Major sponsor Suzuki New Zealand has taken the game to another level by committing to drop a Suzuki Vitara Turbo in price during a 60-second DROPIT reverse auction at ‘The Great Vodafone Warriors Charity Day’ at Mount Smart Stadium on Sunday (July 22).
The game day charity event, a first for a New Zealand sporting event, has been built around the Vodafone Warriors’ highly-anticipated round 19 clash against the Melbourne Storm in support of charity partners KidsCan, Paralympics New Zealand, Ronald McDonald House Charities and Shine.
The Vodafone Warriors have vowed to donate $50,000 to the four-way cause if the match is a sell-out while a wide range of other initiatives have been launched to boost the fundraising drive.
Now Suzuki has joined the Vodafone Warriors in partnering with leading Kiwi tech company DROPIT and its sports engagement app to drop the Suzuki Vitara’s retail price to zero across 60 seconds.
“We’re fully committed to doing all we can to help the Vodafone Warriors with this great cause and this is our way of chipping in,” said Suzuki’s general manager of marketing Gary Collins.
“It’s brilliant what the club is doing and we’re really looking forward to seeing a member or fan walking away with the keys to a brand new Suzuki Vitara Turbo at a very special price.”
Vodafone Warriors commercial manager Glenn Critchley said the DROPIT auction for the high spec two-tone Suzuki Vitara – valued at $34,790 plus on-road costs – would be the big feature during the halftime break in the NRL match.
“It’s a great idea and will add another dimension to what’s going to be a really special game day,” he said.
DROPIT is an interactive reverse auction app where the price of an item drops to zero in the space of 60 seconds.
The mass audience activation platform was created and launched in November 2015 by Mount Maunganui co-founders and brothers Peter and Brendan Howell. Their vision was to connect sponsors and sports teams with their fans during drop auctions in-stadium. The technology has been used in the United States, Australia and here in New Zealand.
DROPIT CEO Peter Howell says the tech company is proud to be back in New Zealand and partnering with the Vodafone Warriors and Suzuki.
“It’s such a good cause and we can’t wait to see the stadium packed full of fans cheering the Vodafone Warriors to the top eight,” he says.
“Anytime the Vodafone Warriors and Storm meet it is a great spectacle, and we will be doing our best to raise the bar even further.”
The Vodafone Warriors will also be dropping a Vodafone Warriors fan pack worth $4000. This includes four tickets to the Captains’ Club for the club’s match against the Knights on August 10 plus a $250 food and beverage package, a signed jersey, a night’s accommodation at SKYCITY for four (two twin rooms), the opportunity to attend the captain’s run on Thursday and a behind the scenes tour.
All game day attendees will get the chance to play DROPIT, swipe up and choose their price on the brand new Suzuki Vitara.
Fans will need to come to the game with the app downloaded from the Apple App Store, or Google Play Store. DROPIT has launched the previously unavailable Android version of the app ready for Sunday’s 4.00pm kick-off.
