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Hand Sanitizer on the Rocks

As the world sits in crisis, pandemic sweeping across oceans, it is unknown to many businesses and individuals what is in store for their future. As of now in the United States, 54% of small business have either shut down or will be forced to shut down within the next two weeks. To have an economy completely freeze like this is something that is rather unprecedented. Many economists say that the economic fallout of the virus will kill more than the illness ever could. The federal and most state governments have declared that only essential business stay open. But at the end of the day, what qualifies a business as “essential”.

The thought being that only companies that create life-sustaining products will be afforded the opportunity to stay open, but even that is decided on a case by case basis. To some states, alcohol production and sales are considered crucial, while it is not valued as much in others. To private distilleries, this is a death sentence. Separately products like cleaning supplies, hand sanitizer, and protective equipment have all experienced an exponential increase in demand over the last month. So much so that nearly every store in the nation is sold out of all those materials the second it hits the shelves.

What better opportunity for small business to step up and fill the void where they can. Over six hundred distilleries nation-wide have switched from alcohol production to hand sanitizer. The basic ingredients needed are similar in both. These companies are filling the void in an attempt to keep the public safe and to hold on to their valued employees. At nearly every time of crisis in the United States, small businesses have stepped up to bridge the gap between previous production capability and the needs of the country. During World War II, GE switched from making washers and dryers to making guns and ammunition for the military. Levi’s stopped making jeans and made uniforms.

At this point, many people are watching what businesses do and how they treat their employees during these trying times. It’s a real selling point to be able to bring back employees to produce such a necessary product. In the short run, these distilleries stayed afloat and produced for the common good. In the long run, however, they gained customer loyalty that no amount of advertising could bring. Small businesses that were only previously known through small communities and wholesalers are now house-hold names. Their brand equity has skyrocketed, and they need to find a way to hold onto it after the pandemic. There’s nothing like a crisis to bring people together. https://time.com/5817460/coronavirus-distillery-hand-sanitizer/

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Magic Kingdom On Your Couch

Disney is possibly one of the most recognized names around the globe. You would be hard pressed to find someone who was completely unfamiliar with the brand. Whether it is the theme parks, the cartoons, or the movies most everyone has encountered a Disney product at one point or another. With the company’s launch of Disney Plus in November, it was their way of creating a following from the comfort of your own home. No longer did you need to visit the park or order something online to get the Disney experience. Now you simply must log into your account. At the press of a button, the customer has access to all Disney movies and shows ever produced.

              In just five months since the release of the network, Disney Plus already has 50 million subscribers, spread throughout the world. Each month the network has grown its subscription base exponentially. And it has nearly doubled in the last month. From February to March Disney has released the network to eleven more countries spread over an additional three continents. With the outbreak of COVID-19, the world seemed to have shut down in a manner of days. Limiting people’s movement has substantially increased subscriptions to all streaming services, but the emphasis is on Disney Plus.

              As the brand beings moving forward with its release in new markets, it is crucial to have data supporting what shows to sponsor in each area. Most streaming services will not show the same variety of content in one area of the world as opposed to another due to differing tastes and popularity. Netflix is notorious for changing the shows and movies it offers from country to country as the consumer changes. Being so new, Disney Plus does not have all the data necessary to make rock hard decisions. While the service advertises that all Disney made content will be available, it must focus its suggestions and more popular content to curtail to the region’s favorability. This is a difficult task at this stage for Disney for two reasons: it’s so new that there is a relatively small sample size and the amount of subscriptions are deceiving. Just because millions of people have the service does not mean they are all using it.

              As the world is changing and people are forced to stay home, they have no choice but to watch shows and movies. This is Disney’s perfect opportunity to create solid customer segments and target markets. Everyone is home streaming at one time. The data and analytics will demonstrate to Disney over one month what it would have taken six to eight months to prove without the onset of the virus. Everyone being home and streaming will produce the data needed to properly segment the markets and increase advertising and promotions in each region.

