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American LeMans
ALMS: Patrón Signs As Presenting Sponsor
Tequila Patrón and the American Le Mans Series sign a 3-year deal that will see the spirits company become the series' presenting sponsor.
Marshall Pruett  |  Posted February 22, 2010   Sebring, FL

After spending its first ten years without a major corporate backer to include in the American Le Mans Series’ masthead, Tequila Patrón will stand alongside the storied sportscar series as its first major sponsor in the newly re-named “American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón.”
A non-automotive presenting sponsor is an encouraging step for the ALMS. (John Dagys)

Speaking with ALMS CEO Scott Atherton, he was decidedly bullish about what the tie-up with Tequila Patrón means for the series.

“I’d say that we are blessed. At a time when most people are not able to announce such things, to be able to not just announce placeholders -- somebody that we gave it away to just so we could say we have the presenting sponsor -- but you have one of the most iconic premium brands in the world that is linking their brand to the American Le Mans Series and making a three-year commitment at a very significant level. I think the Patrón announcement is going to send a shockwave around the industry.”

The ALMS gained notoriety for its heavy auto manufacturer involvement, and the financial backing of everyone from Audi to Acura in recent years provided the foundation of the series’ corporate underwriting. But with the car industry falling on hard times since mid-2008, their levels of funding have spiraled downwards at an alarming rate. Atherton agreed that with the signing of Patrón, the series achieved a level of commercial validation it had lacked from non-automotive commercial partners.

“I believe what this does is provide a level of validation that can't be achieved any other way. We've been blessed from the beginning to have outstanding involvement with auto manufacturers, tire manufactures, and the like. In more recent times we have diversified away from that and what we have achieved with Patrón is one of those textbook examples of bringing someone in at a relatively modest level and demonstrating to them the value of the platform. And clearly providing a return on investment that has been seen as acceptable at a minimum, if not admirable, and growing that relationship from within.”

Atherton said that the model by which Patrón’s involvement in the ALMS has been expanded year by year is something he hopes other non-automotive sponsors will find attractive.

“The example we have in Tequila Patrón is just that. They started somewhat modestly, although in a prominent way, as a team sponsor at first and that quickly grew to also include a series involvement [in the Patrón GT3 Cup series], albeit at a very modest level in a category that frankly at the time we didn't have anyone else participating, so we saw it all as incremental. And over time you've seen their involvement continue to grow and expand. This is the ultimate achievement in terms of the hierarchy of corporate partners and sponsorship is to have either a name and title or in this case a ‘presenting’ sponsor.”

Adequately describing the differences in dollars and promotional efforts between a presenting sponsor and a title sponsor these days would take a degree in marketing to fully grasp, but Atherton insists that while one level higher on the sponsorship ladder still exists, Patrón’s ‘presented by’ status doesn’t diminish their overall involvement.

“This is one rung from the very highest echelon for us, which would be a true name and title where [the American Le Mans Series] would not have any reference – potentially, if this was a full name and title it would have been the Tequila Patrón Le Mans Series, in this case it's ‘Presented by’ – so there still is one vacancy within that category that we still intend to fill. Yet with Tequila Patrón, we have a marketing partner that has a proven track record of activating their involvement at a very high level, very much focused on retail, outbound promotional marketing coming into race markets and truly making an impact that not just affects their retail sales but provides a level of awareness and ideally driving new fans and spectators to our events. So this alliance we have is truly going to benefit all of our constituents, all of our stakeholders.”

Matt Carroll, chief marketing officer for the Patrón Spirits Company, told SPEEDtv.com that further establishing itself in the world of sportscar racing is the tequila brand’s first move.

“The number one priority is to preach to the sportscar choir. I think the American Le Mans racing league is a premier racing league when it comes to motorsports. I think it relates to our consumer a little bit more when you've got the Porsches and the Ferraris and the BMWs and the cars out there that they could be driving on the road as well. So I think this is a good relationship and a good translation of that. I think of the ALMS fan as an elite consumer, and a very knowledgeable customer. They appreciate fine machinery as well as fine products. We are a high-end tequila, of the highest quality. So there's a really good fit there.”
Sponsoring Scott Sharp's two-car Ferrari team is also a major addition for the tequila brand in 2010. Altogether, 5 cars will carry their colors this year. (John Dagys)

The Tequila Patrón colors have been seen in a number of racing series, but Carroll said choosing to focus solely on the ALMS from 2010 to 2012 was an easy decision.

“We've dabbled in NASCAR and we've dabbled in the Indy Racing League but the American Le Mans Series is more user friendly to the sponsors, I believe, and to the consumers. You don't have to buy a special ticket to go to the paddock. You can meet the drivers, you can touch and feel everything. It's not an elitist sport where you have to have the VIP access to get up close and personal. So on that end, as far as the synergy of the league it's just a perfect fit for us. I think there is great value in our relationship. On the other end, the series is growing, every year they’re showing more and more, a stronger fan base. SPEED’s coverage has been very good to us, and that's growing every year.”

Carroll wouldn’t be drawn as to the full plans for implementing their marketing efforts this year, but he did hint at a strong in-person promotional focus.

“We're taking the cars to a party at the W. Hotel in South Beach, we sponsor Extreme Speed Motorsports team -- they have two hot new Ferraris -- so those will be on display and hopefully that will bring, pique an interest in Florida with the Sebring race coming up. So we try to do some off-track marketing to enhance the brand with these high-performance luxury automobiles out there in the trade.”

In addition to the two ESM Ferraris, Patrón will continue to back Highcroft Racing in LMP2, and two GT Challenge-class Porsches, fielded by Alex Job Racing and Velox Motorsports.

Beyond their sponsorship of the series and a number of cars, the Long Beach and Mazda Raceways Laguna Seca ALMS round will carry the Tequila Patrón name as a presenting partner.

How Patrón’s heavy involvement with the series will impact their individual racing team sponsorships remains to be seen, but at least for the next three years, the ALMS will have a prime opportunity to use their partnership with Tequila Patrón to expand their corporate base to new heights.

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