SBJ Marketing: MLB slathers on Banana Boat for sunscreen category

Words of wisdom: “You can’t let praise or criticism get to you. It’s a mistake to get caught up in either.” -- John Wooden

With temperatures in the East still deciding between late winter and early spring, working up any zeal for the stateside version of Opening Day has been challenging. However, MLB’s newest corporate sponsor is one that brings with it the promise of sunshine and temperateness: Banana Boat sun block.

Last week, email marketing blasts, complete with MLB marks, were circulating, with a push for an initial “Fun In the Field Rituals” sweepstakes promotion -- indicative of a sponsorship pact. The sweeps dangled a top prize of a “trip for two to an MLB regular-season game of your choice and experience the fun rituals up close!” Detailed rules were posted on MLB.com.

Certainly, the category represents a nice seasonal match for MLB and gives it some credit for finding dollars in what seems to be a dormant category.

There are scattered athlete endorsements across the category, but the last Banana Boat sports sponsorship of consequence appears to have been motorsports deals with Chip Ganassi teams in both NASCAR and IndyCar more than a decade ago. Coppertone, a rival brand within the Beiersdorf AG stable, had “official skin care” rights with both U.S. Soccer and the NWSL starting in 2015, but those lapsed. L’Oreal’s La Roche-Posay brand has invested heavily in tennis, including event deals for the U.S. Open, Miami Open, BNP Paribas Open and Mubadala Citi DC Open, as well as player deals with Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe and Madison Keys.

Given the increasing concern around kids’ exposure to UV rays, a Little League deal would make sense here (those rights are also sold by MLB). Hmmmm.

The Banana Boat brand is owned by Edgewell Personal Care, a $2.2 billion personal-care conglomerate, which owns quite a number venerable health and beauty aid brands, including Schick, Wilkinson Sword and Edge. MLB has been without a razor sponsor since Gillette, then its most venerable corporate patron, departed in 2018. Other Edgewell brands include Playtex, Stayfree and Wet Ones.

Sources tell me that Horizon Sports and Experiences negotiated the MLB deal and will do the activation, but the agency was mum on the subject.

Most research firms say sun protection/skin care is a healthy market. Grand View Research estimated the U.S. market size at $14.35 billion in 2023, and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 6.1% from 2024 to 2030.

Change that lunch order, please.

It was reported here last week was that Subway was exiting as an NFL league sponsor and that the league was talking to fellow Inspire Brand QSR Jimmy John’s about taking those rights.

Subsequent reporting tells me that Jersey Mike’s will be the sandwich emerging with NFL rights.

Upon closer examination, the chain with 3,050+ U.S. locations seems more apt. It has the resources, having sold a majority interest to Blackstone for $8 billion late last year. The brand also has been slowly working its way up the sponsorship, er, sandwich chain, starting with colleges, where it now has more than 40 NCAA schools and a four-year-old naming-rights deal for the basketball arena at Rutgers.

In 2023, Jersey Mike’s signed its first league-level designation with the NHL, becoming its “official sub sandwich.” Jersey Mike’s has been motivated by camera-visible signage, which would help explain why they’ve used Van Wagner’s signage expertise while buttressing their sponsorship portfolio.

Certainly, that strategy will have to change with NFL rights. Sources tell me agencies are already lining up. Assume the RFP will ask how best to integrate NFL rights with actor Danny DeVito, who came on as the chain’s first celeb endorser three years ago.

I’ll also be curious to see if a new sandwich deal portends a cross-promotion with fellow NFL corporate sponsor Uber Eats. The NFL’s other restaurant sponsors are Little Caesars and Applebee’s.

WinCraft President John Killen is moving out of day-to-day operating responsibilities after 36 years with the licensed hard-goods company based in Winona, Minn. The move comes four-and-a-half years after Fanatics acquired the company.

Killen will transition to senior adviser with Fanatics Brands. “I’ll be involved with strategic initiatives, larger accounts, league priorities.”

He recalled that since he joined WinCraft, employee count has mushroomed from 42 to 637 workers and the company facility has expanded to around 500,000 square feet. “We did $11 million a year in sales [when I started],” Killen laughed. “Now, that’s what we do in an OK month.”

Killen’s responsibilities will be split between VP and Head of Sales Robert Gas and GM Derek Horvath, who will head operations.

• The Twins have a multiyear deal with Progressive Insurance for naming rights to their Twins.tv service, reports SBJ’s Mike Mazzeo.
• Dairy Queen renewed its MLB league sponsorship, along with accompanying rights to Little League Baseball and Softball.
• Under Armour has returned to the NFL fold four years after a companywide marketing retrenchment, signing a new long-term, on-field licensing deal to allow players to wear Under Armour branded gloves and shoes while playing, reports SBJ’s Ben Fischer.
• The Hornets and Novant Health reached an agreement on an extended deal that makes the Winston-Salem based health-care provider the naming rights sponsor for the soon-to-be under-construction Novant Health Performance Center, reports SBJ’s Bret McCormick.
• Bet365 will put its name on an all-inclusive outfield seating deck at Busch Stadium and air spots on Cardinals radio broadcasts as part of a sponsorship designed to introduce the brand in advance of the rollout of legal sports betting in Missouri later this year, notes SBJ’s Bill King.