              The more pressing issue for Disney is revenue. All of the company’s parks and resorts are closed until further notice, leading the corporation to take a major hit financially. Disney Plus allows for a constant revenue stream to keep the company afloat and reduce layoffs as much as possible. With the base package of Disney plus equaling roughly $6.99 a month, the company stands to make roughly $350 million per month. While the service is not Disney’s only revenue stream at the moment, it certainly helps.

As Disney becomes more personalized to the individual consumer, it will only cause an increase in subscriptions and additional packages for members to purchase. This time where everyone has to stay home is crucial data collection for Disney. To not seize it is to throw away money. With layoffs looming and the world on pause, how will Disney afford to crunch the numbers and keep streamers happy? Or is that all part of the magic?

https://www.businessinsider.com/disney-plus-streaming-subscriber-count-growth-50-million-2020-4?utmSource=twitter&utmContent=referral&utmTerm=topbar&referrer=twitter

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It’s Corona Time

Corona Beer just seems to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, or is it? In January as news began to spread about the virus that is changing the world, Corona waited and feared what would come of their brand. What started out being called the Wuhan Virus, quickly transitioned to the Coronavirus, and is now known as COVID-19. But that association did not just disappear with the name change. People world-wide have correlated the virus to Corona Beer and could have drastically hit the company in a way it may never recover from.

While the globe continues to be changed by this pandemic, Corona has been put on an international smear campaign. Initial reports as the virus began to spread showed that upwards of 38% of American’s wouldn’t buy their product. A forecasted 38% drop in sales is enough to panic any company. An actual fall off of that kind would certainly put most brands completely out of business. But thankfully for Corona, those were simply gimmick numbers. If anything, the false narrative helped them.

People have taken to the internet and social media, seemingly as a source of coping, and made fun of the brand. They post pictures to show that there is no place for Corona in their fridge. Sentiments like these have gotten the attention of the masses, with millions of shares and comments. Everyday it seems like a new meme has come out. Some of them are admittedly funny. And for a guy who likes Corona, all of this seems rather ironic. With a classic taste, who could bash such a great tasting beer?

Some brands may freak out at the constant association between their product and a virus that the public has perceptualized to be a mass killer, but not Corona. The brand acknowledges that this is a marketing plan that no amount of money could buy. New submarkets have opened as the internet seems to make more and more fun of Corona. As publicity around the virus has grown, and the connection was made to the brand, so too have sales. Coincidence? I think not. Corona is beginning to attract new markets of buyers who otherwise never would have purchased their product. In order to make these funny pictures that bash Corona as a brand, consumers still must purchase the product. There’s no way around it.

Now the company has begun to capture the domestic beer market more than ever. Many people hold their beer preference near and dear. They drink what they like and they like what they drink. And that is a perfect model for the domestic beer market. Consumers are loyal to their beer and under normal circumstances won’t allow themselves to buy anything other than their favorite case. But what are they going to do with the case of Corona they just purchased to make the meme? They are going to drink it. Young adults who are beginning to drink and are choosing what they prefer are going to hold a place in their mind for Corona as they may make the connection between their early twenties and the pandemic that stopped the world.

Corona has stayed silent throughout this ordeal other than a few initial announcements notifying the public that there truly is no connection between the beer and the virus. The brand typically focuses on a, “less is more” model when it comes to advertisements and promotions in the first place. Their patience here has allowed for the brand to continue its sales growth and open new submarkets to sustain itself moving forward. While other brands may have been vocal at discrediting association or memes, Corona has let the internet do its media promotion for them. Sometimes discretion is the better part of valor. I look forward to seeing Corona’s first move when the pandemic is resolved. Will they start fresh and move on, or will they continue to ride the virus’s coat tails in hopes of continued growth? https://www.fastcompany.com/90471294/why-corona-beers-silence-is-the-best-possible-response-to-coronavirus-memes-and-discussion

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One Hit Wonders Are For Boy Bands, Zoom Is Here To Stay

January 15th, 2020 is the first reported case of COVID-19 in the United states. Any time after January 15th will never be the same. Hospitals are packed full, businesses are completely closed, economic ruin is unfolding, and the National Guard is being sent in by governors across the country. Piece by piece, centuries of work are dismantled with seemingly no hope to recover. How is a company that relies on meetings and communication across different states or countries supposed to stay afloat? How are employers supposed to continue to pay their employees with no business to keep cash flow moving? Seemingly over night, all those questions were answered: Zoom.

