Louis Vuitton Trophy a Showcase for the Côte d’Azur

Regular readers will know that the vast majority of sailing sponsorships are designed for a business to business audience. Some are lucky enough to rank as major events which drive tourism and investment in regions and towns. While many of sailing’s ‘politicians’ are trying to tear down perceptions that yacht racing is an elitist sport, the backers of the Louis Vuitton Trophy have a vested interest in keeping the sport exclusive.

Bruno Trouble, who has been a driving force behind the new event that features the old Version 5 America’s Cup boats, was once quoted as saying:

“The day we get a pizza company with its brand on the mainsail of a competing yacht, that is the end of the America’s Cup as it is now.”

Major events though, do give local development agencies a great chance to attract investment and business to a region. Any city with the infrastructure and logistical capabilities to host eight professional sailing teams and press and meet their requirements shows that longer term, the same city can provide a good environment for a company to locate a corporate HQ or facility.

Team Côte d’Azur, a promotion and economic development agency for the region around Nice is using the Louis Vuitton Trophyto host a small number of company leaders from Telecom and Life Science sectors. As this is Frnace, company heads were mostly sailing buffs and responded immediately to the development agency’s invitation. The leaders spent a day enjoying the competition while discussing also the reasons that had led them to invest in the Nice Côte d’Azur region to grow their business.

Team Côte d’Azur’s director Philippe Stefanini:

“It is very interesting for us to bring together prospects from different sectors for such a prestigious, exciting venue as the Louis Vuitton Trophy. The exchanges among our guests allow them to grasp the reasons why similar international companies have chosen to locate here and that helps them in their decision making.”

http://www.investincotedazur.com/en/newsletter/index.php?txt=act8937

Bruno Troublé Comments on the Louis Vuitton Trophy, Nice.

The Louis Vuitton Trophy in Nice is a relatively risky undertaking, even with the backing of the long time America’s Cup luxury goods sponsor (sorry – partner) and Bruno Troublé. The event was hastily arranged and the Nice was not the first choice for the November date.

Troublé has spoken about how the new event came to be on the Côte d’Azur and where we might see the Louis Vuitton Trophy next.

“We were supposed to go to Hong Kong in November but because there was only one place to go in Hong Kong, and the pier there was not finished, we had to cancel Hong Kong in June. We were willing to have an event in November, so we managed to convince Nice very very quickly.”

“At the end of the season there are not many places in Europe where you can sail: Marseilles, for example, is a great venue, but the wind is blowing 40 knots every day. Nice is also a very dynamic city. The Mayor is also the Minister of Industry, so he has a lot of power and he managed to make a decision in a week, whereas normally with public support like that takes months. So he is so powerful he has no problem to make a decision and then make it happen.”

The Louis Vuitton Trophy has improved upon the mecahnisms available to teams to promote their sponsors. One of the reasons for the event was to try and salvage some media value for partners who have been denied an America’s Cup appearance thanks to the squabbling between Alinghi and BMW ORACLE.

Troublé is proud of the technique they have introduced allowing teams to show their own branding on board. Each team purchases their own genniker from the organisers, while at the beginning of each day team a large patch with the team branding and logo is velcroed on to the mainsail in reverse order that the teams will be sailing a particular boat. When teams swap boats the outgoing team simply peels off their mainsail branding cleverly revealing the branding of the incoming team.

Louis Vuitton Trophy regattas in 2010 are planned for – Auckland in March, La Maddelena, Sardinia in May-June, Newport, RI in August and Hong Kong in November.

World Yacht Racing Forum 2009 Announces Speaker Line-Up. #WYRF

For better or worse, depending on where you sit, sport is now business. Big business. All sports are having to come to terms with the realities of the economics and business models of sports – whether it be professional events or grass-roots development.

Most would agree that the business of yacht racing is confused and fragmented. Even at the top level, many teams are not run as a business with gaps in revenue filled by wealthy owners out of their own pocket. It seems that anyone can announce a new series or a new event or a new class – irrespective of the impact it might have on the sport as a whole.

The only way that the sport of sailing will compete for share of media, sponsorship dollars and talent is to come together and talk through some of the issues facing the sport, and to that end the World Yacht Racing Forum is a must for anyone who is in the business of yacht racing.

