Corporations Welcome China Open Marketing opportunities

Corporate sponsors of the China Open view the event as a rare and welcome opportunity to advance their business interests in China.

"We are taking this very seriously," said Jerome Bachasson, North Asia representative for Paris-headquartered La Chemise Lacoste. "There will be a large delegation from our corporate offices in France, including our Chairman Bernard Lacoste and Philippe Lacoste, a company spokeman and grandson of the company's founder Rene Lacoste."

Brenda Lee, public affairs/communications director for Coca-Cola (China) Beverages Ltd. of Shanghai said, "Sports marketing is very important for Coca-Cola's overall marketing strategy in China. We sponsor a lot of international events such as the World Cup (of soccer), the Olympics and the National Basketball Association.

"The China Open is a very good opportunity for us because of the growing popularity of tennis in China. And now, with the victory of Li Ting and Sun Tiantian in Athens and with the upcoming Beijing Olympic Games, the passion of the Chinese view of tennis will grow further."

Tony Tai, marketing director for IBM's Greater China Group, said, "We know the people organizing the China Open and we know it is going to be a meaningful event."

Tai said IBM will send a large corporate contingent to view the games, including IBM's Director of Sports Sponsorships Rick Singer.

Bachasson said Lacoste, a sponsor of the Chinese Tennis Association's juniors programme, will use the event to promote recognition of the Lacoste brand, to foster its relations with customers and suppliers, and to interact directly with customers and potential customers in China.

"Business is a dance; in Asia you don't necessarily get a [business] decision sitting around a conference table in a hotel. We have found that if you put the right conditions in place, good things will happen.

"The China Open gives us a chance to make things happen in a very casual and nice way."

Bachasson said Lacoste provides tennis clothing and training to China's juniors. Two of China's top juniors were sent to France to study in a summer camp in 2004 and two more will be sent in 2005.

At the China Open, Lacoste plans to provide 5,000 free tickets to selected children from ten of Beijing schools, which means 200-300 children a day will get a chance to see the world's top tennis stars. But some will get a closer view than others.

"About 100 of those children will get a chance to visit the player's locker rooms and meet the top stars at the event."

Lee said Coca-Cola will offer promotional items and activities, including free tickets, at the China Open, but she said Coca-Cola's main focus in the run-up to the event was on "organizing for the event."

She said, "We were not involved in the original discussions about this event, but we believe it's a good opportunity. We strongly believe the China Open will become another national and international focus in the future.

"And we want to reinforce the uplifting nature of this healthy event and lifestyle and associate it with our products, particularly Coca-Cola Light brand."

Speaking at the launch of IBM's newest ThinkCentre S50 product line at the Jade Palace Hotel (Cuigong Fandian) in Beijing, China Open Tournament Director Lincoln Venancio said, "Our cooperation with IBM is a true partnership. They are very experienced in this kind of thing and we value their help."

Tai said IBM is a major sponsor of the tennis world's four biggest events, Wimbledon, the US Open, the French and the Australian opens, along with several ATP men's professional tennis events.

"The question is: How do you provide information our customers need in real time?

"As a tournament goes on, the volume of the public's requests for information increases. People want more information about the event and they want to interact with the players. At the same time, participating in these kinds of partnerships gives us a chance to show our customers what we can do in a real-world kind of way."

For the corporate world, the China Open sports marketing opportunity came relatively suddenly.

Bachasson said, "We first heard about this in January, but we did not hesitate to recognize the opportunity the China Open has provided for us. We are very experienced in this area, and we know this is a very serious event."

International events such as the French Open and the tennis Master's Cup series events in Shanghai and Houston, Texas, in the United States have benefited from Lacoste's commitment to top-flight tennis, but also regional events such as Spain's Master's Series and the Heineken Open in Shanghai since the late 1990s.

Lacoste, famed for its famous crocodile logo, was founded by Davis Cup champion Rene Lacoste and knitwear manufacturer Andre Gillier in 1933. The company's association with sport is inherent. As examples, prior to marrying Rene Lacoste, Simone Lacoste (Simone de la Chaume) won the British women's golf title in 1927. Their daughter Catherine was the first and only amateur champion of the U.S. Women's Open golf championship 1967. Lacoste's current CEO Bernard Lacoste is active in sports marketing associations and spoke about Lacoste's activities in China at the 4th World Sports Forum in Laussane, Switzerland, in 2002.

On and off the court, the players Lacoste has sponsored, including Sebastien Grosjean, Patricia Lebouc, Richard Gasquet, Colin Montgomerie, Bernhard Langer, Younes El Aynaoui and Emilie Loit are reminded that they represent not only the corporation known as La Chemise Lacoste, but the Lacoste family tradition of high-level involvement in high-quality sports activity and achievement.

Bachasson said, "We want to convey the spirit of sport, fair play, and elegance. It is good for us to continually associate our brand with tennis and especially the China Open."

Tai said he first heard about the China Open last spring, but he said deciding whether to participate in the China Open was not difficult for IBM.

"China is a focus of IBM, and our people understand sport. The only thing I had to explain was why we should focus on this sport, tennis, and this event at this time, but even that wasn't very difficult. I'm so glad we did it in such a short time."

Tai said IBM experts will be on hand during the games to back up China Open staffers who will handle the event's communications.

In addition to Lacoste, Coca-Cola Light and IBM, announced major sponsors of the China Open include: Sohu.com, Emma Tickets, Avon, CCTV-5, Mercedes Benz, Panasonic, Rado, the Shangri-La Hotel, Beijing Chateau, Tsing Tao Beer.

For their participation, corporate sponsors of the China Open will get access to 24 box seats daily on the first tier of the new Beijing Tennis Centre at centre court - some with access to the stadium's VIP corporate suites -- and the rest of the Open's venue; access for 24 to the VIP corporate lounge adjacent to the tennis centre and a complimentary 5-star buffet meal prepared by the chefs of the Shangri-La Hotel (the host hotel of the China Open); six complimentary parking spaces on the tennis-centre grounds; and snacks and beverages that will be served in the VIP corporate suites.

Venancio, who also serves as managing director of Media Serv Asia Pacific Limited said, "The China Open is going to be first class. Our corporate sponsors will be allowed to decorate their own suites so they can express themselves in the way they want.

"I think the quality is going to be as good as any place in the world, a great place to spend time with corporate or government partners."