SchoolGirlHeart wrote:RinglingRingling wrote:do we know there won't be any external sponsorship? I might have missed that part.
I kinda figured A-B might step in.
The only A-B brand that would "fit" is Landshark Lager...and if it's only distributed in FL and at the M'ville Cafes it doesn't make much sense for A-B to sponsor a nationwide tour (unless they're trying to create brand awareness, but that would still be expensive and wierd with such extremely limited product availability -- which generally isn't done in consumer product marketing). A-B can only feature LS Lager because directly associating another brand with Buffett would shoot the LS Lager brand in the foot.
Also, they may be looking at FL as a LS Lager test market and plan broader distribution down the road (especially now that Corona has bowed out of the Buffett sponsorship)...but launching a national brand requires a huge investment. Buffett/Margaritaville is a niche brand and broader market appeal would need to be created to justify the expense and sustain the brand. (An important lesson should have been learned from the "Hoot" marketing...the trailer that included "featuring new music by Jimmy Buffett" didn't exactly drive the masses to the box office....) Beer is an expensive product to distribute...bulky; Corona is strongly "entrenched" in the escape lifestyle segment (so a big advertising investment would be required to create consumer awareness and persuade people to try it -- much less gain shelf space so it's available). And, FL wouldn't really be a true test market because it's a place where people go to escape -- it's more Buffett-oriented than any other state so it would be a poor predictor of long-term nationwide or even regional brand success.
And of course, as A-B owns 49% of Corona, why would they want to directly take on their own investment? Sure, LS Lager is 100% theirs (I'm sure Buffett will get a piece) but product launches aren't cheap....
It'll be interesting to see how much A-B invests in LS Lager and if JB is part of advertising the brand. E.g. will it be an "escape" brand or a "Buffett" brand? Put another way, will we see Jimmy/Margaritaville featured in ads or will it be some other "escape" image? (Corona already owns palm trees and beaches...will we see talking Landsharks like those Budweiser frogs and lizards? And what does a landshark look like, anyway??)
Finally, be careful what you wish for...if LS Lager does become a tour sponsor, you can bet an awful lot of tour tickets will be swallowed by anyone who supports, markets, distributes, and helps to launch this new brand (making even fewer available for the rest of us). If things get too focused on this new product, JB may not even need to play the A-B company picnic....
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