Susie Wolff on F1's Future: Inside PepsiCo's billion dollar partnership

[00:01] Sozzi spoke to Susie Wolff, F1 Academy Managing Director, and Jane Wakeley, PepsiCo EVP and Chief Consumer and Marketing Officer. >> Good morning. >> it. Um before I can even get into this

[00:13] tell me about your story. How did you get this time to talk. >> Well, let me condense it into into a really small um efficient uh paragraph.

[00:25] eight, and obviously at the age of eight you're not thinking about the future, really realize I was a girl doing something unusual for girls cuz out on us. Um had a long racing career, raced for 7

[00:38] Touring Cars, then got my break in Formula 1 as a test driver and reserve driver with Williams Formula 1 team, and then moved into management in motorsport, running a Formula E team, we

[00:50] nearly won the world uh championship, and now I run F1 Academy for Formula 1, really about creating opportunity for young female drivers, and giving them the chance to climb up the ladder with the end goal of possibly seeing a girl

[01:04] >> Can I just give you a hell yeah? Like I I just think that I think I just I think how hard is it to be a trailblazer because that's what you are? >> I don't think of myself as a trailblazer at all. I was very lucky to find a

[01:18] passion early on in life. I never set out to prove what a woman could do. I set out on my own journey, and I just love being in a sport where I I enjoy opportunity because I was incredibly

[01:31] lucky in my career to be given chances which changed the whole course of of my career, and now I'm in the situation where I can make that happen for others, grateful for. >> Is it tempting to just drive? How do How

[01:45] wheel? Like she just driving you driving >> driving something bigger. It's a [laughter] to get behind the wheel again? Jane did a hot lap at the Monaco Grand Prix, and I did as well, but I was

[01:57] "Well, you're not keen to just like jump in the driver's seat?" But I I look back with fondness of all my years of racing, lot on my plate to make everything else work, and I enjoy it. So, and I'm also

[02:11] driver's seat, I want to be fast. And to be fast, you need to put the prep in. >> What was a hot What was a hot lap hot lap like for you? >> Exhilarating. Exhilarating. But look, Susie's book is called driven, right?

[02:24] >> Funny that, though. There's a clue The clues are in the title. But I honestly think, I mean, you are a trailblazer. I know you didn't set out to be that, but I think, you know, women's sport in general is on fire, and

[02:38] I'm super excited about the opportunities that Susie is opening for all women. Whether you're a driver, whether you're in business, whether you're starting your own to Cuz if you can see her, you can be her. And Susie,

[02:50] you know, you're amazing. >> Thank you. I mean, coming from someone >> Susie, how does this partnership work? How are you working with F1 Academy? >> Yeah. Well, I mean, look, we're partners in the in Susie's mission, and we

[03:04] actually partner with F1 Academy, but we also sponsor an incredible driver called Lisa Billiard. She's our Gatorade driver. So, she's on the track on all the races. And, you know, I mean, we're supporting it in in

[03:18] many ways. We're supporting it visibly with reach and with resonance. We try and tell stories to bring to life these incredible women who are all trailblazers, all incredibly courageous, following their passion, and

[03:32] But we're also supporting in terms of the science and the performance. drivers, they are real athletes. >> And, you know, they lose about 2 to 4 L of liquid during a race. And if you're

[03:48] of liquid during a race. And if you're dehydrated, like in any aspect of life, physically less well. So, this is an incredibly important performance aspect of the sport. So, what we've done is in recognizing that actually hydration,

[04:02] personalized hydration for drivers is key. Lisa's come to the Gatorade Sports Science Institute with us and done a personalized regime and we've really nutrition so she can perform her potential.

[04:14] >> How do you know out of all the amazing drivers in F1 Academy, how do you know who to work with and tell those stories with? >> you How were you able to tell who to work with within F1 Academy? How did you

[04:26] tell stories with? >> I think look, we we look for authentic partnerships where someone is really prepared to work with us. We're not We think of it as a partnership. So, for us for example, putting the time in,

[04:40] putting the performance, putting the research in, coming to the GSSI for a research in, coming to the GSSI for a whole week to train, to refine the schedule. We want to make to help make a difference and Lisa was incredibly open

[04:52] to that and and with Susie's guidance, we were we were pretty sure we had a incredible. >> Is this something where you Jane you you don't even measure metrics because the partnership is just so amazing and it's

[05:05] a great story to tell? >> Uh look, I love the thought that a CMO doesn't measure metrics. Of course we measure metrics as well and and look, here, but we also think this is a growth driver.

[05:17] You know, why do I care? Because I'm passionate about it. It's the right on fire. So, this is a growth driver for us. So, this isn't just a nice to do project on the side. This is

[05:30] our growth strategy. And you know, for something like Gatorade for example, um women have 20% less consumption than men >> Why? >> So, I want I want to make it clear the

[05:43] hard-nosed business facts of women's sport. Women's sport is on fire and brands should and can get involved because it's a major growth driver for lot on your plate right now. How are you growing F1 Academy?

