Franchise rebranding starts with new face
Raptors bullish on marketing game plan with Drake pickup
In a bold and franchise-altering day seldom before seen, one thing has become clear.
They will forever be the Raptors but they will never be the same.
With a new “global ambassador” who appears to have as much passion for the organization as almost anyone employed by it and a new look and colour scheme coming in two years, the Raptors kicked off the official run-up to the 2016 NBA all-star game in decidedly glitzy fashion.
Drake, the iconic Toronto music superstar and now the unofficial host of the all-star weekend, will be part of the process of “rebranding” the franchise that has missed the NBA playoffs for the past five years.
Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment CEO Tim Leiweke said the process has already begun to change the colour scheme and logo of the team that’s entering its 19th year in the NBA.
The name however won’t change, Leiweke said, and it will not be a quick process.
Leiweke said the team has already engaged a Toronto firm to help with the process, they will make an effort to some- how involve fans but thanks to marketing and licensing demands, the new look won’t be unveiled until the 2015-16 season. And the NBA will be heavily involved. “It’s within certain parameters set by the league,” said incoming commissioner Adam Silver.
“Part of the issue (is) it takes a while to rebrand a team. . . . We have so many partners and licensees on a global basis as far as re-registering marks all over the world.
“It’s a deliberate process and I think in a good way it forces teams to slow down a little bit. It puts the brakes on them so it’s not ‘I woke up in the middle of the night, let’s go with orange.’ They have to think it through.”
But the thinking process has already begun, Leiweke said, and will dovetail nicely with the all-star weekend celebrations, which will mark the first time the NBA has staged its most elaborate event outside the United States.
Drake’s involvement in the next couple of years appears to be extensive, at least judging by Monday’s announcement. Talking of an overwhelming passion for his hometown, the world-renowned entertainer will help in promotional events, be the pop culture face of the franchise and be a hands-on contributor to whatever remake is ahead.
Having seen the success the Brooklyn
“You have the same thing in Drake (photo) in someone born in Toronto (as Brooklyn had with) Jay Z. (He) understood the community.” ADAM SILVER NBA DEPUTY COMMISSIONER
Nets have had since music mogul Jay-Z became part of that franchise, the league doesn’t mind its teams branching out.
“When you bring outsiders into the process they push the envelope a little bit in terms of what our rules are but that’s good,” Silver said of Drake’s involvement in the process. “We’re OK with that, at the end of the day, our teams recognize . . . that there are 29 partners in the league and there has to be a certain amount of consistency across our franchises but they have a pretty broad swath to play in.”
The testing process for a new colour scheme and logo is far more involved that it was 20 years ago to the day when Toronto was first granted an NBA franchise.
A far more global entity now in a vastly more electronic word, finding a suitable new look isn’t easy.
“A lot of what we do increasingly because so many of our fans see our games through digital media of one sort or another, we do a lot of camera testing to make sure the colours work and also ultimately to make sure the branding is appropriate to the city and is consistent with values of the team,” said Silver. Drake seems to fit those “values.” “He’s endemic, this isn’t some outside who came in,” said Silver. “You have the same thing in Drake in someone born in Toronto. (As Brooklyn had with) Jay Z understood the community, he understands the values of the community.”