•  

•  

   March 12, 2007

   

  Giant Eagle to Sponsor 2007 Cleveland Wine Festival

   

  Cleveland -  Giant Eagle has been named the Presenting Sponsor of the 2007 Cleveland Wine Festival.  This marks the first Presenting Sponsorship for the 2^nd year festival.

   

  “We are delighted to have a company like Giant Eagle as our lead partner for our 2^nd annual Cleveland Wine Festival,” said Chris Previte, President of the Sponsorship Shop in Cleveland and one of the organizers of the event.  “They bring credibility to the festival and allow us to extend our marketing efforts to their extensive customer base.”

   

  Giant Eagle will serve as Presenting Sponsor for the Cleveland Wine Festival and will be the Official Wine Retailer.  They will also have exclusive on-site sales rights for all of the wines being sampled at the event.

   

  The Cleveland Wine Festival features over 25 wineries, each sampling multiple wines, live music, cooking demonstrations and wine seminars and some of Cleveland’s finest restaurants offering food, all held outdoors on the shores of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland.

   

  “Giant Eagle is excited about our association with this event.  We were impressed with the inaugural festival and hope to help grow the event this year,” said Derek J. Gaskins, Giant Eagle’s Director of Marketing.  “This event is a great fit for us as we look to grow our in-store wine sales and expertise.”

   

  The Cleveland Wine Festival is operated by the same group that runs wine festivals in downtown Chicago, Naperville, Il, the ChicagoBotanical Gardens and St. Louis, MO.

   

  Giant Eagle Inc. is one of the nation's largest food retailers and food distributors with approximately $6.2 billion in annual sales.  Founded in 1931, Giant Eagle, Inc. has grown to be the number one supermarket retailer in the region with 155 corporate and 72 independently owned and operated supermarkets in addition to more than 120 fuel and convenience stores throughout western Pennsylvania, Ohio, north central West Virginia and Maryland

   

  ###

   

   

  Media contacts:

   

  Chris Previte

  The Sponsorship Shop

  216-233-2457

  chris@thesponsorshipshop.com

   

   

• ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
•  
• FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

    Buckeye Sports Festival Names Exclusive
                  Sponsorship Sales Agency
                    The Sponsorship Shop tabbed to establish partnerships

November 2, 2006; Cleveland, Ohio -  The Buckeye Sports Festival has named an exclusive sponsorship sales agency to represent the games in establishing partnerships for this first year event.  The Sponsorship Shop has joined Ohio's amateur athletic games to assist in securing corporate participation and retail extensions.

"We are excited to be working on the Buckeye Sports Festival," said Chris Previte, President of The Sponsorship Shop.  "The event is sure to be a success in Ohio and it's mission and long range plan are a great fit for our company."

The Sponsorship Shop, based in Cleveland, Ohio, is a sponsorship sales and consulting agency that works with both sponsor properties as well as companies that participate in sponsorship.  The company was started in 2005 by sponsorship veteran Chris Previte, who brings extensive experience in sponsorship sales & execution, marketing, promotions and event management.

"The Buckeye Sports festival is delighted to have a partner like The Sponsorship Shop working with us.  They bring great experience and professionalism to our event and we look forward to a long-term relationship," said Vinny Maculaitis, Director of Marketing for the Buckeye Sports Festival.

Thousands of youth athletes between the ages of 9-17 plus men and women participating in adult open divisions will compete next summer in the Buckeye Sports Festival.  The Buckeye Sports Festival represents what will become an annual competition to crown amateur state champions from an extensive list of team and individual sports.

                                                                  ###