Imagination and creativity : The keys to success for Desperados

Desperados attempts to become the reference brand in terms of artistic creativity. For this, the brand has developed a partnership with the 9th Concept, a Parisian artists collective, made up of painters, graphic designers, photographers, videographers and musicians, and puts its bottle at the heart of its communication.

 

This collaboration, which has been going on for over ten years, leads to the creation of limited editions every year. The design of the bottles is revisited by the artists of the 9th Concept, who let their imagination run wild and upset the traditional codes of beer, in order to modernize the image of the brand. Up to now, almost 60 Limited Edition bottles have been created !

  

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9th Concept's creations

In addition, Desperados promotes its imagination and creativity in an original way. For example, the brand organized in 2009 an exibition in Paris : « Imagine Desperados by ... ». The brand invited the visitor to discover its creative universe through the exhibition of its  advertising campaign revisited by famous nightclubs and cultural magazines (such Tracks and the Inrockuptibles) in their own way, as well as the exhibition of its Limited Edition bottles, created by the 9th Concept. This allowed Desperados to position itself not only as a brand but also as an editor of creative content and a promoter of a certain form of culture.

 

 

The second major initiative of the brand took place in 2011 with the creation of an ephemeral bar in Paris, the « Wild Bar », entirely dedicated to the brand ! Many events and parties are organized in order to immerse the guests in the world of the famous beer flavored with tequila. For example, Desperados has recreated  a clandestine workshop where the artists of the 9th Concept work directly on posters and custom bags with their visual identity. The brand also organizes original parties during the weeks of the operation : the program includes body painting, showcase of the 9th Concept's musicians as well as the opportunity to taste cocktails made with Desperados like for example the Despejito. Desperados has gone wild !   

 

Finally, the brand offers the beer drinkers the opportunity to create their own Desperados bottle in the website « Imagine your Desperados ». No need to be an experienced designer, this creative workshop offers a large range of colors and designs, some created by the 9th Concept. An online voting is organized in order to select the most distinguished label. And even if you are not selected, you can still order your bottle ! The consumer feels more responsible and listened through this community site.

J.G.

 

The very best ways to drink beers: Enjoy !

Today, we found a large range of strange (or not, it's up to you) people who drink our blessed beverage in a very... personal way!

PS: We decline all responsibilities if you try this at home ..!

The beer-stairs way

The beer helmet

The upside down way

The "bees-beer"

Through the ear (Does it really works?!?)

Like a president

And finally... The NO-WAY

GUINNESS – The most famous stout beer

GUINNESS … an Irish stout beer? For sure, but it is moreover one of the world’s best loved beers.

Since more than 250 years, Guinness has been keeping and managing its image thought the years.

10 millions of pints per day, sold in 150 different countries. Here is an overview of the success of a brand.

  

The beginning

Born in 1725, Arthur Guinness is the founder of the brand. He bought the old St James’ gate brewery in 1759 in Dublin where the history of his beer began. Nowadays, he remains an important image of the brand. The Guinness storehouse, created in 2000, is the most visited attraction in Ireland. Located in St James’ gate original headquarters, this museum gathers history of the brand, its family and its creator, Arthur. 

A bit of story

Arthur Guinness began to brew ale and porter beers at the St James’ brewery. However, facing the increasing demand on porter beer, he decided to stop brewing ale beer in 1799. Porter beer is the origin of the stout beer of today. Guinness started to export his beer abroad in 1769, first in Great Britain, Africa … then all over the world … reaching more than 150 countries today.

Identity card

 Brand and strategy

Stout and Irish are the main beer features that most of beer consumers would use to define a Guinness beer. However, Guinness is much more than a beer: This Irish brewery has become a strong icon of the country which managed to go across wars and time. This strong belonging to the country reveals the traditional image of the brand: Guinness has shared more than 250 years with Ireland.

