Category: Press Release

Join Our Webinar – we’ll teach you how to get the right sponsorship 19th June, 2015

At Slingshot Sponsorship we’ve already helped dozens of companies find the right commercial partners. Whether it’s to help them grow, reach a bigger audience, or simply make a project a success, there’s one common theme: we find clients the right, long-term partners.

At the root of it, that’s what Slingshot Sponsorship does differently.

To get there, our clients normally go through our intensive Bootcamp. But we want more businesses and individuals to benefit from the Slingshot approach.

So, working with our friends at Monkfeet, we’re launching our first webinar.

Looking from the perspectives of both attracting and proposing sponsorship, we’ll take you through:

Tricks and tips for making the most of sponsorship opportunities
How to form valuable marketing and marketing partnerships
Understanding your proposition
How to write a sponsorship proposal
How to navigate the sponsorship sales process

This 55-minute online course might be the best £25 you’ll ever spend. Book now!

We’re also hosting in-person, in-depth sponsorship workshops at Monkfeet: take a look at our courses.

Snozone appoints Slingshot Sponsorship to reinvent its commercial strategy 12th June, 2015

Snozone, the indoor Snowsports destination and unique training ground for skiing and snowboarding has announced the appointment of Slingshot Sponsorship as its commercial partner to recruit fresh, like-minded brand partners across events, sponsorship and hospitality.

Slingshot Sponsorship will work with Snozone to evolve their commercial strategy reflecting Snozone’s brand values and vision.

Elena Kale, Snozone’s Group Commercial manager said:

‘We are delighted to have Slingshot on board as our commercial partner. We’re convinced Slingshot will add to the continued success of growing our brand and taking us into new markets, inspiring a whole new audience for whom Snowsports can be their sport of choice.

We’re open 364 day a year and we believe Snowsports should be accessible to everyone regardless of their ability- all year round– and not just seen as a seasonal activity. We are firmly committed to position Snowsports as truly a sport for all.’

Jackie Fast, MD at Slingshot Sponsorship, said:

“Snozone is an exciting property in the market and illustrates how more organisations are utilising sponsorship to not only increase their bottom line, but also how partnerships can be facilitated across a business to amplify other core business activities. We can’t wait to start developing these types of partnerships across the business.”

Slingshot Sponsorship Appointed as Sponsorship Agency for Wales Rally GB 2015 29th October, 2014

The UK round of the world’s leading Rally Championship, Wales Rally GB, has appointed Slingshot Sponsorship as their dedicated sponsorship agency for the 2015s event. With only two weeks to go until Wales Rally GB 2014, the routes are being cleared across various locations in North Wales for the climax of this year’s Championship.

The FIA World Rally Championship comprises rounds in 13 different countries around the world and covers four continents in 11 months, culminating with a Champion Driver and Champion Manufacturer at the end of the season. Widely regarded as one of the most challenging motor sport competitions on the planet, the UK leg takes place in the forests and parks of mid and North Wales, providing the sternest test of both man and machine.

As well as the popular forest stages, the rally weekend will feature a whole host of additional events for ticket holders, ranging from the brand new family friendly Service Park in Deeside as well as Spectator Stages at Chirk Castle and Kinmel Park. More that 70,000 attendees will enjoy day long entertainment, catering and big screens in celebration of the Rally.

Ben Taylor, Managing Director, Wales Rally GB stated “We have big plans for the development of Wales Rally GB in the coming years and we are delighted to have identified Slingshot Sponsorship as the perfect sponsorship agency our event. We will be working collaboratively to establish Wales Rally GB – known as the ‘Rally of Legends’ – as one of the prominent sporting events in the UK calendar.”

Integrated and tailored in its approach, Slingshot Sponsorship has evolved as an agency to develop and deliver inspired partnership opportunities for high profile clients.

Jackie Fast, Managing Director, Slingshot Sponsorship explains “Wales Rally GB stands as one of the premier motor sport events in the world – working with the event is a very exciting opportunity for us to showcase the commercial potential of this platform.”

