As part of The Drum’s Sports & Fitness Focus , we sat down with Samsung’s marketing chief to find out why the electronics company has put surf, skate and breakdancing at the center of its Olympics sponsorship. Samsung Olympic 2024 slogan 'Open Always Wins' / Samsung Long-standing Olympic sponsor Samsung is to champion the subculture sports of surf, skate and break as part of its wider comms mission to show the brand stands for ‘openness.’ This summer in Paris, surf and breakdancing will make their Olympic Games debut, joining skateboarding, which was made an Olympic sport in 2020.
Samsung has made deals with each sport’s governing body, supporting athletes and creating content in partnership with them. Historically, Samsung’s marketing was to promote itself as the best, the fastest and the most innovative in its category. But now, executive vice-president and head of marketing at Samsung Electronics, Stephanie Choi, tells The Drum: “The brand ethos and the value we stand for is openness.
” “Up until now, Samsung was more focused on being a brand that represents the latest innovation and the best innovation,” says Choi. But ‘Open Always Wins’ is a new brand platform for the Olympics that isn’t about celebrating being the best or the first, but having an open mind. “We believe with an open mind, a lot of what comes with that is more experiences, more diversity and more connections.
That is what the brand stands for. It’s not about always winning, in.
