Agency tagged to promote the ‘fastest race on Earth’
CHICAGO (February 18, 2010) – The IZOD IndyCar Series selected GolinHarris as agency of record to work with sponsors, teams and drivers to re-energize the sport of open wheel racing. The agency will focus efforts in the areas of media relations, special events, promotions and social media during the 2010 racing season, which kicks off on March 14, in São Paulo, Brazil. The partnership begins immediately and will be led out of GolinHarris’ headquarters in Chicago by Molly Currey, vice president.
“We are thrilled to be a part of the IZOD IndyCar family,” stated Gary Rudnick, executive vice president and Midwest regional managing director of GolinHarris. “We look forward to working closely with their sponsors, teams and drivers to promote the sport to new audiences within North America and the world.”
“We are excited about what GolinHarris will be able to do for us on and off the sports pages,” said Terry Angstadt, president of the commercial division for the Indy Racing League. “Our goal is to make our drivers stars in the mainstream landscape, and the hiring of GolinHarris is one of the first steps in doing so.” GolinHarris will work with the IZOD IndyCar Series to develop traditional and non-traditional programming targeted toward a younger audience in efforts to grow the fan base for open wheel racing.
“We met with a number of top-notch firms, and couldn’t be more excited to welcome GolinHarris as agency of record for IZOD IndyCar— in partnership with the Indy Racing League,” said Mike Kelly, executive vice president of marketing for Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation, owner of the IZOD trademark. “GolinHarris brings the perfect mix of skills as we seek to re-energize existing fans and grow into adjacent audience segments; top-notch media relations; longtime racing experience; big creative ideas to reach 18-34 year olds and other sports fans; and relationships with key brands both inside and outside of racing.”
About GolinHarris
Established in 1956, GolinHarris is a leading full-service public relations agency with 31 wholly owned offices located in the Americas, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East. We provide strategy and execution across practices such as consumer brand marketing, corporate communications, digital/social media, corporate social responsibility, healthcare, internal communications, multicultural communications, technology and public affairs. For more than 50 years, GolinHarris has created innovative and award-winning public relations programs that deliver results for clients such as BP, Dow Chemical Company, Florida Department of Citrus, Kaiser Permanente, McDonald’s, Nintendo of America Inc., Olympus, Orange, Texas Instruments, and Underwriters Laboratories. GolinHarris was recognized as PRWeek’s 2009 Global Agency Report Card Bronze Medal Winner and was named 2009 Asia Pacific PR Consultancy of Year and the 2008 International Consultancy of the Year by the PRCA. In addition, GolinHarris has been selected as one of the 2009 Best Places to Work For by The Holmes Group, Atlanta Business Chronicle, National Association of Business Resources, Sunday Times and Crain’s New York. The agency is headquartered in Chicago and is a subsidiary of the Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG). For more information, visit www.golinharris.com.
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
About IZOD and Phillips-Van Heusen Corporation
IZOD, one of the United States' best-known and best-selling apparel brands, 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. 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, MICHAEL Michael Kors, Sean John, Chaps, Donald J. Trump Signature Collection, JOE Joseph Abboud, Tommy Hilfiger, DKNY and Timberland. Visit www.pvh.com.