Innovative Partnerships Group was engaged by the Portland Timbers to develop a jersey partner business platform with the objective of maximizing value for both the team and brand. Alaska Airlines was the existing naming rights partner and the renewal was ending.

Faced with the challenges of a recent merger with Virgin America, and a focus in other markets outside Portland, Innovative Partnerships Group was tasked with building the value proposition of why Alaska Airlines should renew a partnership where they already had significant market share and brand awareness.

Innovative Partnerships Group uncovered that the real value of the jersey partnership for Alaska Airlines was not in traditional broadcast media but in new media. This real value included digital and out of home media assets found through the “walking billboard” jersey valuation module using the Partnership Intelligence™ system. Through leveraging the Human Capital module, we quantified the importance of the Portland Timbers to the airline's large employee base in the Portland DMA. In addition, the community assets and passionate fan base created a massive brand lift for Alaska Airlines. This resulted in a higher brand equity value than other assets of similar scope and market size.

Alaska Airlines and the Portland Timbers secured an additional four-year partnership that transcended beyond the jersey naming rights entitlement.