Published:
IZOD Named Title Sponsor of IndyCar Series
NEW YORK & INDIANAPOLIS - (BUSINESS WIRE) - Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation (NYSE: PVH) announced today a multi-year
agreement in principle with the Indy Racing League (IRL), the
sanctioning body for the IndyCar Series, for its IZOD brand to become
the title sponsor of the newly renamed IZOD IndyCar Series.
The IZOD IndyCar Series, which will mark the League's first title
sponsorship since 2001, introduced its new logo and key partnership
details today, with additional activation, promotional plans and
marketing initiatives to be revealed in the coming months, prior to the
start of the 2010 season.
Under the new arrangement, IZOD will also retain its designation as the
official apparel partner of the Indy Racing League, which began in 2008.
Key elements of the agreement are expected to include:
-
Multi-year, multi-million dollar activation plans and brand-building
efforts around the IZOD IndyCar Series intended to broaden the
promotion of the sport both off the track and beyond its traditional
audience. These include:
-
Increased and enhanced national media initiatives with
IRL's two television partners - ESPN on ABC and VERSUS
-
Access to drivers and 100 years' worth of motorsports assets and
graphics from the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Hall of Fame Museum,
including current and vintage cars, for both on- and off-track
events, both in and out of race markets.
-
Multi-year, multi-million dollar commitment to participate in the IZOD
IndyCar Series Team Enhancement/Allocation Matrix (TEAM) fund.
Introduced in 2008, TEAM provides a guaranteed financial
foundation for all teams committed to running the entire IZOD IndyCar
Series schedule
-
Shared Web initiatives and online promotions
-
Rights to use one of the most dynamic marketing events in all of
sports - two parade laps in the IZOD IndyCar Series two-seater at the
start of the Indianapolis 500 and other selected races âproviding a
one-of-a-kind experience to an IZOD-selected VIP or fan sweepstakes
winner
"The combination of young, dynamic drivers representing over 14
countries, events in key domestic and global markets and its strong
American racing heritage make the IndyCar Series a perfect fit for the
sport-spirited IZOD brand lifestyle," said Allen Sirkin, President and
Chief Operating Officer of Phillips-Van Heusen. "Our involvement with
the IRL began shortly after the unification of U.S. open-wheel racing
and, despite the recession, we have seen growth and sense the potential
for even greater opportunity as the sport is re-energized on the
American sports landscape, as well as abroad. We're excited at the
opportunity to become the title sponsor of the IZOD IndyCar Series and
look forward to taking our partnership with the fastest form of
motorsport in the world, along with its 'cars and stars', to a new level
of marketing and activation both on and off the track."
"Our relationship with the IZOD brand has been on the fast track since
the day we began our partnership in 2008, and we are thrilled they have
taken a bigger and more vital role in our sport," said Terry Angstadt,
president of the Commercial Division of the Indy Racing League. "Their
strong marketing skills, national retail partnerships and ability to
bring fresh eyes to the sport have already proven powerful in our short
time together. We're confident that we have found a partner with a
strong brand, a bright future and a vision for growing the IZOD IndyCar
Series that will benefit fans, drivers, teams, owners and tracks."
The move by Phillips-Van Heusen follows a series of recent similar
decisions to shift IZOD's marketing mix towards sports and sponsorship
activation. In 2008, IZOD was awarded the naming rights for what was
then Continental Airlines Arena at the Meadowlands in New Jersey, home
of the New Jersey Nets, renaming it the IZOD Center. Phillips-Van
Heusen's efforts helped lift the IZOD Center to become the fourth-ranked
venue of its kind in North America. Phillips-Van Heusen also recently
announced its VAN HEUSEN brand's sponsorship of the Pro Football Hall Of
Fame fan vote, a first of its kind for any professional sport.
The 2010 IZOD IndyCar Series, the premier open-wheel racing series in
the U.S., showcases some of motorsport's leading personalities,
including Danica Patrick, Helio Castroneves, Dario Franchitti, Scott
Dixon, Ryan Briscoe and Tony Kanaan, as well as Graham Rahal, Marco
Andretti and Tomas Scheckter, heirs to some of auto racing's greatest
legends. The 2010 season is scheduled to feature 17 races in the United
States, Canada, Japan and Brazil, with the first green flag dropping
March 14 in Brazil. The races will be broadcast in high-definition on
ABC and VERSUS.
Background of Sponsorship
In July 2008, PVH announced an agreement with the Indianapolis Motor
Speedway and the Indy Racing League that designated the IZOD brand as
the official apparel sponsor of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, IndyCar
Series and Firestone Indy Lights. In this capacity, PVH provides apparel
to IRL executives and crew - from pit officials and track flagmen to the
on-air broadcast talent and track announcers. This exclusive collection
was inspired by the uniquely American heritage of IndyCar Series and
designed to address the performance needs of the IRL and IMS staff.
