Unilever to launch £5m PG Tips World Cup promotion
Unilever Food UK is preparing a major push for its iconic tea brand PG Tips next year, which will include a &£5m campaign around the football World Cup next summer. The support comes ahead of a planned relaunch in 2007.
It is understood that Unilever is planning a variety of initiatives, including heavy price promotion and support for its variants alongside the World Cup promotion. It is believed that the brand is the tournament’s only hot beverage sponsor.
The promotion, which begins in May, will offer consumers a football-shaped mug for a half-time cup of tea. It will be supported by advertising, created by DDB London, that will position PG Tips as the “Nation’s Favourite Half-Time Cuppa”. The promotion follows the success of the Wallace & Gromit mug giveaway this autumn.
It is understood that the campaign will be based around the idea that the biggest draw of power from the national electricity grid happens during half-time during England games in major tournaments. The ads will encourage consumers to save electricity with a variety of suggestions, such as asking cities to delay putting their kettles on. It is not clear if it will continue to use the T Birds characters that have featured in previous ads.
Unilever will also be price promoting the brand at the start of the year by reducing the price of 80-teabag boxes to 99p from &£1.19. It will also put &£1.5m behind its decaffeinated range in a bid to win market share from Tetley and Typhoo.
An industry source says that the push behind the brand comes ahead of a relaunch, which will include a new look and packaging, in early 2007.
