The Atlanta Braves have signed a naming-rights deal with Delta Air Lines for the parking lot closest to
Turner Field’s main entrance.
It is the first time in major league sports that an airline has branded a parking lot, according to the Braves’ research, said Derek Schiller, the team’s executive vice president of sales and marketing.
The three-year agreement for the Delta Medallion Lot, a deal valued in the low to mid-six figures annually, is tied to the airline’s SkyMiles frequent-flier program. The lot’s 600 spaces are reserved for Delta customers compiling 25,000 frequent-flier miles every year, the minimum number required to reach Medallion status. Those who qualify to park in the special lot will have to pay the parking fee of $830 for a season pass, an average of about $10 a game over the course of an 81-game season. For those paying for individual games, the cost is $10 in advance and $12 at the lot.
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GETTY IMAGES
A 600-space lot near Turner Field will become the Delta Medallion Lot. |
Within the Medallion Lot, 150 reserved spots are part of an upgrade called the Preferred Valet program. The $1,500 season pass covers valet parking in a guaranteed space, a VIP exit lane and occasional premium gifts provided by the Braves, Schiller said. For 81 games, that’s an average of about $18.50 a game. That portion of the lot is not available for single games, said
Beth Marshall, a Braves spokeswoman.
Delta has been one of the Braves’ major sponsors dating to 1966, the year the club moved to Atlanta from Milwaukee. At that time, Delta became the team’s official airline, and it has supplied the team’s charter flights to road games for the past 45 seasons.
In addition, Delta has extensive branding inside Turner Field. The airline has a sign in left field by the out-of-town scoreboard, and last year it expanded that deal to include the Delta Sky360 Lounge, part of the 24,000-square-foot 755 Club on the Golden Moon Casino Level.
The Braves approached Delta to brand the old Green Lot, north of the stadium across Hank Aaron Drive, where old Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium once stood. A large overhead marquee and street pole banners containing Delta’s marks will distinguish the lot from others around the ballpark.
“It’s a great way to differentiate one of the best lots we have,” Schiller said.
SMELL THE ROSES: Dick Sherwood, founder and president of Front Row Marketing, announced he is retiring from the company July 1.
Sherwood, 64, started Front Row in February 1998 after splitting off from the old Network International, a sports marketing firm that was part of SMG. In March 2001, Sherwood sold Front Row to Comcast-Spectacor in Philadelphia.
Since that time, Front Row, a firm specializing in selling sponsorships and premium seats for sports facilities in secondary and college markets, has seen its business grow from $1.5 million to $35 million in yearly gross sales, Sherwood said.
About 70 percent of its business is tied to deals in venues where its sister company Global Spectrum runs the buildings, he said. The remaining 30 percent are deals independent of Comcast-Spectacor relationships.
Sherwood’s 40 years in sports business include past jobs with the U.S. Soccer Federation and the old GD/T Sports Marketing, where he sold corporate sponsorships for the PGA Senior Tour and the National Long Drive Championship.
Sherwood is working with Comcast-Spectacor executives Peter Luukko and John Page to find his successor.
K.C. CONFIDENTIAL: College sports designer Nate Appleman’s swift move from Populous to 360 Architecture came as a surprise to his old employer in Kansas City.
In the home of sports architecture, where news travels fast when one designer decides to move from one company to another, both Appleman and 360 officials were able to keep a lid on the move up to the moment Feb. 10 when Appleman told his boss, Scott Radecic, he was joining 360.
“I turned in my resignation in the morning and started here at 1 p.m.,” Appleman said.
Appleman, 36, joins 360 after 14 years at Populous.
“Scott served as my mentor throughout my entire career,” he said. “To Populous’ credit, they treated me like a guy who had been family for a long time. There was no harsh treatment.”
Don Muret can be reached at dmuret@sportsbusinessjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @breakground.
