Abstract

This case is about the dramatic brand revival of Pabst Blue Ribbon (PBR), one of the classic American beer brands marketed by Pabst Brewing Company’s (PBC). The case revolves around how the sales of PBR increased despite any high-decibel promotional efforts from PBC’s marketing team after declining consistently for more than two decades (from 1978 to 2001). The sales of PBR suddenly increased from the year 2001 onwards and continued to grow at a healthy pace till 2007. The revival of the brand was attributed to the marketing team who adopted unique strategies to create buzz around the brand.While other beer brands concentrated on positioning and repositioning their brands through multi-million dollar promotional campaigns, PBC concentrated on enhancing their relationships with the sub-cultures that were driving the sales of PBR. According to experts, the brand appealed to a section of the consumers who were distrustful of any kind of marketing communication and did not want to be manipulated by advertising campaigns. As of 2008, the challenge before PBC’s marketing team was to drive growth further without compromising its cultural positioning.

Learning Objectives

The case is structured to achieve the following Learning Objectives:

• Study the factors that had led to the revival of the PBR brand. Understand the issues and challenges in reviving an old brand like PBR. Understand how PBR was revived by gaining vital insights into consumer behavior and working with the sub-cultures that

Keywords

Consumer behavior, Sub-culture, Influencer marketing program, Branding, Brand revival, Consumer perceptions, Authentic marketing, Positioning, Cultural positioning, Brand hijack, Cult brand, Word-of-mouth advocacy, Word-of-mouth marketing, Buzz hub, Community, Anti-marketing, retrobranding, Pabst Blue Ribbon, Pabst Brewing Company, Miller, Beer market, Anheuser-Busch, SABMiller, Coors, Budweiser