Bridgestone Retail goes for gold with former Olympian
The 2,200 unit Bridgestone Retail Operations chain of automotive stores is drawing inspiration from a gold medal winning Olympic sprinter to help accelerate its performance.
Bridgestone Americas and its Bridgestone Retail Operations division have teamed up with Michael Johnson, winner of multiple gold medals in the 1996 and 2000 Olympics, on a wide-ranging program. As part of the program, Johnson will be featured in an Olympic-themed sales incentive program, a mobile training tour, and a trip to the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) Training Center in Colorado Springs for the retailer’s top performers. Later this year, Bridgestone will bring its new Olympic partnership to life through a broader consumer-facing retail marketing campaign complete with in-store, mobile activations and promotions. The four-time Olympic gold medalist joined Bridgestone Retail Operations recently when the company kicked off the new program at its 2016 National Business Conference in Houston.
“In our stores, we are driven to perform, just like the elite athletes who are training for the Olympic Games, so who better to inspire our team than Michael Johnson, an elite athlete and coach who’s literally brought home the gold,” said Stu Crum, president of Bridgestone Retail Operations. “We couldn’t be more excited to welcome Michael to the Bridgestone family and to have the opportunity to learn from one of the best. Joining the Olympic Movement as one of just 12 Worldwide Olympic Partners provides an incredible opportunity to grow our business in a way that no competitor can. The training program with Michael is just one exciting way we’ll be leveraging our Olympic partnership to ignite pride and performance among our teammates at the retail level.”
One of the company’s long-term strategic goals is to become the most trusted provider of automotive service in every neighborhood the company serves. Bridgestone’s position as a Worldwide Olympic Partner, and alignment with the overall values of the Olympic Games and athletes, strongly reinforces that position, according to the company.
“I’m thrilled to partner with Bridgestone and look forward to using the Olympic Games as a great motivator with its retail teammates this year,” said Johnson. “There are so many parallels between sports and business, and I’m excited to share what I’ve learned over the years about motivation, teamwork, goal-setting and perseverance with the Bridgestone team. It’s going to be a lot of fun, and hard work, too.”
Bridgestone inked a 10 year deal in 2014 that made it an official TOP Worldwide Olympic Partner of the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The deal will see Bridgestone Corporation serve as a partner of the upcoming Rio 2016 games as well as the Pyeongchang 2018 Olympic Winter Games, the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games, and the 2024 Olympic Games.