[05:56] >> Well, I think just to touch upon what Jane said, um firstly, we don't expect Formula 1 for it to be a charity to build a platform that works for our partners, and that's something which for

[06:09] our long-term success is vital. What's game-changing for us is when a brand and a person like Jane comes to the table and says, "Yes, we want to enter F1, but we will also enter F1 Academy because that's where we also want to show up."

[06:22] imagine F1 Academy is only in its fourth year, like the WNBA, which has taken over 20 years to build, it's been an incredible journey in a short space of time because we've had the full support from within

[06:35] F1, from the management of F1 to all the F1 teams coming on board, to getting our slot on the F1 race weekends, and then brilliant brands coming in and saying, "This is where we want to show up. We want to support these young drivers."

[06:48] And that's really allowed us in a very short space of time to have a huge impact on the sport. And if you look down at the next generation, we've never karting, now seeing that they have a clear destination and they have a

[07:01] of the few sports in the world that isn't segregated men and women. And we that nearly fully funds our drivers because motorsport has a high financial barrier to entry. So, incredibly proud of what we've achieved, but very

[07:16] achieve because like Jane said, women's sport is on fire. Formula 1 is having an incredible um popularity and and growth over the last years, which looks set to continue, and that's really so much for us to capitalize on.

[07:31] >> What's the next big unlock for F1 uh Academy? Is it a broadcast deal? Is it adding more teams to the grid? >> I don't think it's any one singular foundation, and it's about making sure we evolve it year on year and keep

[07:44] building. We obviously want to always, you know, have a grow our audience, make sure that we have the eyeballs. The eyeballs count in many different ways. announcements coming and the work that we do at the very core because as much

[07:58] as it's great to create all the buzz and excitement, at the core there has to be credibility. And that's why brand partnerships like this, which are Gatorade are doing so much scientific research also on making sure our female

[08:11] drivers are given the right tools to be successful because women are different to men. We have 30% less muscle. What a female racing driver needs is slightly different to what a male driver needs and making sure that we get all of those

[08:23] building blocks in the right order and in the right place is is fundamental to >> The the racers on the grid right now in F1 Academy, how is their when you were driving?

[08:37] and and I had the situation at the first race in Shanghai where a driver's a female driver stood on our podium and 6 months previously she'd given up all hope on her her racing career, but we gave her a test. She did very well in

[08:51] And she came to me after the podium, she said, "I just can't believe how much my life is has changed in 6 months and that I'm standing on the podium on the Shanghai Grand Prix weekend." And to be a part of creating that

[09:04] opportunity for her, it's an opportunity I could only have dreamed of at that age because there wasn't the exposure, there wasn't the belief that a woman could. Um so, very proud not just of what F1 Academy's done, but the fact that

[09:17] Formula 1 has also put a lot of investment and opportunity to these young female drivers cuz they've recognized the global fan base is now 42% female. The fastest growing fan demographic is the 18 to 24-year-old

[09:30] female. We have such an opportunity to connect with our female fans. >> I was going to just say, so it's incredible because F1 Academy is bringing in new engagement and and and new viewers to

[09:45] F1, right? So that is an incredible recruitment drive. But the other thing that we're working on is the science behind sport for women, right? So one of the stats that Susie and I were just talking about is

[09:58] only 6% of the world's science for sports and hydration is actually done on men. And Susie said women are not men. You know, women are not little men. And yet most sports science is done exclusively

[10:10] on men and then generalized to women. So we're actually also working on how do we help women perform to their potential by really ensuring that we're also that is specifically done on women across life stages.

[10:25] can see how this really works. Like this is a No, no, really. This is like a both. Um Jen, you know, how I think you have one offense to your CEO Ramon Laguarta, who I've talked to for many years. Um on one

[10:41] products that have been in the market for decades. new wave of more health-focused products, whether it's protein snacks you have to market as well. How do you allocate those resources when

[10:54] the consumer is on GLP-1s? They want these protein snacks, but then, you know what, one random night during the month they want a full-calorie Pepsi. >> Look, we are pivoting our portfolio, as you know. We're incredibly proud of the

[11:06] whole range of our portfolio, but we are always putting consumer needs at the heart of what we do. And we're looking ahead to say what are the needs that, you know, consumers are shifting to and what will they shift to. And we have an

[11:19] incredibly exciting portfolio. I think, you know, I we you and I were talking about the protein, the need for more protein. And you know, Doritos protein is as as my son's favorite. >> Why wasn't this around when I was a kid?

[11:33] >> Why is it Yeah, why was it It's around now, but uh not for long cuz we can't make enough to keep up with demand. So, you know, look, we're Of course, we're here to serve the consumer. We reach billions every day, and it's our job to

[11:46] continue to do so. >> Uh lastly, Susie, um when will we see one of your amazing drivers on the grid? And why isn't this happened already? >> Well, I don't want to be judged on just getting women to Formula 1

[11:59] that. We can change the perceptions of women in in motorsport, we create so much opportunity. Will it happen? I think yes. Can Can I give you a down to talent. A door shouldn't be

[12:12] opened or an opportunity given just because it's a woman, but we will find a enough, and I have no doubt that there um because we just see so much exciting

[12:24] >> Well, I wish you uh both much success. It's good to see you here uh out on the It's good to see you here uh out on the end of the pier. I appreciate it.