Procter & Gamble's Charmin brand has “signed a deal with Charlotte Motor Speedway to sponsor” the Sprint All-Star Race and Sprint Cup Coca-Cola 600 at the track, and as part of the deal the toilet paper brand “plans to hang banners outside the speedway and signs along pit road that tout Charmin Ultra Strong,” according to Tripp Mickle of SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL. The billboard-sized banners “will feature the backside of white, men’s briefs with tire skid marks down them.” One of the banners “will face the speedway’s fan zone outside Turn 1; the other will hang on the suite facade" facing the road that runs outside the track. Charmin’s deal also includes 45 "TV-visible signs along pit road during both races.” Financial terms of the deal were not available. The idea of promoting Charmin at a NASCAR race “came from the brand’s creative agency, Publicis Kaplan Thaler.” The creative team for Charmin’s Ultra Strong line “wanted to raise awareness of the brand’s reputation as a plush but strong product capable of preventing skid marks for children in the early stages of potty training.” They thought NASCAR, which “has a history of having drivers create skid marks to celebrate victories, offered a natural tie and a large fan base that would allow it to amplify its marketing message.” Meanwhile, CMS also “sold a sponsorship to Sun Products’ Snuggle and All laundry detergents.” The brands will provide “a tented ‘laundry’ lounge in the campground during the Sprint All-Star and Coca-Cola 600 race weekends” (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 5/6 issue).
