Welcome to Last Week’s Wins #23. Can you believe it is March 1st?!
WINNING QUOTE
“I made the most of my ability and I did the best with my title.” - Joe Louis, World Champion Boxer (Retired March 1, 1949)
TIKTOK PARTNERS WITH PORTLAND TIMBERS & THORNS
TikTok partnerships are becoming increasingly popular for brands who want to engage with the next generation of consumers and use that brand power to drive change in communities.
TikTok’s partnership with the men’s and women’s professional soccer teams in Portland (Timbers/Thorns) is a great example of this partnership power being used for good.
The impact of the deal is going far beyond TikTok’s jersey-sleeve logo placement.
The TikTok For Good Campaign is creating content with players from both teams. The clubs will also be allocating portions of jersey sales and TikTok designed scarves to local nonprofits and civil rights organizations like the Urban League of Portland.
Even Timber Joey, the Timbers’ fan club president, will receive a new uniform sporting the TikTok logo front and center.
“It will give us a unique ability to create and distribute content in collaboration with TikTok. We are very proud that TikTok chose our clubs as two of their first team sponsorship deals in the US.” - Mike Golub, President of Business, Portland Timbers & Thorns
“We strongly feel that gender equity in sports is crucial to changing perceptions and progressing for the better as a society.” - Harish Sarma, Director, Global Strategic Partnerships, Americas and Oceania, TikTok.
LYFTUP COLLABORATION TO PROVIDE FREE RIDES FOR VACCINES
Lyft is partnering with CVS Health, the YMCA, and several nonprofits to address universal vaccine access in low income communities.
The LyftUp initiative is a collaboration between community organizations, companies, and individuals that provides “affordable and reliable transportation.”
The partnership between various community stakeholders will directly fund rides as well as target a social media campaign among Black and Hispanic populations.
While this program is addressing issues with vaccine access, there will still be inadequacies in vaccine availability as well as vaccine hesitancy.
Other health-focused partnerships that began last week including Hyperice x LA Lakers and Lysol x Miami Marlins are working to engage audiences about health information. These partnerships can help inform the general public about what they can do to help create a cleaner and healthier society.
“46% of Lyft rides start or stop in low income communities.” - John Zimmer, co-founder and president of Lyft
"Our presence in communities across the country uniquely positions CVS Health to educate vulnerable populations and connect them with vaccine services." - Karen S. Lynch, president and CEO, CVS Health
NASCAR’S FIRST CARBON-NEUTRAL TEAM
Roush Fenway Racing (RFR) recently announced carbon neutrality throughout their entire organization from Jan. 1 - Dec. 31, 2020.
The NASCAR race team began collaborating with Castrol, a British liquid engineering and technology corporation, in 2019.
This partnership analyzes sustainable practices across all operations for the race team. Accountability partners help measure greenhouse gas emissions and are researching quality carbon offsets for operations.
In accordance with PAS 2060 international sustainability standards, RFR achieved carbon neutrality in all operations throughout 2020.
Castrol and RFR are creating a sustainable operating template that other race teams can use. A majority of teams already recycle around 90% of their race cars alongside other sustainable one-off initiatives. This partnership is creating opportunities for holistic sustainable business practices.
Castrol, as a key sponsor for the 2021 Cup Series, is supporting carbon neutrality in operations at all venues on the race calendar.
To honor the accomplishment, Ryan Newman’s #6 Ford rocked an all-white paint scheme in yesterday’s race in Daytona, where he finished 7th after starting the race 23rd.
Motorsport can help lead others in sports and entertainment towards sustainable practices. A clear example of sustainability in-action in other American sports includes the facility development for the Oakland Athletics “Howard Terminal” ballpark.
“Historically, those have really been just kind of one-off, disconnected projects. And through our partnership with Castrol, they brought to us this idea and this concept of ‘Have we looked at, holistically, evaluating our carbon footprint?’ and trying to figure out ways that we can reduce our carbon emissions and actually become carbon neutral. - Steve Newmark, President, Roush Fenway Racing
“At Castrol, we believe that small steps together can make a difference.” Rayne Pacek, Vice President of Marketing, Castrol
MISS THE LATEST W-W-W PODCAST? John Balkam and Eric Dorsey give their opinions on Sir Ronald Cohen’s Impact Revolution before John interviews Megan Perry, Executive Director of Women’s Initiatives at Sports Innovation Lab. The two break down The Fan Project, a new initiative that aims to use fans’ social media data to increase investment in Women’s Sports.
MISS JOHN BALKAM’S LATEST BLOG POST? “In the near future, there will be no distinction between entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs. We will no longer need to segregate investors and impact investors. What seem like meaningful qualifiers today will soon be absolute.”