The future of the NBA's Vancouver Grizzlies could come down to a
simple business decision: FedEx or Kentucky Fried Chicken.
Owner Michael Heisley must decide by Monday where he wants to
take his Grizzlies. Tricon Global Restaurants Inc., the parent
company of KFC, and FedEx Corp. are ready to pay him millions if he
chooses Louisville, Ky., or Memphis, Tenn.
"If he selects Louisville, he'll get all the free chicken –
Kentucky Fried Chicken – he can eat for the rest of his life,"
said Jonathan Blum, a senior vice president for Tricon.
Call it the latest escalation in the war to lure relocating
sports franchises, but Memphis and Louisville have enlisted two
very big corporations in their bids to land the NBA team.
The companies are offering up plenty of money – they won't say
how much. In return, they want more than just their corporate names
in big letters on an arena.
Tricon and FedEx see an unprecedented marketing opportunity to
slap their brand on the NBA team itself.
Forget the Memphis or Louisville Grizzlies. Instead, try the
Kentucky Colonels, after KFC founder Col. Harland Sanders, or the
Memphis Express, for the delivery company.
"There's a marketing synergy there that is very, very powerful.
It would allow us to put the KFC brand into the mainstream of
professional basketball," Blum said. "That's why it's important
to us to associate the brand with the team in an unprecedented way
that would include the name of the team the Kentucky Colonels, the
old (ABA) team."
FedEx has the same thought, though it hasn't been as explicit
and has kept many details of its proposal under wraps.
"We have a very broad appeal, one of the most recognizable
brands in the world," FedEx spokeswoman Carla Boyd said. "I think
it would all fit together."
Of course, the NBA has final say over everything involving
franchise relocation, including the team's nickname.
Tricon, the world's second-largest fast food company, reportedly
has offered $100 million over 20 years to name the city's proposed
arena the KFC Center or The Bucket. FedEx has given Heisley a
competitive "multi-tier marketing proposal."
Both companies already invest heavily in sports.
Anyone watching the NCAA tournaments this month will see ads for
KFC, Pizza Hut or Taco Bell, all owned by Tricon. FedEx is the main
sponsor of the CART racing series, the Orange Bowl and has its name
on the home of the NFL's Washington Redskins.
Bringing an NBA team to town also allows companies to invest in
the local community and keep employees happy.
Tricon has approximately 1,100 employees in Louisville, while
30,000 of FedEx's 200,000 employees worldwide call Memphis home.
New Orleans, Anaheim and the Chicago suburb of Dixmoor are the
other cities trying to land the Grizzlies.
How helpful such corporate support is remains to be seen.
The man who helped turn the NFL's Houston Oilers into the
Tennessee Titans thinks the biggest challenge is who pays for the
arena.
Phil Bredesen was Nashville's mayor when he arranged the city's
$292 million package to build a new football stadium. The Titans
landed their own naming deal after the stadium was built.
"The whole game will come down to whether they can finance an
arena and make an attractive enough economic deal ... that it's the
best deal for the owner to move it there," he said.
Neither group has detailed its plans to pay for an arena, but
most of the money would come from the issuance of local bonds.
Tennessee, despite a budget shortfall, appears ready to
contribute up to $70 million for Memphis. Kentucky has offered to
create a special tax district around the arena to repay
construction bonds, but the team must agree to become the Colonels.
With Monday looming as Heisley's deadline from the NBA, the
bidding for the Grizzlies has turned into a race to the finish line
with Memphis and Louisville trying to outdo the other.
When Memphis, led by AutoZone founder J.R. "Pitt" Hyde III,
announced it had investors ready to buy minority ownership,
Louisville rounded up its own. Memphis has commitments for more
than half its planned 70 luxury suites costing $110,000 each, so
Louisville began a push to line up suite buyers.
"There's a full-court press on right now," Blum said. "We're
doing everything we can here behind the scenes to lay the
foundation for his success here in Louisville."
Unless, of course, it's FedEx that helps deliver the Grizzlies
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