Rotary renew Clipper Race sponsorship after successful global campaign

Welcome to Yorkshire, De Lage Landen and Qingdao at the start of Race 5 from Geraldton, Western Australia to Tauranga, NZ, in the Clipper 11-12 Round the World Yacht Race © onEdition

The Rotary Aquaspeed brand has renewed its sponsorship as Official Timekeeper of the unique Clipper Round the World Yacht Race after a highly successful global campaign in the last edition of the biennial year-long international event.

Rotary has revealed how its association with the Clipper Race as its first Official Timekeeper in 2011-12 was an outstanding success which has led to the decision to extend the partnership to the 2013-14 event.

"We are looking forward to building on our relationship with the Clipper Race by renewing our partnership with them as Official Timekeeper for the next event," said Rotary Watches Managing Director Victoria Campbell. "Our sponsorship has proven to be a highly successful project for the Aquaspeed brand, featured in a television commercial, increased our presence globally and provided exciting online and social media interaction with customers, including the production of a special APP, Aquaspeed 2."

Rotary reported a significant growth in sales during 2012 aided by exposure the Aquaspeed brand received through with the Clipper Race partnership. In addition the company embarked on a highly successful television advertising campaign – the first in 20 years – highlighting its involvement with the Clipper Race and encouraging viewers to achieve something extraordinary in line with the ethos of the race.

The use of brand ambassadors on the last Clipper Race was another success story as customers and retailers across the world were engaged by captivating online content as they followed two crew members taking part in the race. The ambassadors for the Clipper 13-14 Race, who will wear Rotary Aquaspeed timepieces on their round-the-world adventure, will be announced following the Clipper Race Crew Allocation in May.

The Clipper Race was founded by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, the first man to sail solo non-stop around the world, and offers around 650 non-professional sailors the opportunity to achieve something remarkable, racing on a fleet of matched 70-foot ocean racing yachts under the guidance of a professional skipper. The 40,000-mile adventure will begin in the UK in late August with crews undertaking 15 races over eleven months.

Sir Robin welcomed Rotary back on board, he said: "I am very pleased that Rotary has had such a good experience and has really made its sponsorship work so well by taking full advantage of all the opportunities the race creates for our partners. We look forward to welcoming them back on board and achieving even more as Official Timekeeper of the Clipper 13-14 Race."

Rotary has been designing innovative sport watch lines since the 1950's. In 2009 the Rotary Aquaspeed family launched as a small collection of dedicated sports watches, now in its fourth year it is receiving constant acclaim for its exceptional design and unrivalled pricing.

As a Fleet Sponsor, each of the brand new fleet of twelve Clipper 70 ocean racers will feature the Rotary Aquaspeed logo on the mainsail and the transom.

www.clipperroundtheworld.com