It is great to talk with the companies that bring the race equipment into the UK market and hearing their positive news. Despite the very troubling times the sport is experiencing at the moment, to hear that one of the leading brands in the UK is looking to expand their links with clubs and athletes, is great to hear. Rossignol have had a strong presence over the last few years with the Rossignol camps run by Team Evolution and also growing a strong pool of racers using the brand, racers like World Cup racer Charlie Raposo and rising talent Owen Vinter.
Rob Birrell is the Marketing Manager for Rossignol in the UK and he explained to Racer Ready that they are looking to expand their presence amongst the clubs and racers. “We are really keen to continue promoting the Rossignol brand across the race circuit, we are keen to follow up on our Racer Ready award (for best sponsorship campaign) and to continue to give back in terms of supporting events, the championships and the athletes as much as we can.”
“To that end we have seen some great athletes join the brand, like Charlie Raposo and Owen Vinter who have now moved through on to direct factory support from Rossignol France. We are now keen to grow that pool of athletes further and to that extent we are inviting people to be part of the Rossignol UK team and have the support that our business is able to offer,” Birrell continued.
Birrell is keen to add that while the racers race results are important but it is also important in the modern day, that the athletes social media presence is also strong and clean. “We are looking for people who are committed to the sport, we are looking for people who are performing well and we are looking for people who will represent the brand as we would like to be seen.”
With support very much a two way thing, support for racers is not just what suppliers can do for the racer but what the racer can do for the supplier. Racers need to think about this when posting on social media in terms of pictures and words.
Birrell explains that “we are really keen to support people but as a brand we also need to see that support coming back to us. We are keen to do as much as we can for people but we would like to see people not only represent the brand in training and at races but also sharing through their own social media platforms any interview opportunities that they have with magazines and newspapers.” Giving supporters a ‘good keen shout out’ is something that Birrell is keen to see racers do.
While the individual support of athletes is great to see, Rossignol have worked very closely with Team Evolution in running Rossignol Camps through the summer. This is something that Rossignol are keen to expand to other training groups. “We currently have a very strong relationship with Team Evolution where we run the ‘Rossignol presents’ summer camps and these have been really successful for us and Team Evolution. We would be keen as we go forward into the new season and beyond to expand that relationship to other camps where we can offer staff to come and support those. We can offer test pools, prizes of equipment to the athletes.”
Rossignol have recognised the power of presence and at Bormio this year they took out skis that were also aimed at the parents. This selection of skis were very popular with the parents and saw the skis out being used for the majority of the time. “Bormio is an amazing event and as far as I am concerned it is one of the best events on the British calendar,” Birrell was keen to say. “It has been a really strong relationship for us and we love that event,” he continued.
The tourism market may be the larger element of the winter sports market but Rossignol are respectful of the place that racing has in the grand scheme of things. By catching the loyalty of the racer at a young age, the years after the racer moves into the recreational skier market, the loyalty will be repaid.