Dusseldorf, Germany - Fortuna Duesseldorf is to enter the upcoming 2011/2012 season with a new main and shirt sponsor - specialist workshop, house and garden company BAUHAUS. The contract was concluded in close cooperation with Fortuna's marketing partner Infront Sports & Media. It includes the shirt sponsorship of the 2nd Bundesliga team (a traditional club from North Rhine-Westphalia's state capital) and is initially valid for the 2011/12 season with a further extension option available. For BAUHAUS this is their first commitment as a main sponsor in German professional football. All parties agreed to keep financial details confidential.
Through the new partnership with BAUHAUS, Infront and Fortuna Dusseldorf have gained a strong partner both nationally and internationally. As the main sponsor, the brand will benefit not only from prominent logo placement on the Fortuna jerseys, but also from numerous other advertising spaces in view of the TV cameras. This includes perspective carpets (cam carpets) and a total of over 200 meters on the rotating boards in the ESPRIT arena. In addition, BAUHAUS will conduct PR events with players and officials of the club as well as additional promotional activities in the ESPIRT arena. The package also contains an extensive hospitality and ticket contingent.
Heinz-Dieter Konrad, Managing Director of BAUHAUS, North Rhine-Westphalia, said: “With the main sponsorship of Fortuna Dusseldorf our involvement in German football achieves another milestone. We consciously decided to go for Fortuna Düsseldorf and look forward to the challenging role as jersey partner. North Rhine-Westphalia is one of the strongest BAUHAUS regions with a high density of specialized centers, three alone in Düsseldorf. We operate one retail centre very close to the Fortuna office at the Flinger Broich and the BAUHAUS store in Gerresheim is one of the largest DIY stores in Europe.”
Peter Frymuth, CEO of Fortuna Düsseldorf, said: “Through this deal we have taken another future-orientated step. With BAUHAUS we have a solid and reliable partner at our side that at the same time has a tremendous reputation. We are proud that BAUHAUS has selected Fortuna as its first jersey partner in Germany.”
Dr. Dirk Kall, Chairman of Fortuna Düsseldorf, added: “The entry of Bauhaus is another milestone in the partnership with Infront and a clear sign that since the beginning of our collaboration we've been going in the right direction with regards to the marketing of the club.”
“Just in time – ahead of the team and jersey presentation, we can present the first-class brand BAUHAUS as the new main sponsor of Fortuna Dusseldorf. The timing is ideal and we now have enough time to implement the extensive commitment perfectly and calmly. The premiere of BAUHAUS as jersey sponsor in the Bundesliga here in Düsseldorf confirms the attractiveness of Fortuna as a communication platform”, said Marco Sautner, Associate Director and Team Leader Fortuna Dusseldorf at Infront Germany.
In 1960 BAUHAUS brought a new idea into Germany: a broad variety of strongly branded DIY products in various self-service areas all offered under one roof. More than 125 specialist centers were then set up throughout Germany based on the original concept. BAUHAUS Europe has over 215 stores across 15 countries. Each of the specialist centers is divided into 15 specialty stores. Its basic concept is to provide professional commercial quality and a variety of products at the best prices - BAUHAUS has since remained true to this concept and has continuously developed it.
Infront Sports & Media, based in Zug, Switzerland, has grown impressively in recent years to become one of the leading international sports marketing groups in the world. Known for its high standards of delivery, the company covers all aspects of a successful sport event – including distribution of media rights, sponsorship, media production and event operations. As a key player in winter sport, football and other summer sports, Infront enjoys long-lasting partnerships with 120 rights-holders and hundreds of sponsors and media companies. With an experienced and passionate team of 500 staff in over 20 offices across 10 countries, the Group helps to annually deliver more than 2,300 event days of top class sport around the world.