Hollis Sponsorship Bulletin

John Lewis yesterday became the 26th domestic sponsor to join the London 2010 team with the title Official Department Store Provider.  As a Tier Three Provider to London 2012, John Lewis will offer its staff the opportunity to work at LOCOG in the build-up to the Games, help to furnish lounge and reception areas at Games-time venues, and provide warehouse space.  The John Lewis shop on Oxford Street and  a new shop due to be opened in 2011 adjacent to the Olympic Park at Stratford are set to become key retail outlets for Games-related merchandise.  These shops will give back all net profit to London 2012 on Olympic merchandise sold.

London 2012 Chairman Sebastian Coe commented: “We are thrilled that John Lewis has chosen to join us on the journey to 2012.  They supported us during the bid and so it is fantastic to have them on board as a sponsor.  They bring a wealth of retail experience which will  be invaluable to us as our merchandise programme ramps up and crucially, members of their staff will join our own to provide expertise and ensure those visiting our Games receive the warmest of welcomes in 2012.”

Andy Street, Managing Director of John Lewis commented: “Sustainability and community are at the heart of our business and we are therefore delighted to be involved with the regeneration of east London through anchoring the Olympic development in Stratford with our latest full-line department store as well as helping to fund the most exciting sporting event for a generation.”

Contributing to LOCOG’s budget of £2 billion for staging the Olympic and Paralymic Games are seven Tier One Partners – adidas,  BMW, BP, British Airways, BT, EDF and Lloyds TSB, six domestic  Tier Two Supporters – Adecco, Cadbury, Cisco, Deloitte, Thomas Cook and UPS.  There are now 13 domestic Tier Three Suppliers and Providers – Airwave, Atkins, Boston Consulting Group, Crystal CG, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP, GSK, Holiday Inn, John Lewis, McCann Worldgroup, The Nielsen Company, Populous, Ticketmaster and Trident.

The Worldwide Olympic Partners signed up for London 2012 are Coca-Cola, Acer, Atos Origin, GE, McDonald’s, Omega, Panasonic, Samsung and Visa.

This month saw Arts & Business unveil the winners of its 31st Annual Awards. Divided up into eight key categories, winners on the night included UBS, Deloitte LLP and Ernst & Young – underlining the pivotal role that financial services continues to play in supporting the arts sector.

UBS’ win came in the BP A&B Sustained Partnership category – for its role in turning a derelict power station into an internationally-recognised arts powerhouse. Deloitte LLP, meanwhile, won the A&B Cultural Branding Award in partnership with Royal Opera House for Ignite, an arts festival which broke new ground for both of the partners.

Commenting on the quality of entries across all eight categories, Colin Tweedy, chief executive of Arts & Business, said: “The winners show the astounding variety of imaginative partnerships possible between culture and commerce. If there has been a knock to the reputation of business during this recession, the arts are proving a perfect way for them to reconnect with their communities. Business has no obligation to support the arts. That they continue to do so is a force for good for all our collective futures.”

Ernst and Young’s victory came in the A&B Young People category – for a partnership with the South London Gallery which gave young people from local schools the chance to put together their own exhibition. Other winners on the night were Liberty Stadium and Pippin’s Designs; Ferry van Diijk and Hoxton Hall; Translink Metro and Belfast Actors; Takeda Pharmaceutical Company and London Symphony Orchestra; and Edding Pens and Monorex.
Minister for Culture Margaret Hodge said: “Business support for the arts makes an increasingly vital contribution to the success of arts companies, exhibitions and productions. This is especially the case when times are hard.  The Awards showcase the imagination of sponsors and their determination to back high quality and innovative work – I commend them for their generosity and imagination, and the artists for the difference they make to our lives.” More at: http://www.artsandbusiness.org.uk

At times like these, it’s inevitable that sponsorship budgets are scrutinised closely. Marketing directors have less to spend on rights and agencies have tighter activation budgets.

But if the 2009 Hollis Sponsorship Awards are anything to go by, this medium is built to survive. Whether you judge the winning campaigns by their creativity, their effectiveness or their evaluation, there is plenty to commend sponsorship.

The big winner on the night was WPP-owned consultancy MEC Access – whose work on behalf of Evian, Nicotinell, Specsavers and Morrisons showcased a range of skills.

In the case of Evian’s sponsorship of Wimbledon, the key message was that brands can achieve cut-through even when they are operating within tightly-defined property parameters. As for the other campaigns, it was the creative thinking that went into sponsorship selection and activation that truly stood out. Whether identifying opportunities, leveraging content or building new franchises, MEC Access pressed every button. No surprise really that it also won Consultancy of the Year.

