The Brilliance of Co-Op Live

How Oak View Group is setting new industry standards in innovation and sustainability.

Co-Op Live - Courtesy of Oak View Group

Co-Op Live is an incredible venue and the rightful champion of Oak View's European portfolio. The $462 million arena has revolutionized concert-going and raised the standard for venue building worldwide. But what is it that makes Co-Op Live so unique? In the age of multifaceted venues, Co-Op Live aims to be the absolute very best at one thing: Concerts. The mindchild of Tim Leiweke, founder and CEO of Oak View Group, the foundations of Co-Op Live have at least been fluttering around since the planning stages of the O2 Arena in London. When looking at UK venues, Leiweke had always admired how Manchester had always been neck and neck with London in total concert tickets sold despite having a 5x smaller population. "That spoke about what a great music market Manchester is – an amazing market." From that, the conception of the UK's first major music-first venue was born.

 In March 2020, when the rest of the entertainment world was on lockdown, Leiweke put his chips on the table and went all in on Co-Op Live. Even for a gambling man like Leiweke, this was a bold move. Not only was the world entering a global pandemic, but the market of Manchester already had a formidable and established competitor that had a history of success in getting the same acts as Co-Op Live was seeking, AO arena. But, according to Leiweke, Manchester was ripe for the taking. Although it puts on fine events, the AO is dated. Eventgoers' ideals, preferences, and presumptions have changed drastically in the past thirty years. As generations age and the experience economy grows more significant, the opportunity to act on consumers' desires gets easier to cease. In an interview with Pollstar, Leiweke said, "The fact that you had an [aging] building that was doing the kind of ticket sales it was doing, I figured that spoke about Manchester, what a great music market Manchester is." Couple Manchester's love of music with the Willy Wonka-esque creativity of Leiweke, and you get Co-Op Live, the new standard for both artists and consumers. Like a tailor who understands the importance of a well-fitted suit, Leiweke and the rest of Oak View Group fitted Co-Op Live to be the suit Manchester deserves.

What makes Co-Op Live such a perfect venue for Manchester? Manchester has produced so many iconic bands, from Oasis to The Smiths to The Outfield, that the city has been designated as a hollow ground where the UK raises its talent. This aura of artistic excellence, added to the fact that Manchester serves as the closest major city to much of the Midlands, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, means that it's not only necessary to have any music-first venue but the largest indoor venue of any kind in the country. The arena has a capacity of 23,500 and can accommodate just shy of ten thousand on its floor. The fact that the venue is meant for music specifically means that seats can be moved up in ways that they can't at other venues to create a more intimate feel that's valuable to both an artist and their fans. "Every single promoter, anyone that's really experienced in the industry, that we've taken to the back of (the upper deck), couldn't believe they were in the cheap seats because it still feels that close," Gary Roden, former GM, of Co-Op Live said prior to its scheduled opening. It's not only the distance that provides all viewers with a more intimate experience with their favorite artists but also the rest of the seating bowl. Uniquely, there are no unnecessary distractions inside the seating bowl. Co-Op Live boasts no jumbotrons, no advertising walls, and no color or elaborate designs; all of these signify that the venue is serious about keeping the guest experience at the heart of its mission. In a world in which attention spans are short, and multitasking is rampant, we've become used to going somewhere but forgetting to actually experience it. Co-Op Live immerses its guests in their experience by minimizing any distractions so they can appreciate the beauty of the event to the fullest extent possible.

Although these are all essential features for guest experience, the most crucial distinction for guest experience lies in the engineering marvel that is Co-Op's acoustics. When creating a venue explicitly meant for music, Leiweke and Oak View Group aimed to create what they believe is the most acoustically perfect venue in the world. Stephen Collins, OVG's president of Global Venue Development, in an interview with VenuesNow, remarked, "One of the things that will be unparalleled, probably even in the US, is the acoustics of the building… "Yes, we can do basketball, UFC, and other sports, but the acoustical treatments in the building are directed squarely at music. All of the exposed surfaces have some kind of acoustical treatment. It surpasses anything we've done before." The venue's music-first approach "enabled us to collaborate closely with Vanguardia and Diversified to ensure that the sound systems support the requirements of the touring productions." Steve Jones of d&b audiotechnik. 

