| NEWS 07.31.09 10:00 AM |
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Potential Sponsors Looking for Customization, Integration, and R.O.I.
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As corporations looking more closely at their spending, planners working to secure event sponsorships say they need to find innovative ways to create meaningful experiences for the attendees and the companies involved. “The days of simply putting a company's logo on a dinner package have gone by the wayside. Sponsorships today need to be related to a return on investment,” said Joel Hock, president and founder of Solutions With Impact, a Toronto-based event management company that has planned events like the Bell Celebrity Gala and the Rally for Kids With Cancer Scavenger Cup.
“If you're looking for $250,000, then you better have a compelling story why that organization should be participating," he said. "It needs to align with their market strategy and their demographic and their positioning. You have to make sure when you make that presentation that you're trying to hit as many of their touch points as possible."
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RELATED TOPICS
Sponsorships, Selling Sponsorships, Telus, 944 Magazine, Self Magazine |
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| Q & A 03.12.09 11:56 AM |
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Jennifer Üner Overseeing Calendar for More-Diffuse-Than-Ever L.A. Fashion Week
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FROM LOS ANGELES
Fashion Week in Los Angeles has never been quite the cohesive entity it is in other international cities. For five years, a partnership between IMG and Smashbox Studios created a more organized program centered in Culver City, but the widely publicized dissolution of that agreement after last season left something of a void.
Independent marketing consultant Jennifer Üner has spent the last seven years overseeing the biannual calendar at FashionWeekLA.com, the most comprehensive and longest-running local calendar of the somewhat ragtag collection of events that has historically made up the week. For this season's Fashion Week—which begins Friday—Üner's calendar is taking on an even greater significance as the industry's unofficial scheduling clearinghouse in the vacuum left after the formal partnership ended. (Üner also manages events and created the Los Angeles Fashion Awards.) We talked to her about how this season's schedule has come together.
Tell us about Fashion Week Los Angeles’s first season since the Smashbox partnership ended.
With the crash of the economy, it was a timely departure for IMG, producers of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios. Their departure, plus the economy, has created a season of uncertainty. As a result, we are seeing fewer of the more established brands showing on the runway. On the flip side, this leaves room for newcomers to grab some attention. We are seeing a rise in the number of new independent producers who wish to fill the void left by IMG. Usually it is individual designers producing shows in a variety of off-site venues. This year, we see producers determined to pioneer new venues and attract the designers to show with them.
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RELATED TOPICS
L.A. Fashion Week, Smashbox, Mercedes-Benz Los Angeles Fashion Week, IMG Fashion, Sponsorships |
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| NEWS 02.19.09 12:15 PM |
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With L'Oréal Out, Tough-Sell Oscars Telecast May Still Be Looking for Sponsors
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FROM LOS ANGELES
After L'Oréal Paris pulled out of Sunday's Oscar telecast, ABC may still be scrambling to find replacement sponsors, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Since 2004, the beauty brand's spend has added up to more than $40 million, and now the network has only days to fill a substantial chunk of unsold inventory. Last year, L'Oréal bought three minutes of airtime, the biggest allotment after General Motors, which announced in October it was pulling out of this year's show.
According to The Reporter, one reason it may be hard for the network to nail down a beauty brand is that the Academy Awards show itself may appeal to an older audience these days—which falls outside the category's demographic. Add to that a lousy ad market in the current economy, plus the fact that ABC has had to deal with the issue of last year's low ratings. According to Nielsen, only 32 million viewers watched the 80th Academy Awards, down from close to 40 million in 2007. —Alesandra Dubin
RELATED TOPICS
Oscars, Award Season, Sponsorships |
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| Q & A 01.08.09 8:00 AM |
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Sundance's Sarah Pearce Adds Opening Gala While Fighting for Sponsor Dollars
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 | Sundance Film Festival's Sarah Pearce
Photo: Courtesy of Sundance Film Festival |
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Sarah Pearce is the director of operations for the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah—which opens next Thursday, January 15, and runs through January 25. Affiliated with the organization since 1999, Pearce oversees all operational departments, including ticketing, the filmmaker office, sponsorships, theater operations, security, production, and technical services.
Sundance opens with a gala next week. Why add it this year, and what’s in store?
The reason behind adding a gala is because we are having our 25th anniversary of the festival, and we wanted to create an event that was intimate that celebrated the anniversary, as well as an opportunity for us to raise some extra money in this hard economic time. It’s not formal—nothing is formal at Sundance—but it is intimate and high-end in caliber. We’re going to have a nice dinner, special programming, and performances and appearances by people and filmmakers who have been with us for a long time.
