For nearly 20 years Pacific Bell (now AT&T) Park—home to the San Francisco Giants—has been considered one of the premier sports facilities in America. And Pacific Bell’s partnership with the ballpark is still considered one of the seminal naming rights deals of the 1990’s.
Kevin launched his work in naming rights with this innovative deal that led to the first privately financed ballpark in the country and a new model for sports teams and the communities they serve. The work was cutting-edge at the time as there were no models from which to build such an ambitious partnership.
With Pacific Bell taking a big risk, given a host of civic and economic challenges inherent in the stadium building plan, the brand had to receive a substantial amount of value in return for its $50 million commitment. The result was a 24-year agreement that has evolved over the years but has lived on to keep the original partnership intact, albeit under a different corporate name.
The deal provided a powerful platform for Pacific Bell and led to several additional naming deals developed by Kevin Bartram including Save Mart Center at CSU Fresno, for many years the largest university naming deal in the country, and multiple naming deals for Wells Fargo.