From a short story telling that a soldier recovered from injuries in Waterloo battle by drinking a Guinness, the Irish brand oriented its image on the benefits of the beer for its consumers with the slogan “Guinness is good for you” or “Guinness for strength”. Multiple advertisements use them starting from the beginning of the XX th century, focusing on the virtue of a Guinness beer on health.

 

At the end of the XX th century, unproved benefits and perception of alcohol do not allow Guinness to maintain its brand strategy. 

Guinness is a beer, Guinness is a stout, Guinness is Irish but not only: Guinness is “Made of more”. Tradition was linked to exception in order to symbolize the brand today. Guinness clearly targets men: Strength and deep colour reflects it. However, Guinness has been made for exceptional men ...  

 

Taking a draft beer in a pub, waiting the Nitrogen bubbles to disappear, letting the beer to get its deep dark red colour and its white head … Here is the image that the brand reflects about specificity and traditional pouring of the draft stout beer: “Good things come to those who wait”. You do not pour a Guinness as the other ones … because Guinness is not as the others ... Here again, exception is a key, Guinness suggests to behave as a wise man and exception will come to you ... like the taste of its beer  ... after 250 years of tradition !

Events / Sponsorship:

Guinness Irish Festival : http://www.guinnessfestival.ch/ 
Book of world records : http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/ 

International soccer championship : http://internationalchampionscup.com/news/article/guinness-international-champions-cup-announced/ 
Guinness Rugby: http://www.rbs6nations.com/en/guinness.php/

References:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3266819.stm

http://www.guinness.com/en-gb/thestory.html#

http://www.guinness-storehouse.com/*

http://www.foodrepublic.com/2013/03/12/11-things-you-probably-didnt-know-about-guinness

http://blog.couponnetwork.fr/non-classe/la-communication-originale-de-guinness

The Vikings are back in France !

Have you heard about SКøll, this new beer that tries to overrun the shelves of our stores? Some say that it is a Viking's beer. Desperados, get ready for the invasion : the Vikings are back in France !

 

Kronenbourg has launched in early 2013, a new beer flavored with vodka and citrus fruits (grapefruit and lime). What an amazing combination ! Coming from Denmark, this beer is named SКøll, which means « Cheers » in the Northern countries. 

 

The brand plays on its Scandinavian origins : The bottle is adorned with the famous Viking helmet and the Nordic blue predominates in the colour codes which provides a sensation of intense cold, freshness and refreshment. Otherwise, the bottle is trapped in ice, what makes you want to grasp it and to drink until your desire is quenched. The universe developed by the brand is different, trendy and young !

 

 

The brand also plays on the specificities of the packaging  : No need for a bottle-opener, the 33 and 66 cl bottles are fitted with a capsule unpin for easy opening ! And finished the warm beers thanks to a freshness signal on the 50cl cans for an ideal drinking temperature. When the stick is gray, the beer is not fresh enough, when it is blue, you can enjoy your ice cold SКøll !

 

With this beer, Kronenbourg positions itself in the market of the specialty beers and come into direct competition with Heineken : North and South confront themselves. So, are you more North or South ? Skoll with Vodka or Desperados with Tequila ? Which one will you choose ?

 

J.G.

 

Leffe : 800 years of history

Leffe started in 1240 in Belgium. The name « Leffe » is the name of the river close-by the abbey where the beer was produced. For centuries, the production was exclusive to the monks. In 1954, they allowed for an industrial production of the beer. At the beginning, there was only lager, but there are now 9 different beers under the brand. Most of them have received special distinctions for their taste. But the lager still accounts for 80% of the volume sold.

The breweries were bought in 1977 by Stella Artois, which then became part of Interbrew in 1987 and is now under the control of InBev since 2004, which is the 1st brewer worldwide with more than 200 brands (including Stella Artois, Hoegaarden and Guinness), but the monks still to this day have control over the recipe of the beer, and the ingredients used are still as natural as 800 years ago (cereals, hop, yeast, etc.).

Leffe is the 4th brand of the group in terms of sales. It is sold mainly in Western Europe, especially in France and Belgium. Leffe was the 4th beer brand sold in supermarkets in France in 2012, with 7.5% market share.