              In 2011 Zoom hit the market, giving the consumer the ability to both tele conference and video conference with colleagues and clients alike all for free. At the time, and even up until a world-altering pandemic, a system like this was convenient for companies to save money on travel expenses for rather unimportant meetings. It wouldn’t replace the human element of business. It wouldn’t replace the feeling of looking someone in the eye or shaking their hand and knowing that the deal you just made was a quality one. And it still doesn’t accomplish just that, the only difference between then and now being that now its by design.

              Before the pandemic began, Zoom was still a standout app in the tech field. It was growing fast and dreamed of a boom like this separating it from the rest of the options available to consumers. It seems as though every networking program whether it is social media, educational, or corporate has some sort of conference call capability. So, what sets Zoom apart from the rest? Its ease of use and constantly upgrading technology allow Zoom to operate that is as close to being in person as possible. Something as simple as looking at the person speaking is done for you in a Zoom meeting. The software automatically recognizes who is speaking, and then immediately changes the screen to show that persons video feed. It also has the ability to import customized backgrounds, giving the appearance of being somewhere elaborate, like a personal green-screen. It’s small touches like that that add a level of human intimacy into a virtual world, attracting an ever-growing customer base.

Zoom has grown a strong allegiance and brand equity seemingly overnight. In the twenty first century, there are a few keys to recognizing when your brand has maximized its equity and is starting to be a major player in the field. One of which, arguably the most important, is when your brand becomes a verb to be used by the masses. Apple has it with FaceTime, Google secured it with internet searches, and Zoom has now done it with video conferencing.

It is going to be difficult to restore a new sense of normal when this virus is all said and done, but that just creates another opportunity for Zoom to thrive. By replacing certain meetings with a video chat, companies can save millions of dollars and focus that extra money back into programs to help customers and employees alike. While it may seem redundant at face value, Zoom calls could even take place for a regular office meeting. It would cut down wasted time walking to and from the conference room and interruptions would be less frequent. Zoom really could be the new normal. The company has sufficiently taken over the market. 

Zoom is going to be around to move companies and people through these difficult times; my only question is how will it evolve to stay on time? If Zoom is really the wave of the future how will it sustain its advance in the market?  Those are questions only time will tell, but until then we wait and see.

https://www.fool.com/investing/2020/03/29/heres-why-zoom-is-no-one-hit-wonder.aspx

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L.L.Bean is Found Outside

L.L.Bean is a popular clothing brand that has been around since 1912 and focuses on outdoor living and the rugged nature of the people who wear their clothes. They are dedicated to providing quality products that will never fail the consumer. So much so, that it has offered lifetime guarantees on all their products, no questions asked.

 But in recent years, the need for rugged yet fashionable clothing  has decreased as more people find office jobs and indoor living more suitable for their lifestyle. L.L.Bean wanted to get back to their roots, and convince people that going outside is not a bad thing after all.

L.L.Bean is using experiential positioning strategies to get back to their main claim. They want to get their consumer base back in the outdoors to remind them of how much fun it is to go explore. The advertisement that they ran was clever, and very different that any other they have ever released. The words on the flyer could only be read if the paper was exposed to sunlight, forcing the reader to go outside to read the document. Four words on the whole ad were visible without sunlight, and were strategically placed so that they fit in the hidden message as well as to explain the necessary actions of the consumer. Those words were, “Just bring this outside”. Forcing the consumer to travel outside to see the ad is an ingenious way of reminding them of the fun of adventure and what they can accomplish in their clothing lines. 

The advertisement even goes as far as to suggest different activities to attempt. But the main message here was to grab a few friends and explore. There is nothing that resonates more than the feeling of friendship and going on adventures because there is always something to do. 

