Lisa Kinnett has been the president of Bullseye Event Group, which she founded with her husband Kyle, for 12 years. The couple, who also owns Bullseye Events in downtown Indianapolis, specializes in hosting tailgate parties for NFL games. But next month, they’re getting ready to shake it off up with Taylorgate, a Taylor Swift-themed party held all three nights before the upcoming Taylor Swift performances in Indianapolis. Indy Maven’s Leslie Bailey sat down with Kinnett at Maven Space to chat about her business, working with loved ones, and motherhood.
How did you get started in this business?
Initially, we were selling Super Bowl packages, which would be like the hotel, transportation, game tickets, and then we would we would have an event prior to the game, which was like a high-end tailgate. So that’s how it started things sort of snowballed. Each year we would grow a little bit. We started partnering with NFL teams, and part of those partnerships allowed us to do tailgates prior to the home games with each of the NFL teams that we work with.
Our first team was the Indianapolis Colts and the New Orleans Saints and it kept growing every year. Now we have 10 NFL teams that we partner with, and we do the home tailgates for each of the teams. So we probably have about 75 to 80 events throughout the season.
As someone who dabbles in producing events—that’s crazy.
It’s absolutely crazy. And then we also have, because of the partnership with Indianapolis Colts, we ended up buying a building right across the street from Lucas Oil so we could host the events there. So we do have an event space as well that we rent out.
Is your background in events?
This was not my background. My husband has been in the event ticket industry for ages. I actually graduated with a psychology degree and wasn’t really sure what I was going to do. I sold real estate for a while. I worked for my dad’s business for a while. Kyle wanted to start this new business, and he really needed help with the financial aspect of it, so I learned QuickBooks, and I’m like, we’re just gonna do this together. We’re gonna build this for our family. And I wasn’t sure how long it would last for me, but obviously, 12 years here we are. So, a big part of what I do is manage the accounting side of the business. Kyle’s sort of the big idea person in the business.
How have you seen the events industry evolve over these last 12 years?
I think there’s definitely a unique aspect to the tailgating. It’s like a whole beast in itself. It’s super fans who are obsessed with their team, and they want to celebrate that. And they love to, you know, eat, drink, be merry before the game. COVID was super challenging, of course, and things definitely changed for a while, but ultimately, people really miss gathering and connecting. I almost feel like there’s a stronger desire for people to have a reason to come to an event.
You’re merry-makers!
The beauty of our business is creating these memories through unique experiences—it’s what life’s all about.
Do you have any favorite memories or cool stories from the last 12 years?
So many. We do all of these tailgates throughout the regular NFL season, and then our crown jewel is the Super Bowl. We do an event there called Players Tailgate. Last year was our 10th year doing it, and we have celebrity chefs—like all Food Network chefs—who come and help us design the menu for the event. Then, we have active NFL players that come to the party. There are so many amazing experiences within that three, four-hour period every year it’s hard to pinpoint one.
You’re a bit of a foodie. Any local favorites?
My friend Chris Evans, who owns Sangiovese and just opened a restaurant in Carmel called Tre. Oakley’s Bistro is really good. I feel like he doesn’t get a lot of attention, but he should. We like to sit at the Provision bar and get a good piece of fish. It’s convenient. I have three kids—life is really busy. It’s five minutes down the road, and I can spoil myself there.
How old are your kids?
I have three boys, and they are 16, 10, and then I have a 14-year-old, too.
Mine are still little. What’s boy mom life like at those ages?
Embrace that age because bigger people, bigger problems. But they’re amazing—super into sports. All three are, so they run us ragged all around Indiana, watching them play sports. Super fun.
How has that been as an entrepreneur, business owner, and mom. What’s the secret?
The secret is taking it a day at a time. It sounds so trite but try not to sweat the small stuff. Do the best that you can. I’ve had to give myself some grace because we can only do so much: running the business, raising a family, being a wife, and having important friendships—it’s a lot to balance. So sometimes, something has to give, and you have to be gentle with yourself. I have to remind myself of that. I can’t be a perfect mom all the time. I can’t be perfect in everything that I do, but I’m doing the best I can.
You mentioned friendship. We have a mutual friend, Andrea.
Dandy! We’ve known each other since kindergarten.
So what is that like? You work with your friend; you work with your husband. Tell me about these dynamics.
With Andrea specifically, it’s been wonderful, and we’ve had a great experience. It’s a family-owned business, and Kyle and I have been really blessed, because we are so different in what our skills are and what our gifts are. And I respect what he can do. I cannot do it. I do not want to do it. And I think he feels the same about me. So it’s been easy to manage that piece. There aren’t a lot of arguments about the decisions we’re making with the business.
The issue with being married to your business partner is trying not to talk about it 24/7 2 making sure that you have some kind of separation where you can turn it off. It’s not always easy, but you have to create some boundaries and make sure there’s a clear understanding that it’s business, and that’s not easy to separate. Overall, it’s been great.
I commend you for all of it. It’s all hard.
You have to be very careful. I’ve learned over the years—because there are so many people who work for us, who we’ve known outside of business—you have to have an understanding. You have to communicate up front—these are the things about my personality when I’m working. It’s just having an understanding so you can try to avoid having real issues.
You don’t need extra drama. Speaking of drama, let’s talk about your upcoming event.
It’s actually drama that I like because it’s all about the girls. Taylorgate is November 1, 2, and 3. We will have amazing food—one of the celebrity chefs we work with is local. Her name’s Kelsey Murphy. She won “Top Chef” a few years ago with Gordon Ramsay. She is phenomenal. This will be her second year partnering with us, so she helps us design the menus for everything we do locally. She does come to the Super Bowl with us, but she’ll be helping us with the catering, along with Nameless Catering for the Taylor Swift parties. We will have bracelet-making with Metalmark and hair braiding by Lux Lab. It’s for all ages, and tickets are now on sale through our website bullseyevent group.com.
It sounds like so much fun and like the energy we need right now.
We do. It’s all positive and super fun.
Thanks so much for doing this.
This isn’t always my comfort zone. My husband is usually the face of the business.
But we all know who’s running things.
I keep them afloat!
This interview was edited for clarity and brevity.
SUPPORT LOCAL JOURNALISM
All of our content—including this article—is entirely free. However, we’d love it if you would please consider supporting our journalism with an Indy Maven Membership.
