Leader of the Pack: Where Sports Meets the Streets
On The Road With Sports Marketing Executive Reggie Casagrande
Reggie Casagrande has a vision. Its part and parcel of her new role as a global sports marketing strategy executive for the eyewear and apparel brand Oakley Luxxotica where she works with top athletes. Casagrande has a long history of marrying sports culture and streetwear after stints at Adidas, Converse, Ntwork and most recently as Chief Marketing Officer for Melody Ehsani.
Casagrande’s marketing work has also touched squarely on auto industry clients. Even before she thought about cars professionally, Casagrande describes herself as a longtime car lover, dating back to her years as a muscle car collector. We checked in with Casagrande to hear how car culture has been a driving force in the Los Angeles chapter of her life.
Car Loving
To give you a little background, I grew up on muscle cars. My first car out here was a ‘67 Barracuda, with a 357 in it. I was like a Mopar fanatic. I think my mechanic was on my speed dial more than anyone else I was friends with was, so I was always calling him. Like whenever it rained, from the start you know there was always drama with that car. I moved to a ‘68 Cougar and then my last muscle car was a red 1966 Mustang. I ended up crashing and that was it for me in terms of the muscle cars. I decided I needed something a little bit more reliable and a little bit less cumbersome with air conditioning and stuff like that, but it was a lot of fun while it lasted.
Driving a Sporty Lifestyle
For the last decade I would say I pretty much stick to German cars. I drove a BMW X3 and now I drive an Audi Q3. The SUV really kind of works well for my lifestyle, because I'm really outdoorsy. I have my paddle boards and my hiking stuff and I've got dogs. It works really well just to be kind of outdoors and schlepping. I like being a little bit above the ground. I tested a sports car and for a while my husband had a Porsche. I drove (the Porsche) but I just didn't love it to be honest with you. I didn't love being that close to the ground on the freeway. It kind of made me a bit nervous being in a small car like that.
Where Sports and the Streets Meet
I live near the beach. My favorite drive is up the Pacific Coast Highway and through Topanga Canyon. I love driving in the canyon. It probably should be in a convertible, but I love driving up the coast and watching the ocean and sunset and getting into the canyon and having these beautiful like mountains and vistas. It's very romantic and beautiful and relaxing. I'll blare my music. I'm usually listening to hip hop or rock. It’s Jay-Z or Biggie or Judas Priest or ACDC. It depends on my mood. That's kind of like my unwind time.
Women Setting the Pace In Car Culture
Women are great multitaskers. They're very multidimensional and I think having that perspective and marketing to them is really going to benefit a company, and of course a car company. A car is really a tool to enable a lifestyle. It gives you pleasure, enjoyment, and provides safety. Those are all things that female consumers are looking for in a vehicle. They want to look good, but they also want to make sure their utilitarian needs are being met. A friend of mine, funny enough, has a Toyota Prius and it was kind of old. I was like, when are you getting rid of this thing? She goes, are you kidding me, people stop me on the street to try to buy this from me. She's like, this car is in demand.