Prior to the start of the 2009 season, as a natural extension of the
sponsorship, IZOD introduced an IZOD/INDY vintage clothing line
commemorating the Indianapolis Motor Speedway's Centennial Era. The
collection was launched initially at select Macy's stores nationwide and
was supported by a national advertising campaign that included an
IZOD/INDY themed 30-second spot shown during all nationally televised
ABC and VERSUS IndyCar Series race broadcasts, as well as through
additional spot broadcast purchases and in movie theaters across the
country. The media plan also included print advertisements that appeared
in Sports Illustrated and ESPN The Magazine and on
high-profile billboards in New York City's Times Square and Toronto. The
advertisements featured IZOD-sponsored 2008 Watkins Glen winner and 2008
Indy 500 Rookie of the Year Ryan Hunter-Reay.
Available in March 2010, IZOD has created a new "Winning Series"
sportswear collection, inspired by the historic INDY 500 "Winning Car
Series" including the first Indianapolis 500 winner, the 1911 Marmon
Wasp, along with the 1939-40 Maserati and the 1948 Novi.
Sponsorship Activation
Throughout the 2009 IndyCar Series season, and to coincide with the
series race schedule, in-store events took place at select Macy's stores
around the country to further support the launch of the IZOD/INDY
sportswear line. The events displayed vintage driver suits, archival
photography and one-of-a-kind cars on loan from the Indianapolis Motor
Speedway Hall of Fame Museum and were highlighted by both legendary and
current driver appearances.
In one such event, at the Macy's Herald Square flagship store in New
York, the entire field of 33 starting drivers of the 2009 Indianapolis
500 posed for a photograph on a closed Broadway in front of display
windows showcasing winning cars from nearly every decade of Indy racing.
Promotional activities for the IZOD/INDY sportswear collection included
a text messaging and Web-based national sweepstakes hosted at
macys.com/izod. The grand prize was an all-inclusive package for four to
the 2009 Indianapolis 500.
About IZOD and Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation:
IZOD, one of the best-known and best-selling apparel brands in the
United States, is known for its sport-inspired, clean designs and
colorful product lines. With a history in the United States dating back
to the 1930s, the IZOD brand is licensed to 21 companies in the U.S. and
17 other countries. IZOD brand products include apparel and accessories
for men, women, and children, soft home goods and men's fragrance. The
IZOD brand offerings include products sold under the IZOD PerformX
(technical and performance fabricated sportswear), IZOD Jeans, and IZOD
LX (a luxury sportswear collection sold exclusively at Macy's) sub
brands, which are sold in over 6,000 retail venues worldwide, including
department, specialty and company-operated stores. For more information
visit www.izod.com.
Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation is one of the world's largest apparel
companies. It owns and markets the Calvin Klein brand worldwide. It is
the world's largest shirt and neckwear company and markets a variety of
goods under its own brands, Van Heusen, Calvin Klein, IZOD, ARROW, Bass,
and G.H. Bass & Co., and its licensed brands including Geoffrey Beene,
Kenneth Cole New York, Kenneth Cole Reaction, unlisted, A Kenneth Cole
Production, BCBG Max Azria, BCBG Attitude, MICHAEL Michael Kors, Sean
John, Chaps, Donald J. Trump Signature Collection, JOE Joseph Abboud,
Tommy Hilfiger, DKNY, and Timberland.
About the IZOD IndyCar Series:
The IZOD IndyCar Series is the premier open-wheel series in the United
States, competing on a challenging combination of superspeedways, short
ovals, scenic road courses and temporary street circuits. In 2010 the
IndyCar Series will conduct 13 races in the U.S., two in Canada and one
both in Japan and Brazil, all available worldwide through comprehensive,
long-term agreements with ABC and VERSUS in high-definition. The IZOD
IndyCar Series continues to the be the fastest and most competitive
racing series, attracting a diverse lineup of drivers including Marco
Andretti, Ryan Briscoe, Helio Castroneves, Scott Dixon, Dario
Franchitti, Tony Kanaan, Danica Patrick, Graham Rahal and Dan Wheldon. A
leader in motorsports technology, the IndyCar Series is the first racing
series to power its Honda engines on 100 percent fuel-grade ethanol, a
renewable and environmentally friendly fuel. For more information on the
IZOD IndyCar Series, visit www.indycar.com.
Media:
DKC
Scott Miranda, 212-981-5208
scott_miranda@dkcnews.com
or
IndyCar
Series
John Griffin, 317-492-6559
jgriffin@indycar.com
or
Phillips-Van
Heusen
Jason Colin, 212-381-3937
Director of
Communications
jasoncolin@pvh.com
or
Investor:
Phillips-Van
Heusen
Michael Shaffer, 212-381-3523
Executive Vice President
and Chief Financial Officer
michaelshaffer@pvh.com
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