by Larry Eder
Last month, New Balance announced signing of Jenny Barringer, one of top American female middle distance prospects, with the brand. Today, the first of March, New Balance announced their multi-year sponsorship of the NB Outdoor Nationals. The NB Outdoor Nationals, managed by the NSSF, has developed into one of the most respected outdoor scholastic (high school) events in the country, giving many top high school athletes their first chance at running in a national event.
New Balance’s support of athletes such as Jenny Barringer (they also sponsor a strong team of middle distance runners in US and UK, from Sarah Bowman to Andy Baddely)), and their sponsorship of the NB Outdoor Championships is the work of new running marketing manager Josh Rowe and his team. Rowe was brought in by Tom Carleo, GM of New Balance running, as the next part of Carleo’s plan to exemplify New Balance’s re-dedication to the sport of running and their main business-the making of performance running shoes.
In the current business climate, where good shoes just do not make it, Carleo and his team see that New Balance has to fight, each day, for the mind share of the running consumer against brands such as adidas, ASICS, Brooks, Mizuno, Nike and Saucony among others, on the performance running business.
If adidas invented sports marketing, then, Nike reinvented sports marketing, using it, in all their sports, to proclaim their global sports mantra. What brands such as New Balance have found is that, they can, in this current business climate, focus on key athletes, key events, and help them resonate with their brand and their brand needs.
Reaching out to the young performance running consumer makes great sense for a brand such as New Balance. High school runners, all 1.4 million of them, purchase an average of three to five pairs of running shoes per year, depending on whether they run both cross country and track or just a fall or spring sport. Their influence on their friends, who play soccer, football, basketball is similar to the adult performance runner and their influence on friends and business acquaintances.
The shoe wars continue….
NEW BALANCE PARTNERS WITH NATIONAL SCHOLASTIC SPORTS FOUNDATION FOR THE NEW BALANCE OUTDOOR NATIONALS
BOSTON, MA, March 1, 2010 – Global athletic leader New Balance is proud to announce an official multi-year partnership with the National Scholastic Sports Foundation (NSSF) in the Outdoor Nationals event, renamed the New Balance Outdoor Nationals. The event brings together the best outdoor track and field high school athletes from across the country for a weekend of intense competition.
“New Balance is thrilled to partner with the NSSF for the New Balance Outdoor Nationals,†said Josh Rowe, marketing manager, running at New Balance. “Being an official sponsor of this premier running event is an exciting way for us to reach out to and support the high school track and field running community and continue to highlight our innovative performance products and unique brand attributes.â€
The National Scholastic Sports Foundation has operated the Outdoor Nationals since 1991. The event was held in Los Angeles, CA for the first three years (at University of California, Los Angeles), in Raleigh, NC for the next decade, through 2004 (at North Carolina State University) and has been held in Greensboro, NC (at North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University) for the past five years. The meet is regarded as the unofficial High School National Championship in track and field.
“We are ecstatic to have New Balance as a partner,†said meet director Jim Spier. “We recognize and appreciate New Balance’s commitment to high school sports and look forward to working together to bring this event to a new level in the high school track and field world.â€
This year the New Balance Outdoor Nationals will be held on June 17-19th in Greensboro, NC.
About New Balance
New Balance, headquartered in Boston, MA has the following mission: Demonstrating responsible leadership, we build global brands that athletes are proud to wear, associates are proud to create and communities are proud to host. New Balance employs more than 4000 people around the globe, and in 2008 reported worldwide sales of $1.64 billion. For more information please visit http://www.newbalance.com.
About NSSF
The National Scholastic Sports Foundation is an organization dedicated to the support of junior age (sub-20) and high school track and field. Aside from offering support to the USATF Junior Track and Field and selected high school track and field meets, we own and operate the Nike Indoor Nationals, the New Balance Outdoor Nationals, and the Great American