As the  L.L.Bean moves forward it will be interesting to see what other kinds of advertising they do to remind their consumers of the fun and versatility that their products offer. This was only possible by using a print ad which also subtly enhanced the effectiveness of it. No one has a computer with them when they are hiking or kayaking, so why would you rely on an ad that can only be seen on electronic devices. Running a paper ad validated  L.L.Bean ‘s message to practice what they preach. 

https://www.cnbc.com/2017/09/25/ll-bean-made-a-press-ad-that-is-invisible-unless-its-viewed-outside.html

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The Can with No Name

Mountain Dew, a PepsiCo product, has recently partnered with the popular TV show, Game of Thrones, before the series finale is released on April 14th of this year. Mountain Dew has been on the market in the soft drink industry since 1940 when it was developed, but has been under significant fire the last few years due to dramatic change in public opinion. The soft drink is infamous for being one of the most unhealthy sodas available for purchase due to the high quantity of sugar in each serving. It has been the cause of countless oral surgeries and many other medical issues due to extreme overindulgence. Thus, a bad name has been painted on the brand from a societal standpoint. 

It was getting more and more difficult to come out from underneath harsh consumer claims all on its own, and that’s where PepsiCo needed a strong partner for Mountain Dew.

Games of Thrones is arguably one of the most popular shows available to watch currently, and they have partnered with over one hundred other brands to boost awareness of the show and the brand in partnership. This includes brands such as Bud Light, Adidas, AT&T, Major League Baseball and countless others. The popularity around the show and the endless suspense as the world awaits the series finale has increased exposure and awareness of the show and has raised the desire of other brands to partner with them as a means to “piggy-back” off the shows success. 

Mountain Dew is releasing 800 special edition cans of soda that are blank, until chilled. When cold the cans display names of characters from the show. This is much like the idea from Coors Light who uses the blue mountain cans as a means to indicate if the beer is cold enough to drink. There are only two ways of getting a can of this limited edition Mountain Dew: entering a twitter contest to win, or by a “scavenger-hunt” of sorts through the city’s of Los Angeles or New York. Otherwise there is no way to get a hold of the can. 

Mountain Dew is using hierarchy of effects to win back consumer trust and loyalty with the help of Game of Thrones. While the brand image is relatively weak in today’s market, this promotion is a way to build it back.

 With the partnership with Game of Thrones, Mountain Dew is increasing awareness of their product exponentially and creating a “hype” factor around the brand that has not existed for some time. The need of society to have what others cannot get is what will drive sales up for Mountain Dew. This promotion put the brand back in people’s minds as a legitimate option. With the backing of such a well-liked brand, this has the ability to begin to change consumers thoughts and attitudes towards the soda. No longer is it an unhealthy option that no one would consider, now it is one of the faces of Game of Thrones, a household name. This promotion validates the very existence of Mountain Dew. It can eventually lead to brand loyalty for Mountain Dew and PepsiCo as a whole as more people consume the product. 

By using the positive brand image and loyalty of Game of Thrones Mountain Dew has a chance to increase sales and regain loyalty to their product. It will be interesting to see the brand’s next step after Game of Thrones dissolves after this season and watch how they expand independent of the show. 

https://www.forbes.com/sites/erikkain/2019/03/28/mountain-dew-is-hyping-game-of-thrones-with-a-new-special-edition-can-in-honor-of-arya-stark/#664d53d550fc

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Ralph Is a Young Name

Ralph Lauren has been a staple brand of fashion since 1967. They offer classy, yet simple products for the every day person. While considered a rather upscale brand, it is still focused at capturing the sale of the everyday consumer. From back yard fun to business attire, Ralph Lauren has always focused on an up-scale yet comfortable product ready for nearly any occasion. 

With their clothes focusing on style that works for both casual and professional occasions, there is no reason why Ralph Lauren should not be a hit throughout all demographics, right?

