Brita cleaned up profits and America’s coastlines with the help of BSS

Brita, a division of Clorox, needed a meaningful platform to connect with customers while gaining credibility and positioning as a good corporate citizen, which would ultimately drive product sales. Brita relied on Kevin Bartram’s cause-related sponsorship expertise to develop a program.

Kevin aligned Clorox and Brita with coastal clean-up activities throughout the country. He negotiated agreements with the Center for Marine Conservation and the California Coastal Commission, among other environmental groups. Over a three-year period, Kevin’s team produced a series of environmentally-oriented events sponsored by Brita/Clorox under the tag line “Dedicated to Clean Water.” These efforts resulted in significant increases in participation among grassroots clean-up groups.

Brita won big with this program, gaining clear associative value from being aligned with a clean water campaign while dominating several environmental events in key markets throughout the country. Brita also benefitted by involving their partner retailers, who were tied into events through the use of pass-through rights that we had negotiated into the contract. Retail and local media partners promoted the events and retail partners offered free Brita pitchers to volunteers. These pitchers were picked up in stores where volunteers could also purchase replacement water filters.

Ultimately, Kevin designed a truly sustainable sponsorship program that served the interests of all parties in a manner consistent with the sensitivities of an environmental activity.