We are 12 days away from lift off for the 2024 Arrow McLaren Team Launch.

Have you noticed the rockets and mission control emojis and puns on social yet?

There’s a lot of excitement for the year ahead, and as we prepare for the launch days on February 6-8, we are determined to share more about our people behind the scenes that make everything we do come to life.

Today, we are telling the story and explaining the process in how the three Arrow McLaren Chevrolets are designed from a blank NTT INDYCAR SERIES car to what you’ll see in less than two weeks time.

We talked to McLaren Racing’s Jay Phillips, Specialist, Design & Production Brand Creative, and Lou McEwen, Executive Director, Brand & Marketing, to give us a better idea of everything that happens to make the Team Launch happen.

So much time and effort goes into the livery launch that fans should know more about. How long does this process take from start to finish?

“The IndyCar team’s design process can commence as early as June,” Jay told us. “Immediately following the busy month of May, the planning process for these events begins well ahead of time.”

Many factors come into play, when thinking through how much goes into the approval process.

“The timing changes on approvals based on various factors,” Jay said, “including the introduction of new partners, potential prospects, significant alterations to the IndyCar team or the addition of new drivers to the Arrow McLaren family.”

Lou McEwen also agreed it takes a team-wide collaborative effort to make this Arrow McLaren Team Launch moment a reality.

“The team is extremely collaborative and supportive of each other during key moments of the year,” Lou said.

“The knowledge sharing between our teams is vital and is what leads to exceptional liveries, plus supporting environmental physical assets being designed, but also ensuring there is a common brand thread which roles out across all channels.”

When asked about his excitement for the season ahead, Jay was quick to mention a hint into the liveries coming soon.

“We’ve streamlined the Arrow McLaren color palette to enhance visibility on the track, finding consistency across all McLaren Racing teams,” he said. “Additionally, we are showcasing a new race number to maximize impact, and I’m genuinely thrilled about the liveries the fans will see for the upcoming 2024 season.”

Achievements come in all forms, not just on the racetrack.

The effort put in to not just designing the liveries, but also the content creation for launch days is equally as important and takes a team.

“I’m grateful to be part of a team that can produce these incredible cars,” Jay said. “Bringing these liveries to the track is a substantial team effort, involving contributions from various individuals, including partnerships, engineering and the vinyl shop.

“At McLaren, we consider ourselves a racing family, and our synergy is most pronounced when we collaborate towards larger objectives together.”

But, we’re not done yet. With Team Launch less than two weeks away, we have much more to show.

“All of our campaigns and design projects are crafted in-house by our Brand Creative Studio team, an extension of our marketing department,” Jay said.

“An early start to our graphics and animations for launch start well in advance, too. This is essential. Our aim is to provide a high standard at the beginning of the year that is fresh and thrilling that fans will enjoy.” 

Lou agreed on the sentiment of pushing the team forward, focused on winning races and podiums across all the racing series.

“We keep pushing the boundaries to engage our fans across social,” she said, “to deliver the best experience for our partners whether that be at track, fan zones or events, and provide the best working environment for our employees to be at their best and doing ‘Whatever it Takes’ to be the best.”