MOORESVILLE, N.C., Feb. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Gary Baker, a retired Nashville, Tennessee tax attorney and CPA announced today that he has entered into an agreement to sell the company he founded in 1985, to the executive officers of Sports & Promotions, Inc. (S&P) and H.E.B., LLC, a Ft. Worth, Texas investment company. The on-site owners and management team with a combined 60 years in Motorsports are Bruce B. Barker, President and Chief Executive Officer; Jeannine Dubreuil, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer; and Lisa Hawkins, Vice President and Senior Account Executive. Mr. Baker continues to co-own Baker-Curb Racing in the NASCAR Nationwide Series.
"We would like to thank Gary Baker for affording us this tremendous opportunity," said Barker. "When our long-term president, Kirby Boone, left for Stewart-Haas Racing in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series in August of last year, Jeannine, Lisa and myself challenged ourselves to leverage our collective experience and expertise for the betterment of S&P, our clients and our employees. Gary Baker shares our vision and supports us now just as he has for the past twenty-five years. We will always be grateful to him for all he has done for us in the past and for our future."
The three S&P officers have a combined sixty years of experience at the company. Barker joined S&P in 1993 and created a mobile exhibit management model that increased by sixty percent the number of exhibits with two-thirds less staff. He also developed and executed the Tide Sports retail activation and exhibit program, managed Tide's NASCAR licensing program, developed and executed the Mr. Clean AutoDry Carwash product launch retail activation and SEMA trade show display program, and the IAMS/Wal-Mart Veterinary Appreciation Days mobile exhibit program. Barker was Vice President and Chief Operating Officer prior to becoming President and CEO in August 2008.
Dubreuil joined S&P in 1987 as Financial Director and became Chief Financial Officer in 1993. She developed and implemented systems and practices for client program pricing, operational accounting and reporting, purchase orders, risk management and all Human Resources employment practices. Dubreuil also managed client programs for Folgers, Secret, Kodak, Mac Tools, and AC Delco. She is also a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER(TM), now serving as Vice President and CFO.
Hawkins joined S&P in 1990 as Account Manager for Ultra Slim Fast, Ralston-Purina, and Tide's sponsorship of the SCCA/Trans-Am Series. Her most notable achievement was the management of Tide's NASCAR program. Under Hawkins' direction beginning in 1992, the innovative program became the benchmark in retail activation using sports as the platform, staying within budget and achieving payout return on investment during its entire run, ending fourteen years later in 2006. Hawkins also created and executed programs for Luv's and new product initiative, Bounty Super Duty Shop Towel. She became Vice President and Senior Account Executive in 2005.
"Ever since NASCAR came to Ft. Worth, we have been seeking an entry into the sport," said Scott A. Haire, Managing Partner in H.E.B., LLC. "Oddly enough, we first saw S&P and Bruce Barker in action at an Event just last year at the Kentucky Derby ... S&P did an outstanding job of planning and managing the event for their client's Kentucky Derby weekend event. We are excited to be involved with this talented group of S&P officers and their staff."
About Sports & Promotions, Inc.
Sports & Promotions, Inc. is committed to being the leader in the development and execution of sports and event marketing platforms. S&P's foundation is built on twenty-five years of experience in providing highly successful marketing programs for Fortune 500 companies such as Weyerhaeuser, Lowe's Home Improvement, Whirlpool, Exxon-Mobil, and Procter & Gamble mega- brands Folgers (acquired by the J.M. Smucker Company in 2008), Tide, Luvs, Secret, Bounty and Old Spice. S&P is headquartered in Mooresville, NC. For more information, visit www.sportsandpromotions.com .
