Clorox Partners With Four NBA Franchises to Clean Arenas
With COVID-19 vaccines rolling out and the sports world slowly beginning to open up, Clorox has announced partnerships with four NBA teams, and their arenas, in hopes of keeping fans safe as they return to venues. Each of the four franchises were chosen for the partnership, the first of its kind for Clorox, because of their large metropolitan locations. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The Atlanta Hawks, New York Knicks, Washington Wizards and Golden State Warriors will receive guidance from Clorox on public health and safety protocols. In addition, Clorox will be providing the teams with disinfecting products such as Clorox wipes and the Clorox Total 360 electrostatic sprayer, which can cost anywhere from $2,500 to $9,000.
“How we think about clean has completely changed, and how we feel about public spaces is completely different,” Tad Kittredge, Clorox’s vice president of cleaning marketing and strategy, said in an interview. “People’s standards of being clean have evolved. They don’t just want to understand that it’s being cleaned, they want to see it being cleaned. People are really looking for signals and signs that they can trust, and that’s really an area that we can help organizations.”
The Hawks and Knicks are both operating at 10% capacity for their games, while the Wizards and Warriors have not yet allowed any spectators. Sportico was only able to speak with a representative of the Warriors.
“It has been our goal to make sure that we emerge from this as the safest arena in the United States,” said Kim Stone, general manager for the Warriors’ Chase Center. “A year ago you couldn’t get your hands on Clorox products because they were in such high demand, and people have such confidence in Clorox and the disinfecting, sanitization and cleanliness levels. For us it’s perfect.”
Golden State fans have not yet been able to enter Chase Arena due to the California Department of Public Health’s (CDPH) guidelines. But as virus cases continue to decline in the state, the CDPH announced last Friday it would allow restricted indoor gatherings. As to how many fans will be able to attend the games, the Warriors have not yet heard back from the city of San Francisco.
Still, Warriors owner Joe Lacob did say in November in order to have the Chase Arena at 50% capacity, his franchise would be willing to spend more than $30 million to test every fan, Warriors employee and player entering the arena.
“Even though we’re waiting, this entire year we’ve put a plan together, [and] we’ve got lots of scenarios, so we’ll be ready,” Stone said. “Our message has always been we’re just going to be prepared, so that when the conditions give us the opportunity to have fans return we can do it, and that’s what this partnership helps us with.”
Clorox’s Kittredge added: “We hope to help every fan feel safe and confident in their experience. By no means are we done; this is just the start.”
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