Wrong, actually. Ralph has had trouble in recent years attracting the younger and more tech-savy buyers due to their lack of excitement that surrounded the brand. Although the company tends to use younger models in an attempt at user imagery, showing relateable figures wearing and using the clothing in a manner that invokes resonance with the consumer. This strategy does not seem to be enough to persuade many younger consumers to continue to purchase the brand. There needs to be a connection between the user and the product. Clothing is what people use to express themselves the most and thus the items they choose to buy and wear need to match their personality and lifestyle. 

Younger generations do not typically buy products that do not specifically suit their needs, thus there is no reason to purchase a $100 button down shirt if it is not something you can wear often. That is why the brand has begun to move to specifically targeting younger demographics with the most recent launch of their spring collection.

A re-positioning effort on the part of Ralph Lauren does not include revealing their line of clothing to the public in fashion shows that do not show the usefulness or versatility of the products, but rather at a coffee shop owned by the company in which consumers can get an up-close look at the new products and their uses while in an intimate coffee shop setting. 

The millennial market is focused on small retailer brands, not big business. This is the perfect strategy to re-position themselves towards that market. The intimacy of the shop with smaller displays offer the consumer a feeling of small business, focused on the quality and integrity of the product, not just the bottom line.  

Their online presence has also helped Ralph Lauren add 5% growth in sales this past quarter. A lot of this can be directed toward the wedding of stars such as Nick Jonas who made Ralph Lauren the main outfitter of the party. Showing celebrities using the product is usage imagery as it shows what can be done with the product. It has the ability to be worn to a social gathering as well as to have your wedding in it, there is not much more you could ask for from a clothing brand. 

It will be interesting to see if Ralph Lauren will be able to maintain heir sales growth and the influence over the younger demographic moving forward. But if their re-positioning campaign is any indicator, they will do just fine. https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2019/02/09/ralph-lauren-is-marketing-new-generation-shoppers-they-may-be-listening/?utm_term=.6f167818d154

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Can You Really Re-Invent The Hog?

Harley Davidson is truly an iconic brand. One whose sheer presence in the market has been enough to propel sales above the rest of the industry. From providing motorcycles to the military in World War II, to being the police motorcycle of choice, to just looking cool as it goes down the street, the Harley Davidson name is well known. Now the company has introduced a new electric motorcycle in an attempt to stop four years of declining sales and to finally reach the younger generation.  Up until a few years ago, Harley would not have had to do too much marketing to get consumers in the door. However, as their primary target market has aged and is no longer buying new bikes, the company struggles to reach younger demographics and for multiple reasons. 

The first is pure safety, as new information and statistics arise regarding motorcycles and the affects of impacts, today’s generations are much more wary of getting on a motorcycle, let alone buying one of their own. While this is a legitimate concern, it is one that has not been much of a factor in years past. So it is difficult to implement safety features on something designed to be open. 

Secondly, the classic Harley look is one of a large motorcycle with a deep roar to the engine. That does not seem to be attractive to the younger markets as they tend to steer towards environmentally friendly vehicles that are much better on gas mileage. This new bike solves that issue. It produces no emissions and is completely electric. Therefore there is not detrimental effects to the environment. The deafening sound of a traditional Harley can also be intimidating to people who have never ridden a motorcycle before. This new electric motor still produces a sound, but not one of a conventional gas engine. It is much more of a quite winding. It wont wake up the neighbors as you come down the street at night, but it produces just enough ‘umph’ for someone to feel the thrills of riding. 

One of the key issues with motorcycles clash with today’s generation is also the fear of having to change gears manually while at speed. since manual transmissions are not as common now as they were even 10 years ago, it is easy to see how not having learned to drive stick could be detrimental to those attempting to drive a motorcycle. But with this new electric engine, there are no gears to shift, simplifying the driving experience. 

I think it;s completely practical to think that moving in this direction will help increase Harley’s market share and begin to capture a new target market of younger people. It is just going to be interesting to see which dealerships that they choose to release these bikes in as there may be some backlash by older generations or traditionalists who have an idea of what a motorcycle should be and cannot conceive of anything remotely similar to an electric motorcycle. Harley Davidson will have to find the balance between new and innovative technology to capture the younger target market, and also satisfy the older demographic who grew up loving the loud, gas-guzzling hogs the company is known for. 

