Our partnerships

our partnership

Our partnerships

McLaren - A collaboration rooted in advanced technology

We are proud to be partners with McLaren, one of the most famous names in Formula 1 motorsport.


Our multi-year partnership gives us truly global marketing and innovation platforms to help accelerate our journey with our New Category products, focused on creating A Better Tomorrow™ for our consumers, shareholders, society and employees.

Having signed an initial collaboration agreement with McLaren in February 2019, we later that year, further enhanced our partnership, signing a new agreement which continues to support our corporate strategy by accelerating our transformation. “Accelerating Transformation” is at the heart of our commitment to achieving A Better Tomorrow™ by growing our portfolio of New Category products, which include our leading vapour range, Vuse, and our modern oral product, Velo.

Through our partnership with McLaren, we have a “dynamic branding” approach which sees us vary our branding race-by-race, at all times in line with applicable regulations and legislation.

Central to BAT’s partnership with McLaren is our ongoing work with McLaren Accelerator. These workstreams are centred within exploratory R&D and co-innovation, focused on the early stages of the programme as we share technology expertise to enhance our New Category product pipeline.

Our partnership includes:

  •  Significantly increased branding positions on the McLaren Formula 1 car – including highly visible new sidepod branding, inside halo and front wing branding positions;
  •  Partnering with Arrow McLaren SP in IndyCar in the U.S.

Kingsley Wheaton, BAT’s Chief Strategy and Growth Officer, said: “We’re extremely proud of our partnership with McLaren which has been going from strength-to-strength – whether it’s increased awareness of our portfolio of New Category products, technology insights and expertise to support our R&D activities or using the platform to create excitement amongst colleagues internally, we are absolutely delighted with what our partnership has delivered to date.

Building a better tomorrow

“Our partnership is giving us truly global marketing and innovation platforms to accelerate our journey with our New Categories business, focused on creating a better tomorrow for our consumers, shareholders, society and employees.”

Zak Brown, Chief Executive of McLaren Racing, added: “BAT’s transformation agenda remains central to this partnership, as does a shared focus on technology and innovation and we look forward to continuing our work together.”