Sponsorship opportunities for the Wales Rally GB 2015 are currently available.

Slingshot Sponsorship Wins Best British Small Business in the O2 Smarta 100 6th October, 2014

Smarta.com and O2 Business present the UK’s 100 most dynamic and innovative small businesses

Smarta.com and O2 Business proudly announce that Slingshot Sponsorship is a winner of the 2014 O2 Smarta 100, the ultimate index of the UK’s savviest, supremely disruptive, most resourceful and socially-beneficial small businesses.

The O2 Smarta 100 awards celebrates new UK tech powerhouses like Squawka, Rant & Rave and Pact Coffee, as much as those dedicated to changing thousands of lives for the better – Two Fingers Brewing Co, whose profits go in full to prostate cancer research.

In total, 2014’s Smarta 100 are generating revenues of over £70million a year and employing more than 640 people. More than a quarter are female-run businesses and half are self-funded, with just 5% borrowing from a bank. 35% have taken angel, private equity or VC funding. The oldest company founder is 56; the two youngest are just teenagers at 19.

Commenting on their inclusion in the Smarta 100, Slingshot Sponsorship’s Managing Director Jackie Fast said:

We are absolutely thrilled to be part of the Smarta 100 list this year. It’s fantastic that our specialist work in helping organisations commercialise through sponsorship is being recognised by the larger business community. Even just being judged by such an esteemed panel from businesses that we find truly inspiring including Naked Wines and Ella’s Kitchen is an honour in itself, and winning is just that much better!

Jackie Fast is also up for the Young Female Entrepreneur Award at the Smarta100 through a public vote.

Discover more business stories and to vote for Jackie Fast under the Young Female Entrepreneur Award category please visit: www.smarta.com/smarta100

Slingshot’s MD Jackie Fast named as one of UK’s Hottest Entrepreneurs Aged 35 or Under 15th September, 2014

Growing Business today names its 12^th annual list of the entrepreneurs aged 35 or under behind 30 of the UK’s brightest companies.

Jackie Fast, MD of Slingshot Sponsorship, has been named one of the UK’s most outstanding entrepreneurs aged 35 or under, revealed today in Growing Business’ Young Guns ‘Class of 2014′.

Recognised at an awards luncheon held at the prestigious Kensington Roof Gardens, this year’s crop is made up of 54 entrepreneurs behind 30 of the country’s fastest-growing firms. The Class of 2014 join an alumni already containing the founders of 330 businesses named since the Young Guns awards began in 2003. Sponsored by law firm Keystone Law and chartered accountants haysmacintyre, Young Guns celebrates the most outstanding crop of young entrepreneurs the country has to offer with only 30 companies selected each year, and no repeat appearances.

Commenting on the win, Jackie Fast said: “It is an absolute honour to be recognised amongst this incredibly influential and successful group of people shaping the future of business in the UK. As our agency is driven to enable and secure the future of other businesses commercially through securing partners, this award is particularly relevant to us. We can’t wait to see what the future holds for Slingshot Sponsorship as well as the other Young Guns!”

Now in its 12th year, the awards has a track record of talent spotting, previously recognising the fledgling businesses started by the likes of Michael Action Smith OBE of Mind Candy, Holly Tucker MBE of Notonthehighstreet.com, Neil Hutchinson of Forward Internet Group, Matthew Riley of Daisy Group Plc, and the co-founders of Innocent Drinks, Huddle, YPlan, Nails Inc., Chilango, and Made.com.

View the full list of 2014 Young Guns and their profiles here:www.growingbusiness.co.uk/young-guns

In numbers: Who are the Young Guns Class of 2014?

