LVMH’s publicity in Olympics ceremony raises eyebrows

LVMH’s excessive profile and highly considered product placement within the Paris Games opening ceremony stunned advertising and marketing specialists and raises the probability it might maybe most likely maybe maybe dwelling off concerns for the Global Olympic Committee with their lengthy-time duration sponsors.

The world’s ideal luxury crew has eked all the pieces conceivable out of a partnership with the IOC which cost LVMH a reported 150 million euros ($163 million) when it used to be agreed in 2023.

What items the Olympics other than totally different events is that its stadia are free from promoting.

The uniforms worn by the French crew at Friday’s opening ceremony were designed by LVMH, despite the incontrovertible truth that on account of the heavy rain they were largely lined by ponchos.

Nonetheless, their branding used to be clearly on articulate on their trademark trunks and suitcases in one segment of the ceremony.

Other than that, at this Olympics LVMH made the trunk for the torches, the medal bearers will be dressed in outfits designed by the crew and both the medals and their presentation trays are created by them.

The world publicity might maybe maybe maybe not reach at a closer time for the crew after they announced earlier this week their half-year get income slid 14 p.c.

Michael Payne, a outdated head of IOC advertising and marketing who used to be credited with overhauling its ticket and finances thru sponsorship, says that whereas LVMH’s partnership with the IOC for the Paris Olympics has been “bewitching”, he thinks they got a “extensive free ad” at the outlet ceremony.

Payne says it might maybe most likely maybe maybe upset the IOC’s 15 TOP partners — who not like LVMH are tied in for several Games at principal expense. He himself helped realized the programme and he advises several of the TOP partners.

All over the final quadrennial, they accounted for roughly 30 p.c of the IOC’s $7.6 billion income.

“I belief the ceremony used to be spectacular,” Payne informed AFP on Saturday.

“The direction of classy sponsor product placement might maybe maybe additionally not be disagreeable nonetheless wants exceptionally careful administration.

“LVMH got an enormous free world ad final night and totally different partners are all going to be asking, how did that work?”

He stated the IOC’s totally different partners might maybe maybe maybe effectively be asking “why were we skipped over and given no probability to imply concepts or even had them rejected?”

“LVMH partnership seemingly is correct form — nonetheless at your ache don’t gather caught being unfair with your lengthy-standing world partners,” stated Payne.

Ricardo Citadel, the founder of Sport by Citadel Consulting and a outdated sponsorship executive for Visa and Coca-Cola, solid an admiring private a look at LVMH’s ceremony publicity.

“I will be capable to’t be conscious in an Global Olympic Committee – IOC Opening Ceremony a branded second love Louis Vuitton at the moment time in Paris. Their trunks were an integral allotment of the memoir,” he stated on social media.

The manager organiser of the Paris Olympics, Tony Estanguet, stated he had no qualms with the LVMH segment.

“We are very proud to private LVMH as a accomplice and they also’ve contributed to the success of Paris 2024,” he informed a press conference on Saturday, adding the crew had “in fact sold into our ambition of organising this ceremony within the metropolis.”

‘Clear venue’

Terrence Burns, any other outdated IOC advertising and marketing executive, says the Olympics would lose its queer allure if promoting used to be licensed.

“The perfect venue is basically the most extra special instance of the Olympics’ real differentiation,” he informed AFP.

“The perfect venue affords an arena that is freed from psychological or industrial intrusion.”

Which begs the demand what the TOP partners gather out of their partnership if their manufacturers will not be considered at the stadia, nonetheless Payne says it is straightforward.

“Right here’s why the Olympics is totally different from all over the build else. You’re not buying publicity,” stated Payne.

“When you are buying at the World Cup, maybe 50% of your fee is allocated to the marketing across the stadium.

“What you are buying is an association with the Olympic ticket and all the pieces it stands for. It buys you national depth because you then turn out to be a accomplice of the 200-plus Olympic groups.”

Payne recalled how issues were very totally different at the 1996 opening ceremony in Atlanta when he took horrifying measures to stop ambush promoting.

“I broke real into a McDonald’s restaurant to flip off the electricity to pull down the extensive M signal,” he stated.

“They’d positioned it front and centre of where every crew needed to march in.

“It took me till I say Djibouti marching in to break in. The employees member stated, we will gather arrested.

“I stated, we’re all going to gather arrested within the event you don’t flip that gentle off!”

Payne says a steadiness desires to be struck when it involves Olympics and branding.

“That it is seemingly you’ll maybe maybe not flip the Olympics real into an enormous product placement exercise, that you might fully assassinate the logo,” he stated.

Offer: AFP