The past season was the first with Soudal as main sponsor, together with Lotto. The Belgian company is the largest European independent manufacturer of sealants, adhesives and polyurethane foams for professionals and retail. Soudal is active in more than 130 countries and has 44 branches divided over all continents. Their presence in cycling began in 2013. Then the Soudal logo was visible on the side of the shorts of the riders during the Tour de France. In 2014 Soudal became cosponsor for the entire season. After an evaluation Soudal decided to become name sponsor of the team for six years, until 2020. How was this first season, with forty victories of the WorldTour team, for the new name sponsor?
Luc Thys, Director marketing and R&D Soudal: “This was of course a top year for the team, we couldn’t have wished for a better start as name sponsor. We are very proud of the team’s performances. The past season we could experience that cycling causes a lot of emotional involvement, we see that with our employees, partners and clients. We already noticed that the previous years, but not that much. The worldwide interest of the Soudal group has surprised us. In a lot of Soudal branches there is a Lotto Soudal wall with newspaper articles and other publications in the local language.”
“The team won races in different countries, from Belgium to Canada. This geographical spread is good for us as international company. Just like the fact that we owe these successes to riders of different nationalities. We would like to continue on the same path. At Soudal we are pleased that Tomasz Marczynski and Rafael Valls will join the team, as Poland and Spain are important markets for us. In Poland the brand awareness of Soudal is already big, we have more than one hundred employees and an own production. There was a crisis in the Spanish building industry the past years. During that period we maintained our position in the do-it-yourself shops and now the building sector is getting back on its feet, so that offers good perspectives.”
This year Soudal did several activations related to the team in shops and during fairs. There was a competition in cooperation with Ridley, the producer of the bikes of the Lotto Soudal team. Also the videos in which the riders tested the Soudal products were remarkable.
Luc Thys: “This first season as name sponsor didn’t cause any big evolutions, but we achieved what we wanted. During this first season we strengthened the bond between Soudal and the team, which was a first important step for us. The visibility of the brand Soudal has grown a lot, certainly in Belgium. The foreign media often focus on national riders and teams. In those countries we get publicity with victories, but also thanks to other remarkable performances. For example the fact that Adam Hansen completed thirteen Grand Tours in a row and broke the world record. Also that counts, also because Australia is an important market for us and we want to put extra attention to Adam’s achievement.”
“The name Soudal resounds in the cycling world, but we are aware of the fact that not everybody knows what we do. We are working on that, that’s a priority for us. We have taken a good start with the visibility, but need to deepen it. In the future we want to emphasize our products. This year we developed the Soudal Cycling Range in close cooperation with the mechanics of the team. In the past we already produced lubricants, so this was a logical step. But this is only an extra, it won’t become our core business.”
Now back to the sport. As indicated it was a very good season for Lotto Soudal, it was a record year with forty victories. A lot of unforgettable moments, but what stands out for Luc Thys?
Luc Thys: “The victory of André Greipel on the Champs Elysées gave me goose bumps. I was there, in Paris. The circumstances were far from perfect. It had rained so the road was slippery and André didn’t seem to be in a good position to start the sprint and we thought it was over, but still he won in an impressive manner. Also my visit to Kris Boeckmans when he was back home after his severe crash in the Vuelta, was emotional. At Soudal we were all worried about him. When I visited him and saw that he would recover, it was very reassuring.”
