NYRR Rebrands Itself With New Logo, Year-Long Sponsor Commitment

The N.Y. Road Runners have “decided to rebrand themselves,” and the organization today will unveil a "new logo, a redesigned Web site and a manifesto, all intended to capture the evolving role and spirit” of the club, according to Ken Belson of the N.Y. TIMES. The organization hopes that the “overhaul conveys their broader goals to their members, donors and business partners.” Instead of “signing up sponsors based on specific events,” NYRR President & CEO Mary Wittenberg “hopes businesses sponsor the Road Runners throughout the year because they want to be associated with the club’s broader health and wellness campaign.” Wittenberg said that the NYRR “have been working for about 18 months with the brand communications specialists Doublespace on the project, which she said cost ‘less than seven figures.’” Belson reports the “heart of the rebranding” is the organization’s new tagline, “Run for life.” The apple logo that has surrounded a runner “for more than three decades has been cast aside in favor of a runner striding between the Y and R in NYRR.” In “far smaller type size, the words New York Road Runners are written below the runner and the group’s initials.” This will allow the abbreviation NYRR “to take a more prominent role.” Wittenberg said that the "words New York Road Runners could disappear entirely” eventually (N.Y. TIMES, 10/31).