The communication around the brand has been focused for almost 20 years on tradition, quality and authenticity (between 1985 and 2004). Hence the golden packaging which makes the bottle look very attractive, very noble, and even luxurious. The goal was to make it the reference of abbey beers. It succeeded because it is still today the number one beer in the specialty branch. However, this was a rather niche market. That’s why, in recent years, the brand has been focused on reaching a larger market through a new positioning… as a pre-dinner drink. The challenge was to keep its tradition of quality and authenticity and drive it more toward mass consumption. More on that on a following article…

Heineken: The recipe of a success-story !

Firstly, it is necessary to make the distinction between the brand Heineken and the group Heineken. Indeed, the group Heineken owns about 40 brands (Heineken, Desperados, Afligem, Pelforth…). For my part, I am going to analyze the strategy of the flagship brand of this group: Heineken.

From its origin, this local beer brewed in Amsterdam in the XIXth century became today a clear global leader in the international premium segment. It reaches this status thanks to its history and its know-how but does not slacken for all that. On the contrary, creativity, innovation, and madness are the key words of the marketing strategy of the brand in order to get always closer of its consumers.

It is true that regarding marketing, Heineken has more than one string in its bow: sponsoring, presence on the social medias, launch of innovative advertising campaigns, use of the top of the edge marketing techniques: street marketing, increased reality, challenge… On the side of our editorial staff, we say YES!

You discovered the very famous advertising " Walk in fridge " in a previous article. Today, I suggest you to discover a challenge which takes place in a famous furniture store.

The purpose: make win 2 tickets for the UEFA Champion’s League finale to the happy winner of the challenge.

How? : EASY! (Or not!): the man should manage to persuade his wife to buy an horrible “chair” at an exorbitant price for their lovely house… Without mentioning the tickets of course ..! Enjoy!

Today figure’s point : 13 000 HK beer bottles are sold each second around the world.

Desperados, the premium beer that makes the difference !

 

Desperados is a lager beer, brewed in France and flavored with tequila. It was established in 1995 by the Fisher Brewery, an old Alsatian brewery. Since 1996, the brand is part of the Heineken group.

It is said that its name comes from the fact that after being created, this beer was still unnamed and the company was desperate to found one ! Did you know it ?

Brand ID card

 

Today, Desperados is one of the four leading brands of the Heineken group (with Heineken, Pelforth and Affligem), and it is ranked 4^th in the French market with 8% market share in value, according to IRI panel data.

 

The brand belongs to the group of specialty beers, which include all the beers that tell a story due to their origin, composition or geography (abbey beers, brown ale, white or flavored beers). They are very successful in France, in a context where beer sales are declining. The other brands present on this segment are Corona (InBev) and Skoll (recently launched by Kronenbourg).

 

Beer has always been a symbol of conviviality and celebration. However, this market is encountering difficulties for years partly because of the image we often assign to beer: that of a poor quality drink consumed by men watching TV and lounging on the couch.

Another reason of this decline : We observe the same trend than in the wine market. Beer consumers drink less but better by focusing on quality or originality taste. As a result, most of the brands confront them with products more and more sophisticated and expensive, with also important investments in marketing.

 

Desperados benefits from this market trend. Today, one of its strategies is the premiumisation of its portfolio, by offering to the consumers, products that are more upscale and more expensive in order to improve its turnover. Did you know that Desperados was the most expensive beer in the French market ? It is two times more expensive than Heineken !

 

Innovation also remains a strategic focus area for Desperados. Since its launch, the brand has been continuously investing in order to offer beer drinkers, innovative and audacious recipes. The brand has reinvented the freshness with Desperados Lime, shaken the night life with Desperados Red (flavored with Tequila, Cachaça, Guarana and red fruits), provoked the consumers’ senses with Desperados Fuego and its lightly spiced notes, and recreated the Cuban atmosphere with Desperados Verde, which reveals the essence of the legendary Mojito cocktail with its blend of lime and mint.

 

 

J.G