Marketing Report London 2012 - International Olympic Committee

8 FOREWORD
Sebastian Coe, Chairman, London 2012 Organising Committee
The summer of 2012 is one that will go down in UK history as a time of great national pride and
national celebration. The success of the Olympic Games was down to a combination of factors. The
support shown by the UK public created an extraordinary backdrop for the athletes, inspiring them
to put in some of the most memorable performances ever seen. Our Games Makers made a unique
and outstanding contribution to the success of the Games, providing assistance and support to
competitors, spectators and organisers. In short, London – and indeed the whole of the UK – was a
special place to be in the summer of 2012.
Our marketing partners also played a crucial role in making these Games a success. Without them,
the Games simply wouldn’t have happened. We had a group of world-class companies providing
funding, products, services, people and expertise, all of which contributed hugely and will always be
part of the London 2012 family. We couldn’t have done it without them and on behalf of the whole
organisation I would like to say ‘thank you’ to them. Many of their activation plans have taken to heart
our vision to use the Games to inspire lasting change and I hope this will continue.
There was massive demand for tickets to London 2012. We stuck to our three guiding principles
– we needed to raise enough revenue to help us stage the Games; we needed to make the
tickets accessible; and we needed to make them affordable. As a result, we saw venues full of
knowledgeable and passionate sports fans.
We also thought carefully about the merchandise programme for London 2012. We set challenging
sustainability targets for our licensees and asked them to raise the bar when it came to Games
related products. They did this spectacularly and we had a wide range of products available, from
collectables to pocket money prices.
Against the backdrop of a challenging economic climate, our commercial programme raised the vital
revenue required to stage these Games. More than that, the programme also helped us to reach and
inspire millions of people. At the start of the Games I said that London 2012 would see the best of us.
I said we would light a flame to ignite the world. We have done this – and more. As a nation we now
know what we are capable of achieving.