Greenville’s Stark RFID is revolutionizing sports and entertainment events

From 2004 to 2008, Burnett’s first RFID business, Stark Solutions, operated in the construction industry. But when the economy turned and brick sales slowed, he needed new applications. “We kept getting asked about tracking people at events,” he says. “I was like, ‘We can do that. We’ve got the hardware.’ The first one we did was for a PGA Tour event at East Lake.” By using tickets loaded with a microchip and antenna, organizers were able to monitor fan movements down to the second. They discovered the VIP tent was only 20% full at any given time, which meant they could sell a lot more $600 VIP tickets.