To activate the second year of its official sponsorship of the Giro D’Italia, tyre giant Continental launched a product-led programme called GripLine which introduced the first paint with added micro rubber granules to increase the grip of road markings.
The background to the initiative lies in Continental, one of the world’s biggest tyre manufacturers, and its commitment to innovating in order to improve road safety.
GripLine was the focal point of Continental sponsorship of the 2019 Giro D’Italia: a cycling competition which takes place on the Italian roads which saw more than 17000 cycling accidents during 2018.
The challenge was to seek a solution to the problems that two of the most common causes of these bike accidents are rain and dampness which make the surface of the road slippery.
The idea, which sought to give relevance to the sponsorship of the Giro, was that Continental would support the creation of something for the safety of all cyclists – GripLine.
This saw the launch of the first paint with added microgranules to increase tyre grip and the antiskid factor by 35% in the worst climate conditions. An innovative formula for road markings that will also provide a recycling use for end-of-life tyres.
GripLine was presented at 2019 Milan Design Week and immediately generatd conversation among Italian and international media, as well as among the cycling community.
The special paint was then applied for the first time to the urban area of Milan and other Italian municipalities are enquiring about using it.
The project was promoted in May and June, during the Giro and immediately afterwards, through a digital and PR campaign which was led by a spearhead video.
This idea not only increases road safety but also offers a potential solution for recycling end-of-life tyres that are turned into microgranules and mixed with the paint.
Continental Grip Line from FCB Milan on Vimeo.
The campaign was created by a team from agency FCB Milan which included Chief Creative Officer Francesco Bozza, Executive Creative Director Massimo Verrone, Client Creative Director Gianluca Belmonte, Copywriter Christian Leoni, Art Directors Fabio Mazzucchelli and Mattia Errico, Junior Art Director Giulia Martoni, Senior Strategic Planner Paolo Costella, Account Director Maria Lucia Arati, Account Executive Emily Dobson, Junior Account Executives Federica Maioli, Cristina Anfossi, Head Of Social Valentina Salaro, Social Media Manager Valeria Semplici, Head Of Digital Andrea Castiglioni and TV Producer Cristina Nardi.
Comment:
This idea was born from Continental’s need to give relevance to the 2019 sponsorship of Giro d’Italia and to drive home road safety as Continental’s main brand value.
Continental’s presence in the Giro is part of a wider strategy that positions the brand at the forefront of professional cycling on an international level. The group has partnerships with the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España.
It was in April 2018 that Continental Italia signed an agreement with RCS Sport for a sponsorship of the Giro d’Italia for three years.
Continental became the Official Tyre of the Giro in a deal that saw it tie up with Shimano to supply both bicycle and car tyres for the neutral technical assistance team.
The Giro d’Italia (Tour of Italy), an annual multiple stage bicycle race primarily held in Italy during May, is the second most prestigious multi-stage bike race (after Le Tour De France) and was first raced in organized 1909.
“We are delighted to include such an important event as the Giro d’Italia in our calendar, which will allow us to highlight the excellent quality of our bicycle tyres. For us, this collaboration is particularly significant due to the importance it gives to many of the topics about which we feel most passionate; in particular, road safety. Continental invests heavily in research and development and produces innovative automotive technology and high-quality tyres for all types of vehicles,” said Alessandro De Martino, Managing Director of Continental Italia when the deal was unveiled.
Links:
Continental
https://www.continental-pneumatici.it/auto
https://www.youtube.com/user/ContiPneumaticiIT
https://www.facebook.com/Continental
https://twitter.com/continental_ir
https://www.youtube.com/c/ContinentalCorporation
https://www.instagram.com/continental_career/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/continental/
FCB, Milan, Italy
https://www.fcb.com/location/milan
Giro d’Italia
http://www.giroditalia.it/eng/
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