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RELATED TOPICS
Sundance, Proposition 8, Sponsorships, Gift Suites, Budgets, Economy |
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| NEWS 04.11.08 5:01 PM |
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Kanye West's Tour to Bring Colorful, Absolut-Sponsored Parties to 30 U.S. Cities
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 | A preview of the parties' look
Rendering: Strategic Group Creative Services |
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FROM LOS ANGELES
Look for a colorful, DJ-driven event series to hit the road over the next several months. Sponsor Absolut 100 has tapped Strategic Group to produce the official tour-stop parties for Kanye West's Glow in the Dark tour. The team will truck the production elements across the U.S. between April 16 and June 11; the series will land in more than 30 cities in nine weeks, with stops including Miami, Boston, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Detroit. Two of the large events in the series will take place in Los Angeles (on April 21) and New York (May 13). DJs will rotate in each city, with Reach in New York, Vice in L.A., Berrie in Chicago, Clark Kent in D.C., and Rukus in Atlanta. Strategic Group's production will include an LED DJ booth, liquid floor panels, hologram walls, and branded illuminated boxes for dancers. —Alesandra Dubin
RELATED TOPICS
Absolut, Kanye West, Sponsorships |
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| FROM THE EDITORS 03.25.08 4:12 PM |
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Looking Back at Fashion Week in Three Cities
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 | The '60s-inspired runway at Miss Sixty's New York show
Photo: Keith Sirchio for BizBash |
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Since Toronto Fashion Week drew to a close over the weekend, we figured it was a good time to review our coverage of the semiannual spectacles across three of the markets we cover. While the Fashion Week festivities in New York, Los Angeles, and Toronto varied in size and style, the marketers involved shared many of the same challenges and goals: standing out in a crowded marketplace, producing eye-catching sets in a short time, and incorporating effective sponsorships. Here's an archive of our coverage in these three markets.
New York Fashion Week coverage
Los Angeles Fashion Week coverage
Toronto Fashion Week coverage
RELATED TOPICS
Fashion Week, Sponsorships |
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| EVENT REPORT 10.10.07 5:09 PM |
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More's Reinvention Convention Attracts a Surprising Sponsor
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 | The upscale venue reflected the magazine's intended demographic.
Photo: Alison Whittington for BizBash |
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Taking readers beyond the page and into a physical space—and earning additional revenue—is very popular these days, as shown most recently by last week's Essence conference and the news that The Wall Street Journal is adding more conferences to its roster. To that trend, add More magazine's first-ever conference for its readers, the Reinvention Convention held on Tuesday at Pier Sixty.
Discussion of a conference began about two years ago, said More marketing director Julie Mahoney. "Our readers are so engaged with the magazine—we've gotten a huge reader response to the model search and the marathon," she said, referring to two of More's signature events. The theme for the inaugural conference was easy: Reinvention is a huge topic for the magazine.
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the day was sponsor Harley Davidson. The motorcycle maker has been trying to attract women for several years, and in talking with the magazine about an ad buy decided to sign on to the conference, where attendees could pose atop a 1200 Sportster or try on Harley clothing and accessories. In addition, the centerpieces at the luncheon were in Harley colors—orange roses set in black rocks.
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RELATED TOPICS
More Magazine, Harley-Davidson, Vibrel, Bobbi Brown, Sponsorships |
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| Q & A 09.11.07 9:39 AM |
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DHL Returns to Fashion Week With Cookies and Zac Posen
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 | Lynne Koreman
Photo: Courtesy of DHL |
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Earlier this year, DHL partnered with IMG to sponsor Mercedes-Benz Fashion Weeks in New York, Los Angeles, and Miami as well as the FashionWeekLive tour in Houston, Dallas, Chicago, and San Francisco. In its second appearance in the New York tents, the shipping and logistics company is adding new ways to promote its services for the industry, including a partnership with Zac Posen to create a limited-edition leather tote bag, with all proceeds donated to nonprofit TeachersCount. We spoke to Lynne Koreman, the director of sponsorships for DHL Express, about the campaign.
This is DHL's second season as a sponsor at Fashion Week. What did you learn in February?
Our first season was very successful. Our booth was a hit, and the espresso and biscotti went over extremely well. We received a very warm response from the industry, with other sponsors and designers open to learning about us and trying our services. From a shipping perspective, we’re shipping more and more from each show, with customers and other sponsors sending their items from our booth. People sent things across town, across the country, and around the world, right from our booth.
How did last season's successes or problems affect this season's strategy? Are you bringing anything back or tweaking anything this time around?
We really had a problem-free first season, so this season is really about growing upon the success of the first season. Adding a designer partnership with Zac Posen has been a wonderful experience and activation platform. We’re giving away a bag a day through a contest in the booth, which adds even more opportunity for people to interact with our brand.
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RELATED TOPICS
DHL, Fashion Week, Zac Posen, Sponsorships |
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| NEWS 09.06.07 5:01 PM |
Mercedes-Benz Offers Free Photos for Name-Check
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Fashion Week’s title sponsor, Mercedes-Benz, isn’t happy with journalists who don't always refer to the week by its official, paid-for name (as in "Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week"). According to a Women’s Wear Daily report today, to boost brand recognition with consumers, the company launched a site where media outlets can access free photos from the shows—that is, provided they credit "Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week."
RELATED TOPICS
Fashion Week, Mercedes-Benz, Sponsorships |
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