Some sponsorship matches are made in marketing heaven. Some are just good business. Others are both. Such is the case with the sponsorship deal between Broadco Property Restoration, the title sponsor of the 40-foot Broadco catamaran that claimed the Super Boat International Superboat-class World Championship in 2014, and PODS. Broadco Property Restoration breathes new life into homes and businesses damaged by everything from small fires to major storms. PODS, the nation’s leader in portable storage and moving solutions, supplies Broadco with its ingenious, high-quality products—Broadco has used as many as 100 PODS units in one large commercial project.

Said Broaddus: “We are really excited to have PODS as a sponsor for the full season, and they are very excited about the season.” Photo courtesy/copyright Pete Boden/Shoot 2 Thrill Pix.

Now, after a limited sponsorship trial run as a Broadco team sponsor during the 2014 season, PODS—an international company with offices in the Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom—is stepping up to the sponsorship plate in big way. Starting the SBI season-opener this weekend, PODS will sponsor the Broadco team for the entire 2015 season.

“We are very excited—they (the Broadco team) have been a great partner for us,” said Clive Burton, the vice president of sales for PODS, which is headquartered in Clearwater, Fla.” I live in Clearwater and I have been a fan of offshore powerboat racing for years.”

“Clive is a great guy,” said Chuck Broaddus, the owner of Broadco Property Restoration and the owner/driver of the Broadco team’s Marine Technology, Inc., catamaran. “I got to know him in 2013 when I met him for the first time in Clearwater.”

Of course, it took more than personal relationship between Broaddus and Burton and their shared passion for the sport to make the sponsorship to happen. But given the mutually beneficial nature of the relationship between the two companies—in supporting the Broadco team PODS is supporting an important customer—it makes perfect sense. And starting with Cocoa Beach, PODS plans to make the most of its investment, especially when it comes to sharing “offshore racing team experience” with its clients at SBI races through the the Broadco racing team.

“I will actually be bringing customers and PODS franchise owners to the Cocoa Beach race on Saturday and Sunday,” said Burton. “I went out and bought team T-shirts for everyone so they really get to feel the embrace of what it’s like to be part of a team. We are going to bring them ‘inside the ropes’ in the pits. Chuck and (Broadco throttleman) Grant Bruggemann will meet everybody and sit down them so they’ll feel like, ‘Wow, I’m really part of this.’ They will be ‘branded’ as part of the team for the day.

“I have a hotel room on the course so they can watch from the deck,” he added. “I am going full bore with this. We are making it an entertainment experience, and we are tying our brand into it with things like putting our logos on the crew shirts and PODS whisper flags. We are really looking forward to Cocoa Beach. I just got two notes from customers who are so thrilled to be coming.”

“We are excited to have PODS as a sponsor for the full season, and they are very excited about the season,” said Broaddus. “It also presents an excellent opportunity for us to build our corporate relationship with them as we are a large user of their products. What we have found is they have a superior product and their service is impeccable.”

Broaddus has two major goals for his team this season. First, he’d like to win the 2015 SBI National Championship in his Ilmor Marine engine-powered catamaran. Second, he wants to defend his 2014 World title. To those ends, he and Bruggemann have been logging seat time in the cat.

“We have been working on the turning game,” said Broaddus. “We believe the Superboat class is at the point where winning comes down to which boat can get in and out of the turns fastest, and maintain the fastest speed through the turn. That’s our goal, and that’s what we’ve been working on in the off season.”

Related Stories

Kent Teaming Up With Coil For SBI Superboat Unlimited Competition
Image of the Week: Below Sea Level at Cocoa Beach
Speedonthewater.com to Carry Live Feed from SBI Cocoa Beach Opener
Ballough Tests New Stock-Class Doug Wright with Mercury 200XS Engines
Torrente Teaming Up with Schoenbohm in SBI Stock Class
GEICO Team Completes First Round Of Testing For Upcoming Season-Opener
Lake Race Organizers Pushing Hard For Big Turnout
New Skater Dealer Performance Boat Center Orders Four-Seat 388 Cat For Superboat Class