Kia Motors America Inc. set up “a fully functioning race track” in New York to host its Stinger Runway racing event this month. The Irvine-based automaker invited fashion designer Brandon Maxwell, supermodels Candice Swanepoel and Joan Smalls, baseball legend Alex Rodriguez, writer and TV host Derek Blasberg, and social media superstar Cameron Dallas to race its 2018 Kia Stinger.
The event, which Swanepoel won, coincided with New York Fashion Week.
“The Kia that people knew just five years ago is gone, and our new image is what attracts the young, and the young at heart, in fashion, music, sports and entertainment to take part in our fast-paced runway race,” Kia President and Chief Executive Justin Sohn said in a statement. “We congratulate Ms. Swanepoel on her record-setting Stinger Runway Racing win.”
G is for Genesis, Golf
Genesis Motor America signed on as an automotive sponsor of 34 charity and amateur golf tournaments across the country.
The Fountain Valley-based automaker will sponsor “hole-in-one opportunities” to win a vehicle, and invite two winners from each tournament to compete in the Genesis Invitational at the Streamsong Resort in Bowling Green, Fla., Oct. 22 to 25.
“Golf is a game built on honor, respect and mutual admiration, all attributes that are aligned with the spirit of Genesis,” head of marketing Kate Fabian said in a statement. “The esteemed charity tournaments we are partnering with provide funding to some incredibly worthy causes. We are looking forward to engaging the participants in the Genesis brand and showing them our interpretation of luxury.”
Genesis, in addition to its title sponsorship of the Genesis Open, is also the official vehicle of the CareerBuilder Challenge and the Farmers Insurance Open.
The automaker recently hired Marty Focht for the role of senior group manager, sales. He reports to General Manager Erwin Raphael. Focht worked at Mercedes-Benz for the past 20 years in sales, distribution, customer service, strategic retail development and incentives planning.
“This position is vital to the growth of Genesis Motor America,” he said in a statement. “[Marty’s] experience will allow us to focus on long-term strategic goals like optimizing our network for sustainable retailer success as well as more short-term tactical objectives like getting the word out about our complimentary service valet.”
Peek Into Hermès
Hermès’ artisans from Lyon, France, took over South Coast Plaza’s Jewel court for nearly a week, demonstrating silk scarf printing technique. They worked on two colorful Hermès scarf designs, “Astrologie Nouvelle” and “De la Mer au Ciel.” The event was part of the Costa Mesa-based shopping center’s 50th anniversary celebration. The boutique opened in 1997 and is the brand’s only location in Orange County.
Bits & Pieces
Irvine-based employee benefits brokerage firm Burnham Benefits Insurance Services hired Rosa White as marketing manager. She’ll handle all aspects of marketing and work to increase public awareness and develop business. … Irvine-based ConversionPoint Technologies Inc. launched Cruise Control, “a machine learning update to the company’s media optimization module, DriveBy.” The platform enables e-commerce marketers to “deploy infinitely more combinations of media buys and landing pages, resulting in real-time analysis of a company’s entire media buy environment and an increase in ROI.”
