- Love Island’s Gabby Allen and Budweiser Prohibition unveil “beer float” fleet to give alcohol-free beer to the nation this January, to help Brits drink smart this year
- UK launch supported by a national OOH campaign, TimeOut partnership, and social sampling activity
18 January, London: Budweiser Prohibition has teamed up with Love Island star and personal trainer, Gabby Allen, to unveil a fleet of “beer floats”, that will travel the country giving away free Budweiser Prohibition Brew to Britons – and helping them to drink smart throughout 2018. This campaign is part of AB InBev’s UK launch of Budweiser Prohibition Brew, the brand’s first alcohol-free beer.
To complement this, Budweiser is partnering with TimeOut to raise awareness of its new Prohibition Brew – and give a helping hand to consumers looking to moderate their drinking this January. The partnership included a four-page cover wrap on the Tuesday 16th January issue, as well as the distribution of 50,000 product samples with each magazine at key stations across the capital, such as London Victoria, London Paddington, London Bridge and Liverpool Street. An additional 30,000 samples will be distributed on the evening of Thursday 18th January, targeting commuters as they start planning their weekends, and who also might be tempted to break their alcohol-free resolution.
Budweiser Prohibition brew have partnered with Street Feast to encourage those who want to moderate alcohol when they are out. Until 3rd February, Dinerama Shoreditch and Giant Robot Canary Wharf will host the first ever Budweiser Prohibition taste test, where people will be challenged to taste three different Budweiser beers and guess which is the new Prohibition brew – with winners receiving their next Bud for free.
Time Out have also produced a digital hub, which will house four written features about the alcohol-free beer, sharing advice with Londoners on how they can make the most of going out with friends while moderating their alcohol consumption.
The campaign is supported by an OOH advertising campaign, as well as digital and social content across Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. These elements will focus on Budweiser Prohibition Brew’s great taste, and show consumers that they can still enjoy a beer with friends if they choose not to drink. The social activity will lead consumers to the campaign micro-site, www.budprohibition.com, where they can sign up for a free can of Budweiser Prohibition, redeemable at Tesco.
Sascha Cordes, Senior Brand Manager Budweiser: “We are incredibly excited to launch Budweiser Prohibition Brew to the UK, our first ever alcohol-free beer, and even more excited to unveil our fleet that will be delivering the brew up and down the UK, helping the nation stick to their goals this January and beyond. People today are increasingly drinking less alcohol, as part of the broader healthy-living trend. In 2018, we predict this trend to continue, and don’t think there could be a better time for us to launch Budweiser Prohibition Brew for people who are looking for the great taste of beer, but with 0% alcohol.”
Across January so far, Hitwise* found that searches for “alcohol free beer” have increased 171 per cent[1]. However, the intent to break is becoming stronger, with recent searches[2] tailing off, increasing by just nine per cent, compared to 148 per cent the week before.
This is supported by research conducted by AB InBev UK which reveals that, as a nation, Britons are drinking less alcohol – a trend that is being driven by millennials – with the low and no-alcohol beer category growing 19.5% in the UK over the past year[3].
Budweiser Prohibition is the latest beer in AB InBev’s low- and no-alcohol portfolio in the UK, which already includes the market-leading alcohol-free beer Beck’s Blue and Bud Light, brewed to 3.5% ABV. The expansion of this portfolio is part of AB InBev’s Global Smart Drinking Goals, which includes a pledge that 20% of its global beer volumes will be low-to-no alcohol by 2025, alongside deeper investments in programs that measurably shift social norms and behaviors around the harmful use of alcohol.
For more information visit www.budprohibition.com
#EnjoyFreely
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For more information contact 3 Monkeys Zeno at Budweiser@3monkeyszeno.com or 020 7009 3100
Notes
Budweiser Prohibition Brew will be being sampled in Leeds Trinity Mall on Thursday 18th January, Birmingham Bullring Friday 19th January, and London Boxpark in Shoreditch on 22nd January.
About Budweiser Prohibition
Budweiser Prohibition is brewed to the same recipe and high-standards as the ‘King of Beers’ – Budweiser – just without the alcohol. In accordance with the original Budweiser recipe, the American lager is aged over beechwood chips for 21 days to give a crisp and smooth finish. The alcohol is then removed through a de-alcoholisation process and the final product, Budweiser Prohibition, is canned and packaged for consumption.
There is only one thing different about Budweiser Prohibition when compared to Budweiser – it’s alcohol-free. The ABV of Budweiser Prohibition is 0.05%.
About AB InBev
AB InBev UK Ltd is the UK trading subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/ NV, a Belgian-based public traded company (Euronext: ABI) and global top 5 consumer goods company. In the UK, AB InBev employs nearly 1,000 people in our two breweries and local headquarters. We are proud to offer the UK’s leading premium beer and cider brands, including global brands Budweiser®, Corona® and Stella Artois®; international brands Beck’s®, Leffe®, and Hoegaarden®; and local champions Bass® and Boddingtons®. We are a founding member of the Portman Group, member of the British Beer and Pub Association, supporter of the Drinkaware Trust, have partnered with the Alcohol Education Trust and are a signatory to a number of pledges as part of the Public Health Responsibility Deal. We have set ourselves the goal through our people, products and work to be the Best Beer Company Bringing People Together for a Better World. Learn more at www.ab-inbev.co.uk or on Twitter through @ABInBevUKI_News.
For more information about Anheuser-Busch InBev, please visit www.ab-inbev.com.