In 1976, former industry trade publication Radio and Records offered its readers a lengthy column from a man who had gained attention for his success as the Sales Manager of Album-Oriented Rock station WMMS-FM in Cleveland.
He had joined WMMS in 1972, and began selling Rock radio in 1969 at another Cleveland radio station. Today, he’s looking back on a career that he believes has come full circle, as he’s been associated with an independent owner of a unique radio station serving Southwest Florida’s adult populace.
Walt Tiburski is retiring.
Since 2008, Tiburski has served as GM and VP of Sales for WAVV-FM 101.1 in Naples, Fla. Until very recently, it was one of the last “Beautiful Music” FMs in the world, serving a Collier County audience steeped in retirees from Ohio, Indiana, Michigan and Western New York.
Now, Tiburski, in a way, will be joining the Buckeye State brethren who have ceased day-to-day work and call Southwest Florida home. He’s retiring. But, he’ll remain a business consultant for WAVV parent Alpine Broadcasting Corp. through mid-2022.
WAVV was founded by the late Norm Alpert. Today, his wife Donna Alpert controls Alpine and WAVV. She calls Tiburski “a class act who operates with great energy, intelligence and integrity.”
His experience at WAVV is based on his formative success in Cleveland. In that 1976 report, he described how the 18-34 group — then the Baby Boomers — constitutes the single-largest population group in the U.S. Fast-forward to 2021: they not only represent the core of Collier County’s population, but also its biggest and most affluent consumer group. Tiburski’s prowess as a sales leader for WMMS, then-owned by Malrite Communications, led to his 1978 promotion to Station Manager. By 1983, he’d hold the VP/GM post at WWMS. The Station Manager? Dean Thacker, the man Malrite chose to serve as the GM of a new radio station it had purchased with a city of license of Newark, N.J. — WVNJ, soon to become WHTZ “Z100.”
Tiburski would remain at WMMS through the sale of Malrite by founder Milton Maltz to Shamrock. From 1994-1999, he would wind up VP/GM of iHeart-predecessor Clear Channel’s Cleveland station group. In 2000, he’d move over to WNCX & WXTM in Cleveland as VP/GM, lasting five years.
In between all of that, Tiburski was also a majority equity interest holder in a group of radio stations including WQAL in Cleveland; five stations in Indianapolis, Tulsa, the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa, and the Illinois city of Peoria; and WEJZ in Jacksonville.
Then, he retired. Sort of.
Three months later, Tiburski resurfaced at Renda Broadcasting, as Director of Sales for its four stations in the Fort Myers-Naples market. Renda today is the owner of WEJZ.
In April 2006, Tiburski ascended to Market Manager. Then came what now appears to truly be his final role in broadcasting, at WAVV.
What can today’s young sales pros learn from this rock n’ roll sales pioneer, who was inducted as a non-performer into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum?
The April 1 InFOCUS Podcast, hosted by Adam R Jacobson, features a one-on-one interview with Walt Tiburski from Naples, Fla., where he’s based today. Be sure to listen!