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/11/09/harley-davidsons-electric-motorcycle-is-a-big-change-for-the-company.html?__source=sharebar|twitter&par=sharebar

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What Can’t Amazon Do?

Over the past ten years, Amazon has proven time and time again that there simply does not seem to be a field or industry that they cannot dominate. It is interesting to think that a company that started selling books online in 1995 now owns large percentages of market share in several different and diverse industries. 

Last year, Amazon bought out Whole Foods and completely re-positioned the stores in an attempt to save the failing brand and also to allow them to finally get a foothold in brick and mortar stores. Amazon had only dealt in online transactions and e-commerce and wanted to expand into real stores that offered the customer an experience that they simply cannot get from shopping online. The move has since boomed and Amazon has taken a 30% share in the online grocery shopping market. No only can the consumer purchase and receive food via Amazon’s e-commerce, but they can select in-store pick up at a local Whole Foods or choose to have it sent directly to their door.

It seems that whatever Amazon touches is gold, right? Well not exactly. Although Amazon’s move to buy Whole Foods has sky rocketed their grocery sales, its not necessarily comparable to the sales of other grocery stores and delivery services. The average online grocery bill in the United States is $116, compared to the average bill of $45 to Amazon’s grocery delivery. Amazon has been able to get away with small purchases thus far just because of the large volume of sales they have made. However, they have only gotten sales from 11% of regular Amazon users so there is still a tremendous market to reach. 

Their delivery service is truly what puts them over the top of other grocery retailers, both online and in store. Stores like Safeway cannot match the speed and efficiency of Amazon’s delivery service in order to supply products to any online orders. And so that leads to these supermarket giants to rely on their customer experience to persuade customers to give their business, but once again they face trouble when competing with Amazon and Whole Foods. Not only does Amazon handle the great delivery service for their online and Whole Foods purchases, but they are beginning to unveil their innovation in their new brick and mortar stores. 

Buying Whole Foods finally gave Amazon the infrastructure it finally needed to expand into interactive customer experience. A plethora of new ideas are being implemented into Whole Foods that include no-line checkout where the customer simply walks out the door and terminals scans each items that’s in the basket and charges the sum of the bill to the consumers credit card. This is just the beginning of ideas that Amazon plans on using to take over the grocery industry in ways that capture all of the online and in store purchases. 

https://www.retaildive.com/news/report-amazon-captures-30-of-online-grocery-spending/538810/

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Down Goes Nordstrom

Nordstrom has been struggling in the last few years to compete with similar department stores as well as a boom in e-commerce due to their lack of innovation and re-invention. Most big name department stores such as Macy’s, Sears, Bloomingdale's, and Nordstrom have all had trouble keeping up with the fast paced world of the internet. There is simply no way to go stride for stride with something that can give people buying satisfaction at their finger tips. 

Never the less, Norsdstrom’s shares have fallen nearly 13% since market open due to their third quarter report that was given last night. They are on track for the worst week the company has had since 2008. This comes as an exceptional hit to the department store as both Walmart and Macy’s reported higher quarterly earnings than their analysts had expected. It seemed as though everything had gone wrong for the retail giant over the past year as they are left with an egregious amount of left over inventory from last year at this time, nearly up 7%. In comparison, their stores are only witnessing a 0.5% increase in foot traffic from this time last year. There simply inst enough people coming into the store to sell the amount of products that they have on hand. 

There is some good news for Nordstrom, however. We are coming into the fourth quarter and thus the holiday shopping season. With such a strong economy behind them, there is no reason why Nordstrom should not be able to bounce back from this slip in stock prices. They will need to buckle down and hit the market hard this season though. To avoid extreme discounts on inventory to get rid of current product, they will need to market this the most and drive the customer to these items over others at times. This is all doable because of Nordstrom’s luxury brand model to its stores. Each customer is shown by an individual sales associate that can direct their attention in whatever way they see fit and can personally sell to the customer, rather than having to rely on mass marketing to coerce customers into purchasing an certain product. Another strong suit of theirs is that the stores can be easily reconfigured. There is not too much clutter in the stores and therefore can allow for a streamlined aisle search for products. The store can position left over inventory in the highlight sports of the store where increased foot traffic is recorded. 

