Last year, the Chicago Cubs made news with a blockbuster deal to acquire star pitcher Jon Lester, a move signaling a promising future for the MLB team once dubbed America’s “lovable losers.”
Assurance Agency is experiencing similar success, as it continues to expand its national presence and is in the planning stages of opening a new office outside the Midwest. Thus, the agency decided that now would be the perfect time to expand its partnership with Wrigley Field and acquire naming rights for the Executive Club of Chicago, which will now be known as the “Assurance Club.”
“Assurance has been doing insurance work for the Cubs dating back to about 2009. We handle employee benefits, and a certain line of their P&C business as well,” said Steven Handmaker, Chief Marketing Officer, Assurance. “When the opportunity became available to consider naming rights for the club, it just seemed like it was a perfect time to extend our relationship in this new, exciting way.”
The insurance brokerage will also be featured in television and broadcast recordings of Cubs games, which it hopes will provide even greater national exposure for the brand.
“The company has been growing pretty dramatically and we’ve been getting quite a bit of attention for our workplace and culture, which has won a lot of awards. We’re excited to have people understand a little more about the kind of work we do and we thought this partnership would help us get the word out about our business,” said Handmaker.
In addition, the arrangement has the added benefit of furthering Assurance’s emphasis on exercise and healthy living. The brokerage also has relationships with Chicago Major League Soccer, Illinois’ largest racetrack, and the local arena football team.
“Our company has a mantra about minimizing risk and maximizing health and wellness,” said Handmaker. “Affiliating with a sporting franchise such as the Cubs really does help us play into the idea of health, exercise, and fitness, which we think is vitally important for businesses and their future health care cost containments.”
