The Nashville Predators’ transparency and honesty about the challenges facing them back in 2010 have been hailed for the long-term success of Bridgestone Americas’ naming-rights sponsorship of the NHL ice hockey franchise’s arena.
As the venue prepares to mark 20 years since its opening on December 18, 1996, Bridgestone Americas chief administrative officer Christine Karbowiak looked back on negotiations for a deal that was struck six years ago that set a new benchmark in terms of speed and efficiency.
“Bridgestone, typically, hadn't entertained naming-rights deals in the United States, or even on a global scale, so it was a unique situation for us, and the team put together a very compelling proposal,” Karbowiak said on the team’s website.
“From the first moment, we could tell that they were going to be good people to work with; they were open with us about all of the challenges the team was facing and everything presented was sincere and transparent.
“From the Bridgestone standpoint, our brand is very important to us and to enter into a deal like this, where your name is so closely affiliated with a team and a structure, we needed to make sure this was the kind of deal we wanted to live with.”
Remarkably, Bridgestone’s head office in Japan signed off the deal within hours, such was the strength of the proposal.
“The amazing part was Bridgestone Corporation's intellectual property group got back to me the next morning with approval," Karbowiak said. "I told [Predators chairman] Tom Cigarran and the team later that I've never had anything turned around that fast, especially something that was so different and unique for Bridgestone.”
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