There have been analysts who recently suggested that Amazon purchase Nordstrom and re-position the stores in a more modern example and also improve their online presence. While a certain e-commerce presence is a necessity in today’s market, that is not what Nordstrom is. They are a luxury store who sells directly to the customer. It is their consumer experience that has allowed them to stay afloat this long. They have to seize this model to its maximum potentional in order to get past this slump. 

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/11/16/nordstrom-shares-plunge-as-earnings-disappoint.html

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Saving Pabst: A Hipster Story

When the average person thinks of a cheap beer that their grandfather would drink, I bet Pabst Blue Ribbon would be one of the top drinks discussed. It is considered by many to be a cheap beer that is only bought as an alternative due to such limitations such as money or age. Unfortunately, this nation wide rationale gave Pabst Blue Ribbon a reputation of being unappetizing beer that simply does not get the job done. 

PBR was never a top competitor in the beer industry and was often found to be floundering in the eyes of the market. Their sleek can and packaging was not enough to entice the everyday beer drinker to buy a case of their refreshing liquid. In 1977, Pabst sold roughly 18 million barrels of their beer, whereas Budweiser had sold nearly 26 million barrels a year prior. PBR always seemed to be behind the 8-ball in sales and advertising.  These poor sales never seemed to get much better as the company experienced over 20 years of declining sales before they realized that a change in strategy was in order, 

In 2001 with sales under 1 million barrels for the whole year, new Senior Brand Manager Neil Stewart decided that what they were doing simply was not working.

After some digging, Neil noticed that sales were exceptionally high in Portland, Oregon. In fact, it seemed that in 2001, Portland’s sales doubled nearly every month. Why? The hipster. Pabst Blue Ribbon saving grace was a seemingly misunderstood, anti-everything sub-culture in society that was looking for anything that they could call their own. 

Pabst changed its entire retailing and advertising scheme. That changed their target market from grandpa to the hipster because it was the only thing they had left. 

How do you advertise to a group of people who are anti-corporate and anti-marketing? Grass roots.

Pabst wanted to let word of mouth carry the weight of their new campaign. So they launched a strategy that only targeted a few key players and let them spread the word. By 2003, sales rose 15% and kept rising by that amount every year until 2009 when PBR sales rose 25%. By 2012, Pabst sold over 92 million gallons of beer as compared to less than 1 million gallons in 2000. It is completely unfathomable that one subculture completely re-branded and saved a company. 

But what saved the brand, also killed it. 

Hipsters hate mainstream. And that’s exactly what they turned Pabst into. The appeal of a product to the hipster market is that it is more personalized and one of a kind. Typically, they will stray from products that they can simply pull off the shelf. As hipsters continued to drink more Pabst Blue Ribbon, it lead to an increase of sales. This increase was not just within the hipster community. Their word of mouth campaign worked well as to begin to spread into different demographics and sub-cultures. More people across a diversified market began to purchase PBR and turned the beer mainstream. Too many people drank it for it to be cool. 

Specialized craft brews began to steal the market share back from Pabst as their primary market had switched its sights to the newest product in the world of beer. Pabst biggest detriment was their success.

But it is also important to keep in mind the incredible set of circumstances that were necessary for this hipster culture to carry Pabst for the last 18 years. If the company had been in the middle of the pack as far as beer sales were concerned in 2000, this would have never happened. The hipster sub-culture would not have bought into the idea of a cheap, unrecognized beer if it had been doing even moderately well. It needed to be a failing company from the start of this campaign in order for this whole strategy to work. 

It will be interesting to see if this becomes a cycle for PBR. Once it dies back down to similar numbers as it had in 2000, which by the looks of the current company standing is not too far off, will the hipster market pick it back up as their beer of choice and then drop it as soon as it becomes too popular for their style? It is hard to conceive a company surviving with such long windfalls as Pabst has, but I think it could be done.