EARNHARDT’S DEPARTURE PUTS
BRAKES ON BUD ENDORSEMENT
Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s defection from longtime family racing team Dale
Earnhardt Inc. means that Budweiser is losing one of its most recognizable
drivers.
Earnhardt Jr., who reportedly left DEI over a conflict with his stepmother,
Theresa Earnhardt, is also losing his #8 car along with his longtime
sponsor in order to join Hendrick Motorsports, where, ironically, he
replaces Kerry Busch.
With Hendrick having long-term commitments already in place at the
time of the signing, according to team owner Rick Hendrick, Earnhardt
Jr.’s sponsor simply can’t break into the fold.
On June 13, Earnhardt Jr. signed on to race for Hendrick Motorsports
beginning in 2008, but primary sponsorship of his team remains undecided.
No timetable has been established for an announcement.
“Budweiser has sponsored Dale Jr. for nearly a decade, and we wish
him the very best,” said Tony Ponturo, vice president of global media and
sports marketing for Anheuser-Busch, Inc. “Budweiser will remain an
active sponsor of NASCAR, and we look forward to building upon the
legacy of the iconic Budweiser red car in 2008 and
beyond.”
“To climb into that red Budweiser car each weekend
has always been a privilege,” Earnhardt Jr. said.
“Although Budweiser and I will be unable to continue
our partnership beyond this season, I remain committed
to driving for Bud the rest of this year, and will
continue to make it my beer of choice.”
With only a year gap in place for Budweiser, and
Earnhardt Jr. one of the sport’s top drivers – as well
as its most recognizable one – it’s highly unlikely that
he’ll sit out of the red for too long.
DEALBOARD
Summertime
Romance Edition
Remember sitting in the
cabin at camp talking about
who you liked but getting caught sneaking out by the
counselor on-duty? That’s what happened in mid summer,
when it appeared that Coke might be trying to
find out if it could arrange a meeting with Snapple after
its parent company, Cadbury Schweppes, sells off
its beverage brands to a private equity prince.
Meanwhile, PepsiCo, which has been out of the
game this year after a very busy 2006, has apparently
developed a taste for European food and beverage conglomerates,
as it reportedly sent moony love signals to
both Groupe Danone and Nestle in the first half of
the year.
Regardless, until someone actually asks someone
else out, everyone’s staying single.
BEER FOR
MY HORSES,
LICENSED
WATER
PRODUCTS
FOR ME...
He’s got his own whiskey,
and now apparently Willie
Nelson needs a little something
to chase a shot with. So
welcome to the debut of Willie
Nelson Spring Water, put
out by Simpson Distributing
LLC. Bottled in the Ozarks,
the product is wrapped in a
label featuring the grand old
man and his tour bus. For
more info, check out www.willienelsonspringwater.com.
SAUCY LICENSING DEALS
Continuing the great Southern tradition
of cooking with cola, Cadbury
Schweppes has entered into
a licensing deal with Vita Food
Products Inc. to produce Dr. Pepper,
7Up and A&W Root Beer barbeque
sauces.
We’d have tried them ourselves,
but as regular readers of the Bev-
Blog know, we were a bit busy pulling
together energy drink can barbecued
chicken. In other barbecue
news, now it can be told: the secret
recipe for steak tips is 1 part Italian
dressing, 1 part ketchup, and 1
part Coca-Cola. Awesome.
THE AD GAME:
THE KIDS ARE OFF-LIMITS
Count PepsiCo among those beverage
companies who are reconsidering
their ad strategies – the company
has stated that it will not be
advertising soda or high-fat
or high-sugar snack foods on
shows aimed directly at the
12-and-under set.
There have been major
questions about a link between
advertising and child obesity,
especially in the wake of a recent
Kaiser Family Foundation report that
showed the barrage of junk food ads most
kids see in their early years, But some groups, particularly the Center
for Consumer Freedom (CCF), would rather that PepsiCo not
buckle.
The CCF recently trumpeted a study in the Archives of Pediatric
& Adolescent Medicine that attempted to debunk any links between
childhood obesity and food advertising.
Regardless of the finding, PepsiCo isn’t the only company feeling
the heat; General Mills and Kraft are also pulling ads. Whether the
changes move into licensed beverage brands is more of an issue for
retailers – promotions or product lines related to child-centric entertainment
are time-honored sales tools, and any reduction in those
kinds of products would likely affect the bottom line for retailers.
File Under: Shrinking Shreks!
SPYKES SPIKED
The Spykes saga has finally ended.
Anheuser Busch, bowing to
pressure from watchdog groups –
as well as the Connecticut Attorney
General’s Office – is pulling the 2
oz. flavored malt liquor “shots.”
Criticism of the manufacturer
erupted after it appeared that
young drinkers had begun to favor
Spykes due to its fruity flavor profile and caffeine content.
Bud Chairman August Busch
IV told investors he was pulling
the product during a a shareholders’
meeting.
DIET COKE TURNS 25
It might go down in history as the most successful sequel ever
(although we’re still partial to Godfather II).
Debuting with an upbeat “Just for the Taste of It” campaign
that carried it through into prominence, Diet Coke is now the
world’s top-selling diet soda.
Coke unveiled a silver Diet Coke slimcan in Atlanta just for
the event. The product’s addictive qualities are famous and celebrated
– with just a touch more caffeine than its full-calorie predecessor,
the stuff has seemingly always managed to rope in people
who do things all day long.
We don’t know that we necessarily agree with Coke spokeswoman Katie Bayne
that “Since its launch, Diet Coke has been synonymous with stylish sophistication,”
given the fact that we know a lot of less than stylishly sophisticated folks who
drink it with robotic regularity. Nevertheless, it was certainly a piece of innovation
that showed a sophisticated understanding of the marketplace.
Coke’s nod to its own history isn’t just restricted to the low-cal side, however. The
company also rolled out a Coca-Cola Classic can with a cleaned-up appearance,
one that brings it back to an earlier, redder time. With a single white ribbon and
a lack of background illustration, it stands in contrast to the wildly varied versions
of Pepsi Cola that have been appearing as part of PepsiCo’s year-long promotion of
fast-changing can designs.