Sherwin-Williams plans to begin marketing its official sponsorship of NASCAR in '14, company VP/Market Research & Design Karl Schmitt said today during a press conference to unveil the sponsorship. Schmitt said the company plans to spend this year getting "actively involved" in NASCAR and developing plans for marketing the sport across its 3,500 retail outlets next year. He added that the company will be using its position as the official paint of NASCAR to improve its business with do-it-yourself painters and wholesale buyers such as painting contractors, home builders and property managers.
As part of its deal, Sherwin-Williams received hospitality assets at tracks for several NASCAR races, and Schmitt says the company plans to bring the contractors, home builders and property managers out to those events. Schmitt said that the company plans to manage the success of the sponsorship, which was valued at $2M a year, by monitoring customers’ awareness of its connection with NASCAR and any increases in sales. Schmitt: “It’s one of those things we’ll learn over time – how best we measure this.”
