RSS Flux - Vendredi 03 Septembre / 09h47 (Paris)
Mardi 27 Octobre 2009 11:22
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Virgin and le Beast Team up to save France

(Drinks Media Wire). Le Beast Vineyards and Virgin Wines, have teamed up to launch a nationwide campaign urging hundreds of thousands of consumers and celebrities to help “Save France ‘Cos the French Can’t”. The integrated social media campaign is based upon the premise that the French have utterly failed at reversing their slide in the wine business, and need help from passionate consumers to save their industry.

The campaign is in conjunction with Virgin’s launch of Le Beast’s Merlot Cabernet Sauvignon 2008. Whilst the campaign uses whimsy to make a serious point, it is also an unusual move for Virgin, as it’s the first time the online retailer has taken on a brand broadly available to the rest of the market.

“We’re delighted that Virgin has taken on Le Beast and to be working with a retailer whose strategy is “Life’s Too Short For Boring Wine!” We launched the wine at the Virgin Wines Tasting in early October, where we engaged on a one-to-one basis with consumers. It was a great opportunity to educate consumers about the brand and to show them that French wine need not be “stuffy” or intimidating. Consumer reaction was fantastic – we pre-sold 200 9L cases over a couple of hours!,” says Catherine Monahan, Managing Director, Clink! Wines Ltd.

The “Saving France ‘Cos The French Can’t” campaign, launches on Tuesday the 27th October 2009, with an updated Le Beast blog, Twitter and Facebook campaign, regional radio campaign, a private pre-launch arrival offer, with opportunity to win t-shirts, caps, and a 6-month free supply of wine. In addition, a direct mail viral video will be sent to its database of fans, as well as to consumers who signed up at the Virgin Tasting.

Virgin will be supporting the launch with a punchy direct mail campaign to all its consumers, and in a first, Le Beast generated content will stream directly onto Virgin’s home page at www.virginwines.com, which will integrate both Beast’s Twitter feed and videos from the new campaign, as well as the recent Virgin Wines tasting.

“Virgin sees this as a huge opportunity to engage with consumers in a new and entertaining way, and being an innovative online brand ourselves, we decided to take Le Beast on as one of our first brands ever. We’re very excited to see the results of this campaign and the potential introduction of new consumers to our business,” says Andrew Baker, Chief Wine Buyer, Virgin Wines.

Le Beast has developed an exclusive label for Virgin, in a claret-shaped bottle, with a historical front label communicating the legend of La Bête du Gevaudan - the inspiration for Le Beast. The blend – a Merlot Cabernet Sauvignon 2008, was created and blended by both Le Beast and Andrew Baker – Virgin’s Chief Wine Buyer. The launch is supported by a price promotion of £1.50 off the RRP of 7.99.

“In a climate where the economy has shrunk 0.4% in the past three months, there is a jobless count of 2.5 million+ and collapsing wine consumption, our industry must work harder to make wine more relevant for consumers. Wine is entertainment, and we must entertain, amuse and delight our consumers - there are lots of fabulous wines out there, but there are few that go past the ‘passion, quality and value’ story. Le Beast has a rich narrative and we use new media to communicate it”, continues Monahan.

Having spent a year developing the personality of Le Beast as a character against all injustice, fighting against French anti-online marketing laws, storming 10 Downing Street and now fighting to ‘Save France’, Le Beast aims to represent the power of what social media can achieve.

Le Beast is also available through Tesco Wine Club, where it launched at the beginning of October 2009 with a Cabernet Franc 2008 at a RRP of 6.99. The grocery label differs to that of the label for Virgin Wines and is bottled in a Burgundy bottle, with a label that boldly highlights the brand’s Chateau and brand name for maximum shelf impact. The brand is also available in the USA market at $12.99 – comprising a Syrah Cabernet 2008 and Chardonnay Viognier 2008. The brand is on track to reach a minimum of 180,000 9L cases by the end of 2010 across the UK, USA, Europe and Asia.

NOTES TO THE EDITOR:
Why tie up With Virgin?
• Both Virgin and Le Beast are synonymous with entertainment. What Sir Richard Branson started was always about 100% innovation and 100% entertainment. Virgin re-invented music, re-invented insurance, re-invented airlines, etc. No matter what subject, Virgin has always believed in entertaining people, and removing the snobbery that is often English Society.
Why is Le Beast Trying to Save France?

• Le Beast is inspired by La Bête Du Gevaudan – a real life legend – half man half wolf who was hunted by King Louis IV over the years of 1764-1767. Le Beast has slept in the cellar of his Chateau for the last 230 years and recently reawakened to discover that France no longer rules the world of wine, and he is on a mission to reclaim what rightfully belongs to France. Simply, he views it as his duty to save France from further attack from the New World and all injustice

• French wine production is set to decline from seven billion bottles a year, recorded between 2000 and 2004, to 5.9 billion in 2015. The decline will continue due to a decline in domestic consumption habits and the impact of the EU wine reform that requires some winegrowers to stop producing vines and ‘grub up,' (so says research group Credoc on behalf of the Vignerons Independents winemakers association). They also predict France's export market will continue to lose ground to the New World

• The biggest wine-drinkers are 50-65-year-olds, consuming twice the national average and almost five times more than the under 35s

• In 1960 France had 200,000 cafés, by 2008 it was down to 40,000. Today young people in France are drinking beer and eating MacDonalds and consumers in the UK find French labels too confusing with their lack of clear labelling and lack of varietals on labels
Le Beast believes that France’s problems are not just to do with Wine

• Once admired for the dominating excellence of its writers, artists and musicians, France today is a wilting power in the global cultural marketplace. For example, only a handful of the season's new novels will find a publisher outside France. Fewer than a dozen make it to the U.S. in a typical year, while about 30% of all fiction sold in France is translated from English

• But most French films are amiable, low-budget trifles for the domestic market. American films account for nearly half the tickets sold in French cinemas

• Thus will the world discover the eternal youth of France, a nation whose long quest for glory has honed a fine appreciation for the art of borrowing. And, when the more conventional minds of the French cultural establishment — along with their self-occupied counterparts abroad — stop fretting about decline and start applauding the ferment on the fringes.

 

Contact

Nom: MONAHAN CATHERINE
E-mail : clinkwines@gmail.com
Web : 
Société : Clink! Wines Ltd
Adresse : 4 montpelier st, unit 528 knightsbridge - SW71EE LONDON
Pays : UNITED KINGDOM
Téléphone : +447530562068
 

 


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