Hawaii Tourism Authority Hires Ascendent Sports Group For Marketing Services

The Hawaii Tourism Authority has "hired Ascendent Sports Group, a firm with close NFL ties, to provide sports marketing services" for the state, according to Ferd Lewis of the HONOLULU STAR-ADVERTISER. HTA announced that the one-year, $200,000 agreement "includes an option for it to extend the deal for up to four additional one-year periods." N.Y.-based Ascendent was co-founded by Dolphins Owner Stephen Ross and Vice Chair Matt Higgins. HTA VP/Marketing & Product Development Leslie Dance said, "They have contacts on every level: youth sports, college sports, professional sports and also work with lot of big-name companies like FedEx." The HTA said that 12 organizations, three of them from Hawaii, "submitted bids for the contract" (HONOLULU STAR-ADVERTISER, 8/5).