There are 54 qualifying co-founders
The 30 businesses are 4 years old on average
The mean age between the qualifying founders is 29, with the youngest just 18
On average their companies employ 36 people, with the highest employing 200
Between the 20 companies that are equity backed, the total they’ve raised stands at over £114m
That means those 20 companies have raised £5.7m on average – the highest being House Trip, which has raised $60m and Nutmeg with $50m.
It also means 10 companies in this Class have grown organically
Their average turnover (for the 26 who told us) is £4.1m and they’re forecasting to grow that to £7.2m this year
Of the 26 who told us, they still own 61% of their equity

Thatcham to Sponsor new ‘Safety’ Category at 2015 What Car? Awards 14th August, 2014

Thatcham Research, the UK insurers’ automotive research centre, has announced its involvement in the What Car? Car of the Year Awards 2015, as a sponsor of the newly introduced ‘Safety’ category.

The What Car? Car of the Year Awards are the most coveted accolades in the automotive industry. The Awards recognise cars that meet the highest standards in their sector after being put through the toughest tests by the most experienced team in the business.

As the UK’s only Euro NCAP accredited crash test centre and pioneers of the Euro NCAP and insurance industry’s testing criteria for Autonomous Emergency Braking technology, Thatcham has established an unrivalled reputation in the field of vehicle safety. The centre is therefore a natural choice to put its first-hand experience and research knowledge into recognising and rewarding the efforts made by vehicle manufacturers in this important area.

“With the introduction of numerous driver assistance and semi-autonomous vehicle safety technologies, manufacturers have really pushed the boundaries of possibility in recent years and there’s certainly more to come.” said Thatcham’s Chief Executive Peter Shaw. “It’s hugely exciting to be involved in this new award category and one which we truly believe can have a major influence on consumers’ future purchasing decisions.”

What Car? publishing director Chris Lowe said: “We are delighted to have Thatcham involved with the Safety Category at this year’s What Car? Awards. This is a brand new category for What Car? and has been made possible through the support of Thatcham and their expertise in safety, security and crash repair. We look forward to working with them and delivering the best What Car? Awards yet.”

The What Car? Car of the Year Awards event is attended by more than 1,400 leading industry figureheads alongside the most influential motoring correspondents from the wider media.

The event is to be held at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London on January 7, 2015.

This deal was brokered by Slingshot Sponsorship

Slingshot Sponsorship Announced as National Business Awards Finalist for The BlackBerry Business Enabler of the Year Award 16th July, 2014

Slingshot Sponsorship Announced as National Business Awards Finalist for The BlackBerry Business Enabler of the Year Award

Britain’s leading businesses, business leaders and social enterprises have today been revealed as finalists for the 2014 National Business Awards and Slingshot Sponsorship is amongst them.

Slingshot Sponsorship has been shortlisted for The BlackBerry Business Enabler of the Year Award – recognising organisations that help businesses to increase profitability by improving efficiency, developing talent and implementing innovation. This award recognises the impact of ‘enablers’ that offer value beyond services.

Commenting on the Slingshot Sponsorship award entry, Judge Simon Feary, CEO, Chartered Quality Institute said:

“Slingshot has positioned itself to address a niche market overlooked by the main providers. To do that profitably and sustainably, especially within the small business-low margin segment you really have to know your market. Small beginnings but the growth is there suggesting they have their model right.”

This year’s shortlisted businesses cover activities as diverse as retail, technology, men’s grooming products, telecoms, construction, advertising, entertainment, and publishing. Of the businesses shortlisted, 24% turnover under £5m, 26% turnover between £5m and £25m, 15% over a billion and 10% not for profit organisations. The smallest business recognised has a turnover of just £23k with the largest reaching £20 billion. Finalists collectively employ over 850,000 people, the smallest has just one member of staff while the largest employs around 165,000 people globally.

Jackie Fast, Managing Director of Slingshot Sponsorship commented:

“Having our business model recognised as a business enabler at the National Business Awards opens up a world of opportunity for our agency proposition beyond our typical market of sponsorship and marketing professionals. As we champion the value of commercialisation in marketing, it is an honour to be recognised against some fierce competition in this category – especially from those organisations in the financial industry.”

Visit The National Business Awards for a full list of all finalists and to attend the event.

