Emirates reaches for high end of the sky

Chris Lethbridge

It arrived with a big bang just over two years ago - like a gorilla jumping into the middle of the already cut-throat competition of the Tasman aviation market.

With a fleet of new aircraft, an exotic Middle Eastern image and, according to its rivals, a fistful of petro-dollars to burn, the Dubai-based airline Emirates has firmly cemented its place in the New Zealand aviation scene.

The glue that helps it to quickly build customer loyalty and brand recognition is sponsorship.

Emirates has now pulled off some of the world's most lucrative and glamorous sporting deals.

When Michael Campbell came home to a big welcome after winning the US Open, he was flanked by the smiling faces of Emirates cabin crew.

A year earlier, Emirates signed up to help one of the great symbols of Kiwi sport - Team NZ - with their next tilt at the America's Cup.

The airline sees such sports sponsorship as one way of getting closer to the community. And it is certainly paying off. Passenger numbers have risen as a direct result of that support.

Emirates New Zealand manager Chris Lethbridge says: "When we go into a market, we don't just go in there with an advertising campaign. We look at how we can get closer to the community, and sport sponsorship is especially a great way of doing it."

Lethbridge ticks off the reasons sponsoring Team NZ's America's Cup entry is a good idea for Emirates.

For a start, it is the top event in an elite sport. It is being staged in the key European market and, with the lead-up, essentially runs over a four-year period. It attracts interest from Australasia, South Africa, the UK, Europe and the US.

"You've got that reach into all those markets - at the high end of those markets - so we're talking to the right people. That, in tandem with the fact we are able to support an iconic sporting team in New Zealand, made good sense for us.

"If you go out and try to buy an individual sponsorship in each of those areas, and you try to get the return on your investment, you won't do it.

"The beauty here is that it gave us brand awareness that a lot of other companies would struggle to get for years. So it really put us on the map."

And, says Lethbridge, it is not just a feel-good brand awareness that has come from the Team New Zealand sponsorship. The return - which in the airline business is measured by bums on seats - was seen "almost instantaneously".

With a wide international portfolio of sponsorships, the Emirates head office in Dubai knows what works and what doesn't.

"These things aren't done on a whim. Everything has a business case," Lethbridge says. "Every decision is made on the business case put forward. If the business case is weak, or the audience isn't there, then it won't stack up."

As a new airline, Emirates has to deal with being a newcomer in many markets, therefore it has to build up its image quickly - the sort of image rivals have spent decades developing.

"I'm not saying we don't spend on advertising; we have an active advertising campaign here," Lethbridge says. "But we find sponsorship gives you a much greater reach, a much broader reach than, say, tactical advertising."

Sporting chances - emirates lead the sponsorship field

Emirates has spread its support of major sporting events, competitions and clubs far and wide:

Golf

* Dubai Desert Classic - official carrier since 1989 for the Middle East round of the European PGA tour.
* BMW Asian Open - official carrier.
* BMW International Open - (Munich) official carrier.
* Austrian Open - official carrier.
* Holden New Zealand Open - official carrier.
* UBS Hong Kong Open - official carrier.

Cricket

* ICC - The relationship has been extended until 2008 with the sponsoring of umpires and referees for all test and one-day international cricket.
* ICC super series - Played in October in Australia with the Australian team playing the rest of the world.
* Dubai Cricket Council - A partnership to encourage the growth of cricket in the region with the introduction of a new tournament - the Emirates Airline Cricket Cup - featuring the 16 top teams in the United Arab Emirates.

Tennis

* Dubai Tennis Open - official carrier.

Aussie Rules

* Collingwood - the Mighty Magpies will be wearing Fly Emirates logos on their shirts until 2009.

Rugby Union

* Emirates Western Force. A multi-million-dollar, deal to sponsor Australia's new Super 14 team.
* Emirates Airline Dubai Rugby Sevens.
* Emirates Airline South African Sevens.
* Emirates Airline London Sevens.
* Official shirt sponsor of the England sevens team.
* Official shirt sponsor of the Samoan sevens team.

Racing

* NTRA Breeders' Cup, US.
* Dubai World Cup (Group I) - title sponsor since 1996 of the world's richest event carrying prize money totalling US$6 million.
* Godolphin stables.
* Emirates Melbourne Cup Carnival - seven-year partnership deal with the Victoria Racing Club to be the main sponsor of Australia's premier horse race, now named the Emirates Melbourne Cup.
* Australian Jockey Club.
* Race meetings - sponsor of top races around the world ranging from Ireland to Australia's Gold Coast.

Yachting

* Emirates Team New Zealand was launched in June 2004 to challenge for yachting's holy grail - the America's Cup - in 2007.

Football

* Arsenal Football Club - In October 2004, Emirates and the Gunners signed the biggest club sponsorship in English football history, worth $257 million. For the next 15 years, Arsenal's new stadium will be known as Emirates Stadium and the team will have Emirates printed on their jerseys.
* Fifa World Cup, Germany - Emirates is the first airline to sponsor the world's premier football tournament, which will begin next June.
* Asian Football Confederation - All referees and their assistants in English professional football matches now wear the "Fly Emirates" logo.