complex and having strong leadership in running the business,” Lawson said. and the revenue will help us grow in the future,” Lawson said.
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This story was posted in Top News and tagged Jim Lawson, management Group, Michael Copeland, promotion, Tom Via, Honeysuckle, Woodbine Entertainment.
