NIVEA shares the care: new life for abandoned ice rinks

Winter is traditionally the longest and most-loved season in Russia. All major festivals are held at this time and every winter season is guaranteed to feature ice hockey and ice skating, the most popular winter sports. The latter is viewed as a ‘sport for all’, promoting quality time for families and health through sports.

Russian cities and towns used to have at least one public ice rink but many such facilities have been abandoned and are no longer safe to use. It is rather unlikely that those rinks will be brought back to life as the renovation requires high investments. This is where NIVEA comes in. Starting in 2014, 12 abandoned rinks across the country have been restored as a result of the “Vote for Your Ice Rink!” social activation.

NIVEA’s voting contest allows all Russians to nominate an abandoned ice rink in their area. The one with the most votes receives funding from NIVEA to enable it to be brought back to life. After its reconstruction, the rink is maintained by its respective city administration. 
In the first year of the contest, NIVEA received 61 submissions from 51 cities. In 2017 the figures leapt to 327 submissions from 131 participating cities. Modernized ice rinks can now be found from Kostroma to Bratsk; the cities of Tolyatti, Novosibirsk and Velikiye Luki were added in 2017. 

Beiersdorf Russia Marketing Director Thomas Dodane enthusiastically recounts, “We’ve been running the 'Vote for Your Ice Rink!' project for a good reason: NIVEA is one of the leading global skin care brands, and providing care is its main mission. Our aim to care for consumers in Russia led to the project's development.”

The official openings of the renovated ice rinks are supported by athletes from local sports schools, hockey clubs and figure skating centers. This year, also TV celebrities from the popular series “Youth Team” joined the opening ceremony in Novosibirsk. 
Senior Brand Manager and project leader Ekaterina Solomko also highlights the importance of the project: “The 'Vote for your Ice Rink' contest reflects the values of the Beiersdorf company. By taking care of our consumers and their families, we can give them joy and smiles. We are going to do everything we can to make ice rinks better, and their openings even more exciting.” 
This week, a new voting phase started and thereby the path to newly-built skating rinks in Russia.