Bad weather might be causing problems in some parts of the world, but for Pink Lady producers, a spot of meteorological misfortune has paid handsome dividends.
The freak wave that shattered the Pink Lady Atlantic row’s record-breaking dreams, has had the opposite effect on brand awareness, boosting it by 53 per cent year-on-year.
The apple brand sponsored four rowers in a shocking pink boat to cross the Atlantic from St John’s, Newfoundland, to Falmouth, Cornwall.
The record-breaking attempt was scuppered, but the crews’ dramatic rescue by a banana transport boat generated a massive amount of media coverage.
Andy Macdonald, md of Coregeo, which manages the Pink Lady trademark in the UK, said prior to the rescue the brand had achieved over 200 million ‘opportunities to see’ from UK media coverage of the row.
However, the heroic failure of the attempt boosted that number to more than five billion as the world media ran with the story.
New research by TNS, commissioned by Coregeo, has shown, four weeks after the event, total brand awareness for Pink Lady has increased 20 percentage points to 58 per cent.
However, Macdonald said there is still work to do: “It’s important to remember that Pink Lady still has a long way to go before it reaches its full potential in the UK.
“What’s reassuring is the branding in store and on the apples themselves is becoming better recognised by consumers who, in a confusing environment with multiple choices, are drawn towards brands with which they are familiar.”
The sponsorship boosted awareness with a different audience. Macdonald said: “Our awareness level amongst women outstrips men and we wanted to focus on a new target audience of men, rather than continue to preach to the same people.”
Pink Lady’s growth in the UK has been impressive, with sales growing in volume by 116 per cent since 2000. Around 1.4m cases have been sold this year, and Macdonald attributes the success to the investment made by the growers into innovative marketing campaigns.
“Pink Lady growers invest more into support for their apple than any other grower group. Ultimately we are fighting a war against the highly competitive market of branded processed foods.
“Our promotional budgets, while gratefully received, are modest in comparison, but they are considerably higher than others in the fresh produce industry.”
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