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For years NHRA Drag Racing fans have been witness to the “tool wars” between Professional teams sponsored by rival tool companies, but there’s a new player in town who has earned the spotlight after agreeing to sponsor both the reigning Funny Car world champion and NHRA’s oldest and most prestigious event, the U.S. Nationals.

For more than a century, Cornwell Quality Tools has been a key player in the mobile tool industry, but for much of its history, it has remained something of a well-kept secret. That all changed in recent years, thanks in large part to a strategic marketing shift that led the company to partner with NHRA and John Force Racing. Now, Cornwell, which was founded in 1919, is not only making waves in motorsports but also seeing measurable success in brand recognition and sales growth in an initiative led by Don Russell, director of marketing at Cornwell Tools. Russell, a veteran marketer of tools for most of his life, is responsible for the overall marketing strategy and look and feel of the company’s materials, including print, packaging, videos, and website. He also handles advertising and sponsorships.

“We’ve been in the tool wars for quite a while, and our business had grown to the point that we didn’t want to be the best-kept secret in the industry anymore,” said Russell. “We looked at where we could spend our advertising dollars to get the biggest impact, and after a lot of analysis, we saw that the NHRA audience matches up with our customers and dealers really well.”

The decision to invest in NHRA sponsorship began in 2018, starting modestly as an associate sponsor with John Force Racing. Cornwell monitored the results carefully.��

“We measured the response, and it was good,” said Russell. “We threw some more money at it, and the response got better. Over the years, we just kept growing, leading us to where we are today.”

Choosing to partner with JFR was a calculated decision. “When we were looking at teams, we heard there was a possibility to do something with John Force. When I was talking to the president of the company about this investment, I raised the point: If we’re going to try this, shouldn’t we minimize our risk? And if we go with John Force Racing, they’re arguably the top team. That kind of removes the question of whether we picked the right team to spend our money with.”

Cornwell’s commitment to NHRA has only deepened since then. The company recently signed a three-year agreement to be the primary sponsor of Austin Prock’s Funny Car, further cementing its presence in the sport. But beyond simple branding, Cornwell takes a data-driven approach to assessing the success of their investment.

“Part of it is sales, but we also track new dealers who come to Cornwell and trace their first interactions back to a race event. When they become dealers, I track their sales for two years and credit that growth to our NHRA involvement. We also use a sophisticated program to measure impressions across print, TV, Facebook, and other social platforms, converting those impressions into dollar values,” Russell explained.

That investment took another significant step forward when Cornwell signed on as the title sponsor for the NHRA U.S. Nationals in Indianapolis.

“Last year, we got a taste of how big Indy was when Austin won, and as we learned more about NHRA and its events, we realized just how significant the U.S. Nationals is,” Russell admitted. “When the opportunity to be the title sponsor came up and we saw the benefits and the improvements going into the track, we knew we wanted to be part of this.”

Cornwell has also introduced NHRA-themed toolboxes, with plans to unveil an NHRA-branded box at the U.S. Nationals.��

Unlike competitors who sell through multiple channels, Cornwell maintains a unique business model, selling exclusively through franchise dealers.��

“Every tool we sell is face-to-face, handshake to handshake, one person at a time. You can’t buy our stuff online,” Russell noted. “That one-on-one interaction is key to our success.”

Ultimately, Russell credits the success of Cornwell’s NHRA partnership to teamwork across the company.��

“If our CFO and CEO didn’t see the numbers and weren’t believers, if the sales team didn’t take advantage of it, and if my own team didn’t support it, this wouldn’t work. I get the privilege of being the point man, but there’s a lot of people involved in making this program successful.”

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