The first forum, held in Monaco in 2009 attracted over  300 delegates from 37 countries, the second edition of the Forum returns to Monaco this 9-10th December, 2009. The topics promise to address some of the most pressing issues facing the sport – with sessions for debate including:

• Yachting Sponsorship – can Sailing deliver real value for money?
• Leveraging a Sponsorship Deal – How do we maximise the investment?
• Can Yacht Racing deliver economic returns for host cities and ports?
• Tapping into new Media audiences – The Future of Sailing on the Web and Television
• How can event costs be trimmed for today’s economic climate?
• Governing the Sport – What Can Sailing Learn from other Sports?
• What space is there for Multihull Racing in the international calendar?
• Americas Cup: How do the Challengers see the future of their event?

Over 60 speakers will address these issues, not just from the sailing world, but from Formula 1, Tennis and other sports that arguably do it much better than sailing does it.

This year’s World Yacht Racing Forum promises an outstanding line up of sailing personalities and top speakers including Conference Chairman Peter Gilmour (AUS) and keynote addresses by Tom Whidden, CEO of North Sails, and two time Vendee Globe winner Michel Desjoyeaux. Other confirmed and invited speakers include;

• Mark Turner CEO, OC Group
• Nick Fry Chief Executive, Brawn GP
• Nathalie Quéré Head of Global Sponsorship, BT Global Services
• Michael Rasmussen Chief Marketing Officer, VELUX
• Daniel Miles Group Head Marketing, Puma AG
• Jerome Pels Secretary General, ISAF (International Sailing Federation)
• Vincenzo Onorato CEO, Mascalzoni Latino
• Jamie Singer Partner, Onside Law
• Bruno Troublé Founder, Louis Vuitton Cup
• José Antonio Muñoz Manager, Deporte Andaluz
• Knut Frostad CEO, Volvo Ocean Race
• Scott Macleod Senior Vice President- New Business, Sony Ericsson WTA Tour
• Ignacia Triay Director, Audi MedCup
• Julien Benoist Head of Sponsorship, Foncia
• Richard Moore CEO, Capitalise
• Richard Brisius CEO, Atlant Racing
• Maria Moynihan Lee Festival Director, City of Galway
• Daniel Calero Manager, Puerto Calero – Canaries
• Ulrich Lacher Managing Director, IFM Sports
• Henrik Sund Managing Director, Grow AB
• Stéphane Kandler CEO, K Challenge
• Ian Taylor CEO, Virtual Eye
• Richard Simmonds Managing Director, Sunset & Vine
• Marijn Harinck Founder, United Games
• Jean-Dominique Lauwerins CEO, Be Tomorrow
• Michel Desjoyeaux Multi Vendee Globe Winner
• Josh Hall CEO, Portimao Global Race
• Dominique Wavre President, IMOCA
• Riccardo Simoneschi CEO, B Plan Marketing
• Paul Cayard Professional Sailor
• Stephan Kandler CEO, K Challenge
• Sotoris Buseas CEO, Greek Challenge

This year, a new event has also been added to the schedule – the Yacht Racing Design and Technology Symposium – which will run parallel to the Forum in an adjoining conference room (www.yrdts.com). The Symposium will include presentations and panel discussions from experts in the field of yacht racing design and technology including the latest developments in performance hull and composite design, hydrodynamics, coatings, rigging, sail making and much more. Owners of racing yachts from a select number of classes are being invited to the Symposium free of charge. A total of 14 panel sessions and presentations are scheduled across both conferences, plus two evening functions for all participants.

Both conferences will share an exclusive exhibition and networking lounge with over 30 stands allowing delegates to meet and network with new contacts and industry colleagues. Participants will also have the opportunity to visit the exhibition area of the adjoining Motorsport Business Forum at the Grimaldi Forum on the same dates, plus an invitation to the exclusive ‘Track & Ocean’ cocktail reception jointly hosted on 9th December at the Meridien Beach Plaza Hotel.

Although only in its second year, the World Yacht Racing Forum has already found its place firmly on the yachting calendar as Event Director James Pleasance explains;

“What last year’s Forum proved is that the sailing industry absolutely needs an event like this. By industry professionals coming together and sharing strategies and best practices, it helps raise the quality and value of the sport globally, as well as addressing some of the sports key issues. It is also an excellent place to network and make new contacts. Monaco is very accessible in December, it really is a must-attend event for anyone in the business of sailing and yacht racing.”

Register at http://worldyachtracingforum.com/registration.php

First Louis Vuitton World Series Event to be in Nice, In Novemeber.

The Louis Vuitton World Series (LVWS) and the World Sailing Team Association (WSTA) held a press conference in Paris yesterday to outline more details about their plans. The first event will be sooner than some might have thought, November this year in fact in the French city of Nice. There’s quite a lot of detail in this story and we will be digging a little more over the coming days, but in the meantime, here are the highlights from the official announcement.

