Inside IRONMAN's Partnership Playbook: How a 50-Year-Old Brand Actually Operates

Bottom Line Up Front: IRONMAN's Global Partnerships Manager, Manuel Bassiere, walked through his partnership methodology. His approach combines systematic audience research, value-first outreach, and treating partnerships as consulting rather than pure sales transactions.

Right, let's be honest about something. Most sports properties talk about "premium partnerships" the way politicians talk about "working families", it's a phrase that gets thrown around constantly but rarely means anything concrete.

IRONMAN, however, actually has the receipts.

After an hour with Manuel Bassiere, their Global Partnerships Manager, it became clear that IRONMAN operates more like a management consultancy that happens to host endurance events. They've systematized everything from audience research to partnership structures, and Manuel was refreshingly candid about how it all works.

Here's what they actually do.

The Data That Drives Everything

IRONMAN conducts annual brand surveys of their athletes on what would be key for them . Not groundbreaking, you might think—except their response rates hit 25-35%, which is roughly the same as getting every third person in Britain to actually fill out the census properly.

As Manuel explained: “At the start of 2025, our survey showed a clear message: athletes wanted more products to support their routines, not just during events, but also in preparation, recovery, and especially in skincare. We knew where we had to focus. ”

This data directly led to their Bulldog partnership. No guesswork, no "brand synergy" nonsense—just athletes saying they needed something, and IRONMAN finding a brand that matched their standards and shared a similar vision.

What Premium Actually Means

Manuel broke down IRONMAN's positioning into three components, and none of them involved the word "synergy."

Component One: Audience Quality High-income entrepreneurs and business owners who have both disposable income and the time management skills to train 20-25 hours per week. As Manuel put it: "It’s very hard to precisely reach high-income earners through media. With social campaigns, you can try to target them, but you’re never really sure who you’re reaching.

He was specific about the numbers: “70% of our athletes are high-income earners, C-level, entrepreneurs and business owners, spending an average of €10,000 a year on triathlon.”

Component Two: Genuine Exclusivity Finishing an IRONMAN is legitimately difficult. This isn't marketing department exclusivity where "premium" means "we charge more." This is actual scarcity created by the physical and mental demands of the sport.

Component Three: Brand Equity As Manuel noted: "People are so invested in the IRONMAN brand that they’ll tattoo our logo on their bodies, train 25 hours a week, create content about our ecosystems without us asking and live the brand every day! It’s still crazy to me to see that level of commitment."

This actually happens with sufficient frequency that he mentioned it matter-of-factly.

The Outreach Process

Here's where things get interesting. Manuel's approach to reaching brands is the opposite of what most sports properties do.

Standard sports property outreach: "Hi, we'd love to explore partnership opportunities. Can we set up a call?"

IRONMAN's approach: "Our athletes are requesting these specific products / services. We've identified three integration opportunities. Here are concrete activation ideas. Is this relevant to you?"

Manuel was emphatic about this approach: “It should never be a cold email that just tries to sell. The classic “Hey, I saw you were doing this, can we jump on a call?” is not how we work, prospects get 10, 15, even 20 of those every day”

The process involves coming with actual ideas, not vague partnership concepts. As Manuel explained: "It’s best to come with something key in hand. People in our industry value co-construction, and I respect that, but it can be quiet complex. Simply saying “let’s co-construct” without a clear starting point often leads to complications. So we try to be proactive in the ideas we share. “

They still pitch brands—Manuel was honest about this—but they pitch with substance rather than opportunity-speak.

Now, before we get back to IRONMAN's activation strategy, it's time for the news...

Activation Strategy

The Bulldog partnership included refreshing showers during marathon sections, recovery zones at finish lines, and product sampling in expo villages. Each activation served the athletes first, brand exposure second.

As Manuel described the strategy: "Their approach is a great example of using on-site experiences to strengthen brand engagement. What works is that they’re focusing on enhancing the athlete’s experience: at last week’s World Championship in Nice, runners could cool off under BullDog showers during the marathon. After crossing the finish line, a recovery area offered products, samples, and towels to help them recover.”

