In packing for the Winter Olympics, Canadian entrepreneur Domenico Ciarallo "stuffed his bags with hats and t-shirts bearing the logo of his company, which makes locker-room dryers," according to Liana Baker of REUTERS. However, he is "wary when handing them out to any Olympians." He said, "The athletes put them in their bag right away but they know that they can’t wear these here because you can get caught not wearing official team merchandise." Ciarallo's Montreal-based Rocket Sport is "among a group of companies, big and small, trying to grab attention at the Pyeongchang Games without infringing on official Olympic sponsors." They also include Apple, camera maker GoPro and Under Armour, which have been "looking for cracks in the IOC's sponsorship wall." Bruin Sports Capital marketing expert David Abrutyn said, "Guerrilla marketing tactics around large-scale events like the Olympic Games are more comprehensive and complex than ever." An IOC spokesperson said, "The IOC and its partners in the Olympic movement take the threat of ambush marketing very seriously." But guerrilla marketing "can still find legitimate opportunities." Brewer Red Stripe "took its golden opportunity" when Jamaica's women's bobsled team "suddenly parted ways" with its coach. Red Stripe gave it the funds to carry on, "earning global news coverage." But the firm "still had to be careful." It created Twitter hashtags #RedstripeToTheRescue and #SleighAllDay, which "skirted its link to the team and made no reference to the Games." Under Armour also helped Nigeria's women bobsledders, "outfitting them and making a documentary ahead of Pyeongchang about the first bobsledders to represent an African country" (REUTERS, 2/20).
