Overview
Narragansett Beer, New England’s once-historic regional brewer, relaunched in 2005 – long after it had been sold to a Midwest beer conglomerate. The once beloved beer’s reputation had been lost, as evidenced by the beer’s nickname, “Nasty Narry.” New ownership brought back the original brewmaster to recreate the original recipe, and slowly began selling into on-premise and retail accounts in Providence, Boston, and Worcester.
Assignment
In 2008, Narragansett Beer came to marlo marketing to develop a public relations campaign to reeducate consumers and reestablish the brand as a regional, and eventually national, beer of choice. Over the past decade, marlo has overseen a full-scale, multi-faceted marketing and public relations campaign to ensure the brand’s continued growth.
Strategy
- Position ‘Gansett as Rhode Island’s signature beer by highlighting the brand’s heritage, pipeline of new products and “Made on Honor” authenticity in all communications.
- Develop hyper-local campaigns to resonate with specific New England cities and towns to rekindle the brand’s former glory and draw on its historic roots.
- Leverage the brand’s unique retro promotions and “mash-ups” in a strategic media relations campaign targeting relevant regional/national outlets, focusing on the most promising regions of on- and off-premise growth.
- Invent quirky news hooks and out-of-the-box initiatives (e.g., Narragansett announces itself as the Official Beer of the Clam) to create buzz and consistent brand exposure.
Results
10% YOY growth since 2011
2B+ Earned media impressions over 10 years as AOR
Due to the meteoric rebound in sales, ‘Gansett finally brought brewing back to Rhode Island after three decades
8 consecutive years of brand growth has established Narragansett as America’s 32ND largest craft brewer
