Soon, professional driver Michel Disdier will be adding students from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette to his NASCAR racing team, according to a press release from the school.

Disdier will be adding the brainpower of select members from the B.I. Moody III College of Business Administration’s sales program to his team to lead his 2021 efforts in U.S. sales, marketing, and corporate sponsorship management.

Professional driver Michel Disdier, who is originally from France, has established himself as a top, formidable competitor on several NASCAR racing circuits. This includes notable racing events such as the Camping World Truck Series and the NASCAR Pinty’s Series’ Canadian Tire Series. Disdier will be starting his 2021 season on February 12 when he races in NASCAR’s NextEra Energy 250 event at the notorious Daytona International Speedway.

Bizarrely enough, the name of Disdier’s racing business, which originated in France, is “Lafayette Racing,” so the partnership between his racing team and UL Lafayette’s Business students is seemingly preordained by fate itself. While speaking to ULL Press, Disdier said of the coincidence, “maybe this is just our destiny to work together.”

A Marketing instructor and interim director of the Moody College of Business’ Northwestern Mutual Sales and Research Lab, Dr. Valerie McGehee, will be mentoring the team of UL Lafayette students coordinating with Disdier’s racing team. On the monumental partnership, McGehee said, “I am so proud of these students. They never hesitated or questioned their ability to take on this work, and they continue to impress me. We have weekly Zoom meetings with Michel to update him on our progress and he has been wonderful to collaborate with.”

Members of Disdier’s sales team from UL Lafayette are Allison Gaubert, a management major with a concentration in professional sales, and Morgan Boggs, Megan DeJean, and Mackenzie Marze, who each are marketing majors minoring in professional sales. As the UL Lafayette Sales Team is still in their degree program, they see the lending of their sales and marketing efforts for the race car drivers as invaluable real world experience. Not to mention, they are also anxious and motivated to do whatever they can to ensure Disdier succeeds.

One student in particular, Mackenzie Marze, who loves sports, particularly NASCAR, will be overseeing the corporate sponsorships Disdier takes on for his 2021 racing season. Marze said of the unique chance, “I have an opportunity to learn how to market, strategize, present, and adapt to a whole new culture and brand.”

Team member Megan DeJean, who will direct sales and social media efforts, is reportedly looking forward to “taking everything we have been learning throughout college and putting it into practice for a real client.” Similarly, Allison Gaubert, who will be directing logistics and media is elated by the idea of collaborating with her academic cohorts and fellow sales team members to assist Disdier however they can. She remarked on the collaborative nature of the team by saying, “we all work so well together and are dedicated to this project.”

Lastly, Morgan Boggs’s role will be directing the promotional marketing efforts and managing the branding of Disdier and his total racing team. Boggs reportedly won’t allow things to be “all business,” as she is “ most excited to get the chance to see him race. I’ve never been to NASCAR but I always watch it on TV with my dad.”

Real-world application, experiences, and internships are cornerstones of every business major’s education, making this rare opportunity of UL Lafayette undergraduates managing the U.S. Sales and Marketing efforts of a professional NASCAR driver a once in a lifetime opportunity.

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