As reported last week, the new event will be based on the successful Louis Vuitton Pacific Series held in Auckland in February 2009, using version 5 America’s Cup monohulls. There will be 10 places for teams, with eight slots already filled.

The second Louis Vuitton World Series event is scheduled for March 2010 in Auckland, New Zealand, followed by a Series in La Maddalena (Italy) in May 2010.

Organizers are also evaluating interest from other international cities to complete the racing calendar for 2010 and 2011. Bruno Troublé, creator of the Louis Vuitton Cup and LVWS spokesperson comments:

“We have received serious interest from cities like Athens, Greece; Valencia, Spain; Newport, RI, USA; Cape Town, South Africa; Hong Kong, and Abu Dhabi to host future events. ” The WSTA and Louis Vuitton will announce more events (2010/2011) during the Nice regatta this year.”

Teams confirmed for the first event in Nice include: BMW ORACLE Racing (USA), Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL), Italia by Joe Fly (ITA), K-Challenge (FRA), Mascalzone Latino (ITA), Swedish Challenge Artemis (SWE), Synergy Russian Sailing Team (RUS) and Team French Spirit (FRA) .

Pietro Beccari, Executive Vice President of Louis Vuitton, in charge of Marketing and Communication, notes:

“We only announced the Series last week and already another four teams have expressed interest for the remaining two berths for Nice. We will soon confirm the remaining teams for the LVWS – Nice.”

Yves Carcelle, Louis Vuitton’s Chairman and CEO, is delighted with this new chapter, which complements but is separate from their 25 year association with the Cup:

“In the wake of the Louis Vuitton Pacific Series, which brought a breath of fresh air to the sailing world, this Series will allow, once again, the teams to come together in a competitive but friendly atmosphere.”

Grant Dalton, CEO of ETNZ and a WSTA founding team explains:

“The Louis Vuitton Pacific Series was a great success. It seemed logical to try and build on this and that is what we have done. It is a win-win situation for Louis Vuitton, the teams and the host cities.”

Russell Coutts, CEO of BMW ORACLE Racing, a WSTA founding team, explains:

“Sailing teams at the top of the sport require sponsorship. Sponsors require an annual global calendar of compelling events. And the sailors seek a highly-competitive series where they can face their toughest opponents on a fair playing field. We see this Series as addressing all of those elements and are excited by the potential.”

New World Sailing Series Announced By Louis Vuitton.

As many predicted, long time America’s Cup sponsor (sorry, partner) have been working on an expanded version of the successful Louis Vuitton Pacific Series held in Auckland at the beginning of 2009. The series has strong support from well funded teams however there is bound to be fallout for other professional series.

The new tour will be called the Louis Vuitton World Series, but the organisational structure is based on those in other successful pro-sports with the competing teams forming the WSTA (World Sailing Team Association).

Ten teams will be invited to confront each other in successive duels over a fortnight on two pairs of identical boats chosen by lot. The racing boats were sailed in the 2007 LV Cup.  This concept, which demonstrates the desire to return to the original spirit of “match racing”, provides an exhilarating show and is easy for spectators to understand.

Ten teams will be invited to confront each other in successive duels over a fortnight on two pairs of identical boats chosen by lot. The racing boats were sailed in the 2007 LV Cup.  This concept, which demonstrates the desire to return to the original spirit of “match racing”, provides an exhilarating show and is easy for spectators to understand. The WSTA and Louis Vuitton plan to organise several regattas a year. Many cities of which Nice, Hong Kong, Auckland, New York and several other European venues have shown their interest.

In  a statement issued by Louis Vuitton today, America’s Cup challenger teams like K-Challenge (France), BMW Oracle Racing (USA), Emirates Team New Zealand, Mascalzone Latino (Italy) will be joined by Artemis (Sweden), Team Synergy (Russia), Joe Fly Italia (Italy) and Team French Spirit (France).

The news is good for sailing, though series like the RC44 and Audi Med Cup may suffer as teams like Artemis and Emirates Team New Zealand are unlikely to compete in both events. It should be good for the World Match Racing Tour, which is a well proven development environment for America’s Cup style match racing helmsmen and crew.

Many of these things have been announced before and have never happened, but one imagines that with Louis Vuitton’s backing and event gurus like Bruno Trouble on board, the new event has a good chance of success. A press conference will be held in Paris on Tuesday the 8th of September where more details will be released.

Now.. where do we file this?

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