Veteran motorsports executive Chris Schwartz is joining the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as vice president of marketing, IMS President Joie Chitwood announced Nov. 14.
Schwartz, who joins IMS after a distinguished tenure at Penske Racing, will be responsible for all marketing activities for IMS and its three world-class events, the Indianapolis 500, Allstate 400 at the Brickyard and Red Bull Indianapolis GP. He will begin his new role Nov. 26.
“I am pleased to bring Chris on board as vice president of marketing, ” Chitwood said. “His experiences in the motorsports industry will be a great addition to the team we have at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. ”
Schwartz succeeds Terry Angstadt, who earlier this year became Indy Racing League president, commercial division.
Indianapolis native Schwartz has more than 13 years of motorsports management experience. He most recently served as director of marketing and communications for 14-time Indianapolis 500 winner Penske Racing, a leading team in the IndyCar Series, NASCAR and American Le Mans Series.
“I am pleased to have the opportunity to work for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Hulman-George family, ” Schwartz said. “I value the rich history of the Speedway and its position of leadership in motorsports entertainment. The Indianapolis Motor Speedway is synonymous with excellence and innovation, and I look forward to promoting its heritage and exciting future to people everywhere. ”
At Penske, Schwartz was responsible for marketing and communications initiatives, including management of the Penske Racing brand, sponsor development and activation, news media information and internal communication between the team and Penske companies since December 2001.
From 2000-01, Schwartz was a director for motorsports marketing company M3 Management. He was responsible for business development in the company’s Midwest office, working with such clients as IndyCar Series champion Panther Racing, No Fear and GM Factory Corvette Racing.
Before joining M3, Schwartz was the manager, NASCAR marketing for Conseco, Inc., in 1999-2000. He managed the company’s official NASCAR sponsorship and its primary team sponsorship with A. J. Foyt Racing. Among his efforts were an in-car camera program that generated more than $10 million of media exposure and the development of a successful e-commerce storefront for Conseco Racing merchandise.
Schwartz’s motorsports experience began during his tenure with The Valvoline Company from 1994-99. He was a sales representative and then NASCAR coordinator for the company, directing Valvoline sponsorships in NASCAR’s three premier series while working internally with marketing, promotion, sales and advertising departments to execute an integrated, multi-brand marketing program.
In 1999, Valvoline teams generated $48 million of television exposure in NASCAR’s three premier series, more than any other team. Schwartz also was instrumental in creating the Caring Hands corporate cause program with Big Brothers/Big Sisters of America, which generated more than $1 million in contributions and recruited more than 1,000 volunteers.
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