Every interaction was designed to elevate the athlete experience. Logo placement was secondary to functional benefits.

Manuel's philosophy: “If your goal is only awareness and logo placement, that’s easy, we can do it anywhere. But mindsets are changing: people aren’t just looking for impressions or branding visibility anymore. That’s why our strategy now focuses on meaningful engagement, creating experiences that connect with people and deliver real value.”

The distinction matters because it determines both pricing and execution complexity.

Partnership Structure

Manuel shared how partnerships are being created.

The variation depends on:

• Geographic scope (local vs. regional vs. global)

• Partner category (supplier vs. technical vs. premier)

• Activation complexity

• Rights granted (digital, on-site, IP usage)

They offer three partner levels, Premier, Technical, Supplier, each with a distinct focus. Some prioritize key branding pieces and content creation, others on-site activations or digital rights

No rate cards. Every package is customized based on brand objectives, which Manuel acknowledged is more time-intensive but leads to better partnerships.

The Long Game

Partnership discussions run 6 months to 1 year for regional and global deals. This timeline reflects the consulting approach—understanding brand objectives, developing custom solutions, and executing complex activations.

Manuel's process:

1. Understand what needs to be enhanced in the athlete journey and what categories are the most relevant for our community

2. Map all relevant brands in target categories

3. Identify decision-makers across 80-90 companies

4. Develop value-first outreach messages

5. Conduct consulting-style conversations

6. Create customized partnership packages

Manuel's measurement philosophy is refreshingly honest: "You can’t control the outcome, but you can control the process. I’m measured on sales, but that’s not where I focus or seek recognition. What matters is how many meaningful conversations I’ve had.”

He continued: "The number of people I engage with, the conversations I start, this is where I can truly make an impact.”

This approach generated multiple partnerships, including Bulldog as their first regional skincare partner.

What This Means Practically

IRONMAN's methodology offers specific lessons for different types of organizations:

For Established Properties: Survey your audience systematically. Use actual data to identify partnership categories. Develop activation concepts before approaching brands. Position partnership conversations as consulting engagements.

For Emerging Properties: Build audience insights first. Create content demonstrating understanding of brand challenges. Accept that meaningful partnerships take 6+ months to develop. Focus on brand fit over immediate revenue.

For Brands: Evaluate whether properties come with concrete ideas or vague concepts. Ask for audience data, not just demographics. Consider whether activations enhance customer experience or just generate impressions.

The Reality Check

IRONMAN operates from a position of strength. They have 47 years of brand equity, global reach, and an audience that literally tattoos their logo. Manuel was candid about this advantage: “I should have started by saying this: my life is easier than most because I work for IRONMAN, which is a global recognised brand, and I’m very aware of it. Every day, I talk with other salespeople to understand how they work and gain insights from those selling much smaller properties, and it’s clearly a different job”.

He continued: “At the same time, we’re not F1 yet. It’s much smoother when people already know your property. Awareness is a key help factor.

This context matters. IRONMAN can afford longer sales cycles and higher standards because brands want access to their audience. Smaller properties need to adapt these principles to their circumstances.

The core methodology remains applicable: systematic audience research, value-first outreach, and treating partnerships as consulting engagements. The execution details depend on your starting position.

IRONMAN has 47 years of brand equity and an audience that literally tattoos their logo. Manuel was honest: 'My life is easier because I work for IRONMAN. Every day I talk with salespeople at smaller properties - it's clearly a different job'.

Manuel's honest about the advantage. But many of those smaller properties are finding ways to compete by being more strategic, not just spending more.

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The Broader Shift

IRONMAN's approach reflects broader changes in sports marketing. Brands increasingly want integrated experiences rather than logo placement. Properties that can deliver strategic value will command premium pricing.

The question isn't whether you can attract partnerships. It's whether you can deliver the kind of systematic value that justifies premium pricing and long-term relationships.

IRONMAN has built this capability over five decades. The methodology, however, can be implemented much faster.

The question is whether you're willing to do the actual work of understanding your audience, rather than assuming you already know what they want.