Lake Mille Lacs Annual Kite Crossing &
Event Organizer Fleet 8

The Challenge
North America’s #1 snowkiting competition event, held annually in host city Garrison, MN on Minnesota’s second largest lake, Lake Mille Lacs (lake crossing, freestyle events, jumping, lessons, social activities), wanted to increase corporate sponsorships, sponsor revenue, in-kind donations, attract more competitors, and create awareness of the event to general public. Started in 2005, the Kite Crossing is the most challenging and longest running snowkiting competition event in North America. Fleet 8 of Minneapolis, the leading snowkiting and windsurfing event organizer in United States, hired Browne+Browne Marketing to enhance sponsor support and their benefits and on-site execution, event awareness and registrations.

The Strategy/Solution
• Browne+Browne used its event marketing sponsor database to target, present, negotiate and secure new sponsors, while retaining existing corporate sponsor support
• Increased spectators on-site with local media partner sponsorship that ran promotional advertising over three months in three area newspapers.
• Use an extensive media news release campaign, uncovering news worthy event angles for feature stories to help drive registrations and spectators.

Results/Testimonials
• Since our hiring in 2014, event has increased local, regional and national corporate sponsorships including media partners, in-kind sponsors (hotel rooms, beverages, timers and on-line results media) and a title sponsor in Grand Casino Mille Lacs.
• Browne+Browne helped execute sponsor and event exposure via websites, facebook page, banners, signage, on-site company kiosks and newspaper advertising.
• Publicity by Browne+Browne included national and local TV, feature stories and print media publicity coverage all winter in local Mille Lacs area media outlets as well as St. Cloud, Brainerd, Duluth and the Twin Cities.
• The event now attracts over 100 top snowkiters From U.S. and Canada.
• Now the iconic brand for snowkiting competiton in North America.

“Thank you to everyone for all your hard work. Overall, great event. Fun Weekend!”
                                                                        On-site Event Coordinator

“Heard from many kiters that this year’s Kite Crossing was best event in our Crossing’s history”
                                                                                       On-site Event Coordinator