In times like these, there’s a temptation for brands to play it safe. But if there is a message in the 2009 Awards it is that innovation pays dividends. Arts sponsorship will experience falling revenues this year – but when you see the quality of the shortlist you have to ask whether brands are missing a trick. The category winner, Deloitte Ignite (in partnership with the Royal Opera House), was a clever fusion of traditional and contemporary art which won fans and wooed the media. When you also see that Becks, French Connection, HSBC, Lloyds TSB and Tennent’s were on the short-list, it’s clear that the arts have the potential to work across sectors.

In all likelihood, brands in 2009 will avoid showy displays of wealth, preferring to invest more time and effort in charity, community, education, environment and grass roots. Again, they could do worse than look at the Hollis 2009 category winners for some ideas as to how this might be achieved.

Brakes, the winner of the charity and community category, may not be the most high-profile of brands – but it delivered a thoughtful and well-executed campaign in partnership with The Royal Parks Foundation. The beauty of the project was that so many stakeholders came out on top. Not only did Brakes and The Foundation fulfil their pre-campaign objectives, but 160 small charities raised £1.5-£2 million. When you consider the kind of ripple effect that can have in terms of brand goodwill, it’s clearly a powerful mechanic.

Likewise with education, where Morrison’s decision to link up with UK schools via a voucher collection scheme called Let’s Grow was inspired. Or environment, where EON’s Carbonfootyprint.com was a really good example of how brands can build green credentials around major sporting properties like the FA Cup. In the long-run, this aspect of E.ON’s activities will probably prove as valuable to the brand as any amount of perimeter boards and PR column inches.

The Grass Roots nettle was grasped with just as much gusto by npower – whose Urban Cricket strategy has helped the brand forge strong links with local communities. With coaching sessions and kits delivered to thousands of young people, npower has found a powerful form of engagement.

The media, sport and brand categories are where you tend to find the biggest brands lining up to do battle. And it was gratifying to see a wide range of sectors and properties represented. In media, it was Specsaver’s through-the-line work with Gok Wan which caught the eye. But campaigns from Coral, Nintendo Wii, John Smith’s and Virgin Media showed that there is much more to this category than a few breaks and bumpers on TV. Anyone who imagines that media sponsorship is just TV advertising by another name really needs to look at the way campaigns like these are activated.

In sport, it was Powerade’s Inner Gear strategy which came out on top – by showing how an excellent idea, striking imagery and great strategic execution can deliver brand favourability and a huge spike in sales. As for brands, there were two winners – one for a budget of below £750,000 and another for a budget above that thresh-hold. In the former case, it was Vauxhall Tigra’s pursuit of women aged 20-35 that most impressed the judges. In the higher budget bracket, Evian’s association with Wimbledon won through (before also going on to pick up the best use of research award for a highly-cogent and articulate evaluation of the sponsorship).

As outlined above, the beauty of the Awards is the range of activities it covers. One the one hand, it was pleasing to see  Nicotinell’s first-ever sponsorship (The Football League’s Smoke Free Season) pick up the first-timer award – bearing in mind the industry’s historic links to tobacco. On the other, it was great to see muscular brands like Aviva, B&Q, Brains, RBS and SAP line up in the sponsorship continuity category. Here, it was Brains’ ability to grow sales though a highly-creative partnership with Welsh Rugby that took the plaudits.

The sense of contrast continued through other categories. While Castrol took the international award for its multi-market activation around UEFA Euro 2008, the Best Low Budget Sponsorship Award went to Oxford law firm Blake Lapthorn. In a similar vein, the corporate category went to Accenture’s sponsorship of the Skandia sailing team – a campaign which was mainly about employee engagement and b2b networking. Compare that with Sony Ericsson’s high-impact PR stunt to promote the start of the Sony Ericsson Tennis Championships in Doha (televised around the world).

The point is that the only real limit in sponsorship is your own imagination. Somewhere out there is a property to meet your objectives and fit your budget. It could be in arts, sport, media, community or education – you just have to find it.

As outlined above, MEC Access’ efforts won it Consultancy Of The Year – beating off impressive entries from Capitalize, Four Sports, Arts & Sponsorship and Octagon. There were also individual awards. Personality of the Year was London 2012 commercial chief Chris Townsend – a recognition of his achievement in securing so much funding for the upcoming Olympics. Looking to the future, the Barrie Gill Award for Most Promising Young Executive went to SBI’s Hamilton Lowe. Lowe beat off tough competition from both Fast Track’s Caroline Grenger and Synergy’s Lucie Bartlett.