At Broward, it’s support for the sport
Florida dealership sponsors Pro Watercross World Championship
At the end of the day, Broward Motorsports wanted its title sponsorship of the Broward Motorsports Pro Watercross World Championship to support and promote the sport that both enthusiasts and consumers alike have grown to love.
“I’ve been around the sport. I’ve seen it in its high times, in its low times, and I just felt that it was something that was really good for the sport,” said Sam Nehme, president and owner of Broward Motorsports. “I thought what [Pro Watercross founder] AJ [Handler] was doing with his organization was something very positive.”
“The watercraft market has been really strong. It’s been really positive, and it’s been really good for us. I was around from the 1980s on and when in 1995-96 watercraft really spiked. … I’d love to see it get back to that level,” he said.
Broward Motorsports carries Yamaha, Honda, Suzuki, Kawasaki, Sea-Doo, Can-Am, BMW and Polaris across three Florida locations: Davie, Ft. Lauderdale and West Palm Beach. Nehme says the dealership has seen a spike in Sea-Doo sales since the Spark’s debut, but all of its PWC brands have seen an upward trend.
During the championship in Naples, Fla., Broward shared a display with fellow sponsor Yamaha. “We did a display with them at the event, so we did promote the Yamaha watercraft brand throughout the event, and all the signage certainly incorporated their names in it,” he said. “Special thanks to Yamaha for stepping up.”
Broward was well represented at the event with signage, and its name appeared on all the course buoys as well. “The PA announcers really promoted Broward Motorsports throughout the event. … They even had our name out on the buoys that were on the course, so they did a great job of promoting both our name and our company,” he said.
The event aired on TV twice in October with an hour-long program on CBS Sports Network and, in addition to day-of exposure, Broward also elected to run a few commercials during the segment. And while the sponsorship may or may not have contributed to immediate sales, the affiliation will be beneficial to the dealership — and the PWC industry — for the long haul.
“I never anticipated to see sales or really anything come of it from a monetary standpoint. I never looked at it as something like that; I saw it as supporting the sport which would help the industry as a whole,” he added.
Nehme has been around PWC racing for the majority of his life. He began racing when he was 12 and in more recent years won a world title after coming out of retirement. Now, his son has begun racing as well, and Nehme wants to continue to support the sport that he grew up with.
“AJ and his family really did a great job for a first-time event. They had a great award ceremony, and they really went above and beyond to make this event a great one. I can only see it getting better year after year,” Nehme said. “We’re definitely excited to watch it grow.”