The relationships of home-improvement retailing "archrivals" Home Depot and Lowe's with NASCAR were examined by James Hagerty of the WALL STREET JOURNAL, who wrote that the companies "agree" that auto racing "revs up their customers," but "disagree" on which company has the more effective NASCAR ties. Lowe's said that it will "spend more than" $20M this year on "car sponsorship and related marketing," but official NASCAR sponsor Home Depot "cagily refuses to say how much it spends." Home Depot Senior VP/Advertising Dick Sullivan said that he "doesn't plan to outspend" Lowe's at the racetrack: "Hopefully, we'll outsmart them." Sullivan also said that Home Depot "was offered" naming rights to the former Charlotte Motor Speedway, but said that it would have been a "huge mistake" to accept. He "suggests that there is a backlash" against Lowe's "among fans who preferred" the old name. But Lowe's said it hasn't seen a backlash from the name deal. Lowe's Chair & CEO Robert Tillman said, "The typical Nascar fan that shops our store spends 25% more than the average customer does" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 3/17). FRIENDS IN LOWE PLACES: Lowe's will continue its sponsorship of the Richard Childress-owned Chevrolet driven by Mike Skinner in the Winston Cup series through 2002 (Raleigh NEWS & OBSERVER, 3/15). NC-based grocery chain Food Lion has "finalized" a two-year deal with Lowe's Motor Speedway to become the track's official supermarket and sponsor the track's auto fairs. Food Lion will also sponsor "Fan Trams," a service which transports fans from parking areas to tracks (CHARLOTTE BUSINESS JOURNAL, 3/12 issue). BRAKE FAST: Raybestos Brakes has inked a five-year extension of its NASCAR sponsorship, which designates the company as the "Official Brakes of NASCAR." The deal includes the Brutestop and PG Plus product lines (NASCAR)....NASCAR driver Jeff Burton has become the official spokesperson for Nanticoke Homes and will be featured in ads and promos. The Nanticoke logo will be on Burton's Jack Roush-owned Ford (WINSTON CUP SCENE, 3/18).