The main selling points for Co-Op Live are obvious: superior design and premium experiences in one of music's most consecrated destinations. These alone are enough to set the building apart from the competition, but more is needed for Leiweke. A staunch environmentalist and former Jimmy Carter campaigner, Leiweke has always had sustainability at the center of his brand. In building Oak View Group, Leiweke vowed to cause "positive disruption" and has made the phrase the mission of the company. In a less than optimistic tone, Leiweke claimed at a Sports Business Journal conference, "The Earth's gonna burn... We've got to convince everyone. This is our moment. If we don't fix it in 10 years, this [sport and entertainment industry] is over." A card-carrying doer, Leiweke built the first completely carbon-neutral arena in the world and followed it up this year with Co-Op Live, the most sustainable arena outside the US. 

The arena is entirely run on electricity, only the second in the world to accomplish such a goal. Leiweke, citing that he built his career in developing venues built primarily through oil and gas, demanded that the venue reflect a change in the history of arena building. His goal with Co-Op was to pave the way toward a more sustainable tomorrow, and he knew that defeating the challenges that stood in his way would provide a roadmap for others to follow. In that sense, the carbon neutrality of Co-Op Live is not just neutral but actively good, a positive disruption. 

However, just talking about the landmark achievement in carbon neutrality doesn't do it justice. Regardless of the status, the venue itself is an incredible feat in modern engineering. Every single detail, from the bowl itself to the urinal designs, was taken into account in trying to achieve this end. After all, neutrality comes down to the finest of details and refers to direct and indirect emissions. Co-Op Live uses its full spatial footprint to minimize its carbon footprint. To power daily operations, the arena uses 10,500 square meters of solar panels on the venue's roof and solely uses LEDs in order to use the least amount of energy possible. Because energy conservation is of utmost importance even when using solar, electrical processes are often modified for the venue to function. As such, OVG is often left with a puzzle to create an even more effective and efficient means to achieve their end. This often requires rethinking what we consider to be a viable form of energy. An example of an issue that required a complete reassessment was water heating systems. Instead of heating a pipe with electricity, in order to produce hot water, the venue uses body heat. According to Stephen Collins, "Instead of just pushing all of that heat from the bowl outside when we've got a show, that heat is actually recovered as it leaves the air handling units, into water coils, which then feeds units that heat the domestic hot water. So, instead of dumping that heat outside of the building, we're pulling it out of the air before we discharge it and use that as part of our overall hot water heating strategy." To further the example, even the water used is being done in the purest and least harmful way to achieve Co-Op's ends. Co-Op harvests rainwater from their venue and surrounding areas and filters it in order to use it in their bathrooms. The flush systems that are used are projected to use 40% less water than a comparable building. 

Another incredible initiative that's deeply ingrained in sustainability is the building's zero-to-landfill policy. Despite the great amount of affluent people Co-Op Live has in the building on any given night, the city of Manchester itself has a high incidence of poverty and individual financial instability. According to the Oxford Consultants for Social Inclusion, Manchester is the 6th most deprived of 326 local authorities in England, and 43% of LSOAs in the city were in the country's 10% most deprived areas. Instead of throwing away any leftover food from the event, the arena donates it to local food banks, which can distribute it to the 30% of Manchester's population that describe themselves as food insecure. Providing extra meals from the thirty-two concession stands on over 120 dates makes a tangible impact on the surrounding area and definitely shows the moral extensions that Oak View Group takes into consideration when building a venue.

Despite the amenities, experience, and sustainability of Co-Op Live, an arena ultimately drives revenue through its reputation. Unfortunately for them, it took a big hit before the venue even opened. Minutes before it was supposed to open its doors, Co-Op Live shut down citing safety issues and rescheduled acts like Peter Kay, A Boogie wit da Hoodie, Olivia Rodrigo, and Take That. The last of which, a popular Mancunian band, actually changed venues to perform at The AO, Co-Op Live's chief rival, due to the ongoing technical issues in the arena. Due to the venue's anticipation, the mishap had become national news. Not only was it because the delay impacted high-profile names but also because of the way Co-Op Live canceled the first event. After telling people they wouldn't be able to attend their event, news came out that it was nowhere near completion, and that the arena had known the problems all along. 

The failures of a venue during its opening might cause long-term problems for some. Still, due to the influence and connections of Oak View Group and the incredible environment that Co-Op Live provides, the issues have been swept under the bridge. In fact, Take That eventually did come back to play in the arena a month later. 

Co-Op Live is the future of venues. Its commitment to unparalleled experience and sustainability lays the framework for how we're going to enjoy entertainment in the future, and its unique scope as a music-first venue changes perspective in considering what venues should be. While the foundations of Co-Op Live are now available for any company to model themselves after Oak View Group will continue to turn out more and more innovative arenas that will raise the standard for guest experience higher and higher every year. It's easy to follow but hard to lead. Leiweke and Oak View Group know that, but their path of positive disruption keeps them on the cutting edge of innovation.