Widener's And Chad Finchum: Building A Long-Term Partnership Between NASCAR And The Shooting Sports Industry

For those in the racing community that didn’t know the name of Chad Finchum surely knew it after April’s Talladega Cup Series race. Finchum flew to the front of the 190mph field and led eight laps.

Now, as the season winds down Chad is still flying –  and it’s to the gun range with his newest partnership. Finchum, a Tennessee native of Knoxville, has partnered with Tennessee-based company Widener’s.  

Widener’s roots date back to 1978, being built on decades of experience in the ammunition and reloading supplies industry.

Long before internet purchases became the norm, Widener’s was doing drop-shipping and accessories via mail orders before moving online in 1996. Throughout the years Widener’s has fulfilled orders to customers all across the U.S. from their East Tennessee-based warehouse. The Widener’s brand prides themselves on precision, accuracy and speed when it comes to fulfilling orders. 

With those nearly five decades of experience, the Widener’s company is aligning its brand with Chad Finchum in a partnership that brings together two Tennessee-connected brands with an opportunity to reach and pull in audiences across motorsports and the shooting sports industry. 

The connection between Widener’s (wideners.com) and Finchum began through a previous company that Widener’s had established business with. The decision to work with Finchum was about finding someone who could represent the company, with the organization seeing Finchum as their next brand ambassador.

Finchum’s authentic true-to-self personality and world-wide reputation made a partnership offer make sense – now throw in with Finchum’s ability to connect with an audience and you have the ideal face of the partnership.

A spokesperson for Widener’s describes Finchum as someone who embodies the values, personality, and business look that is critical when it comes to brand representation. According to Widener’s, Finchum has been easy to work with and fun when it comes to creating content for promotional videos and photos.

The spokesperson said “He (chad) made it easy to see the long-term partnership potential of connecting with passionate NASCAR fans who also enjoy the shooting sports industry.

Customers can go on the wideners.com and use the discount code CHAD66 at checkout for savings. 

“Can I get a mag,” said Chad Finchum during a promotional video for Widener’s while he was at a shooting range in what was a cross between NASCAR (racing) talk and gun range shooting. Finchum’s representation of Widener’s is one that could catch even a non-gun owner's eyes with how entertaining the promotional collaboration is.

The partnership originally started earlier in the year. “We had a great experience working together,” said Finchum, “and it became pretty apparent that there was a natural fit between Widener’s, my personal interests, and my audience.”

Finchum and Widener’s recently collaborated in September, with Finchum telling the New York Sports Show that he’s excited to continue growing the relationship. As a driver in the top level of NASCAR, Chad believes that building his personal brand goes well beyond what he accomplishes behind the wheel of a race car. “It’s about developing genuine relationships with companies that share similar interests and values,” said the Cup Series driver.

Doing the gun range videos is one of the funnest moments for Finchum, as he opened up about his non-racing hobbies. “Racing is obviously my profession and something I’m extremely passionate about, but shooting is another hobby that I genuinely enjoy.”

Finchum has been interested in firearms for years and finds that factor to be very important when it comes to the partnership, making it authentic.

He also mentioned how this partnership has allowed him to showcase his hobby to his fans, saying, “One of the coolest things about these partnerships is getting the opportunity to step outside the racing world and showcase a different side of my personality,” said Finchum. “When we’re filming at the range, it really doesn’t feel like work. We’re out there having a great time, enjoying the shooting sports, and creating content that I think my audience genuinely enjoys watching.”

Widener’s told the New York Sports Show that a race sponsorship with Finchum could be in the making, but current NASCAR rules are very strict when it comes to gun and ammo sponsorships. 

Nonetheless, the Widener’s company has showcased nearly a half-century of evolution as being a trusted retailer. With Widener’s continuing its partnership with Chad Finchum, it also continues to create more pages in their history book.