Storyland Studios Welcomes Sean Featonby, Client Development Champion, to its Global Development Team
Amersham, United Kingdom – Storyland Studios is proud to welcome Sean Featonby as their new UK-based Client Development Champion, effective October 4th, 2021.
With an extensive background in business development, sales, marketing, and project production in the global entertainment and themed attraction industries, Featonby brings a wealth of experience to the table.
“Storyland Studios is an incredibly talented global team who have a family feel to their business,” says Featonby. “It felt like such a great fit from the very start, and we aligned so quickly on the plans the business has moving forward.
“The whole team has welcomed me with open arms, and it is a real pleasure to join such a talented group of people and support with the amazing plans we have for the future.”
Featonby excels at identifying unique business opportunities through strategy and idea development. He will be the first point of contact for both new and existing Storyland clients who have new ideas or projects they want to pursue.
“The team at Storyland is delighted to have Sean on board,” says Ben Thompson, Chief Strategy Officer and Head of Global Clients at Storyland Studios. “He’s a natural connector who loves building enduring relationships with creative partners. We place a high priority on strong client relationships, so he’s an excellent asset to our growing team.”
Featonby will play an instrumental role in making key business development connections for Storyland, particularly across the UK and European markets. While the firm’s US facility focuses on design, fabrication and delivery, the international offices will hone in on design and consulting headed up by Thompson.
As a liaison between project executives and client leads, Featonby will work to place projects in their appropriate divisions, where the company is comprised of three defined areas:
- Storyland Studios – attraction and environmental design, production, and architecture
- Storyland Fabrication – scenic fabrication and themed environments
- PlainJoe Studios – nonprofit, faith-based, and cause-based organizations
Prior to Storyland, Featonby served as Head of Development at EPH Creative, a firm that develops, builds and delivers bespoke themed projects and events. At EPH, Featonby helped establish the bespoke division of the team. As a result of his business development efforts at EPH, his team was awarded a number of projects from prominent international clients, including Diageo, Chester Zoo, Warhammer, and Cirque Du Soleil. Most recently, Featonby’s team created all of the iconic Striding Man sculptures for the Johnnie Walker Four Corners Distilleries, as well as their new multi-million pound visitor attraction in Edinburgh’s Princes St., which opened to the public in September 2021.
Before EPH, Featonby worked as Business Development Manager at Paragon Creative, where he led on commercial, leisure and theme park projects, in addition to new developments. As one of the leading global design, development and build companies, Paragon worked on over 1000 projects in more than 26 countries, including theme parks, visitor attractions, TV and film, commercial, museums and heritage sites, aquariums, amongst many others.
A graduate of Northumbria University, Featonby moved directly into an advertising career, where he worked in a number of senior account management roles. Over time, his career evolved into business development due to his passion for helping people realise their vision and his commitment to innovation and new ideas. He also has a wealth of ad agency experience working with leading UK brands such as Asda, Pets at Home, and Hermes on their creative campaigns and brand strategies. His first experience with themed entertainment and experiential design came during his time at Paragon Creative many years ago, “where the themed entertainment industry truly became part of my DNA,” he says.
“Sean has a great track record, not only in the themed entertainment world, but in developing valuable connections that lead to creative innovation,” says Blake Ryan, CEO & Managing Partner at Storyland Studios. “We’re looking forward to doing some incredible work together.”
When he’s not leading discussions on turnkey projects from design to development, Featonby can be found supporting his fiancee, Helen, with their Yorkshire based business in the UK, White Cherry Bakery.
“I don’t bake myself; Helen and her team are the talent behind that,” he says. “My focus is ensuring we are constantly developing and innovating, which keeps me busy in the hours where I’m not working with the awesome team at Storyland.”
Storyland Studios imagines, designs and creates immersive experiences and environments that lift the Spirit. They specialise in themed entertainment, experiential retail, museums and cultural attractions, expos, temporary exhibits and branded experiences. The company recently announced a partnership with gaming giant Ubisoft to develop the next generation of themed entertainment. For more information, visit www.storylandstudios.com.
Contacts:
Ben Thompson, Storyland Studios International
Email:
International Phone: 0044 1494 732414
Mel McGowan, Storyland Studios West Coast
Email:
U.S. Phone: +1 800-218-1932
Matt Ferguson, Storyland Studios East Coast
Email:
U.S. Phone: +1 800-218-1932
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