Slingshot Sponsorship Appoints New Account Director to Launch Sport Division 23rd April, 2014

Slingshot Sponsorship announces that Alex Howells will be joining its London office as an Account Director to head up the agency’s new sport division, as it seeks to drive its ‘creative commercialisation’ concept to rights-owners within the sports industry.

Howells takes up the position at Slingshot with over 9 years of experience across the sports marketing and sponsorship sectors, with previous roles at the Football Association and E.ON. Most recently he has been a key member of the Partnerships team at Sport England where he was responsible for growing Sport England’s portfolio of partners and providing specialist commercial support to national governing bodies of sport.

Jackie Fast, Managing Director at Slingshot Sponsorship, said: “We have been on the hunt for a new Director of Sport for some time as it is incredibly difficult to find senior people who have a combination of strong creativity and commercial acumen. Combining that with proven account management, Alex’s breadth of experience with both influential brands and sporting bodies was an ideal fit for our agency as we look to bring our sponsorship concept to the sporting industry.”

The new Sport Division will deliver fresh insight through the agency’s previous success developing unique commercial strategies and brand campaigns in music, arts and the charity sector.

Slingshot Sponsorship has developed a bespoke sport offering to the industry at a defining time in sports marketing. Sports with smaller audiences are all too often overlooked for their partnership potential because of the lack of television reach, while mass market sports largely sell their sponsorship based on these figures. Slingshot works with both brands and rights owners to look beyond the logo, aided by the advance of technology which is driving both innovation and speed. Jackie Fast states that, “It is now the perfect opportunity to maximise the true potential of sport campaigns that drive engagement – rather than just brand awareness.”

Alex Howells, Account Director, Slingshot Sponsorship stated: “It’s a privilege to join the team at Slingshot. Slingshot do things differently and the agency’s accomplishments in such a short space of time are an indication of the commitment, drive and energy of Jackie and her team. I’m excited to be a part of it and help bring Slingshot’s creativity to sport.”

Howells will carry on the work with Slingshot’s current sport clients, while creating tailored offerings to the industry as a whole with a focus on maximising both participants and commercial revenue streams through effective marketing partnerships. He will also be responsible for building the profile of smaller sports and women’s sport within the sponsorship industry as a whole.

Slingshot Sponsorship signs Warranty Direct as Headline Sponsor of the What Car? Awards for a third consecutive year 26th February, 2014

For a third consecutive year What Car? has announced that Warranty Direct will again act as Headline Partner for the What Car? Awards – Europe’s leading and most prestigious automotive awards programme showcasing the best new car releases from that year.

The What Car? Car of the Year Awards are the most coveted accolades in the automotive industry. The Awards are presented to cars that set the highest standards in their sector after being put through the toughest, most rigorous tests by the most experienced team in the business.

The benefits of the sponsorship deal includes the alignment with the most authoritative and trusted brand in motoring, brand positioning and awareness, extensive PR opportunities, networking and brand association to the awards via a multi-channel promotional campaign.

Chris Lowe, What Car? ‘Publisher’ said: “We are delighted to be working with Warranty Direct for the third consecutive year, which is the industry’s leading provider of direct consumer warranties.”

Duncan McClure Fisher, managing director of Warranty Direct Ltd, said: “We are looking forward to working alongside What Car? as headline partner for another year of the awards. The Awards themselves set a benchmark within the industry and it is an honour to be a part of such a prestigious event. We also hope car buyers investing in these award winning cars will want to look after them and that Warranty Direct warranties will be their first port of call.”

Chris Lowe continued: “Winning a What Car? Award is good for a car maker’s business. The authority of the What Car? brand sells cars, plain and simple. It adds power to advertising and marketing campaigns and is a huge draw for customers.”

The What Car? Car of the Year Awards event is attended by more than 1,400 leading industry figureheads alongside the most influential motoring correspondents from the wider media.

The event is to be held at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London on January 7, 2015 with top-class entertainment yet to be announced. Previous headline acts have included Jonathan Ross, Jimmy Carr, Al Murray, Jo Brand and last year Jack Whitehall.

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