Arnold Palmer Spiked has launched 12-packs of 12-ounce slim cans, an effort to expand the brand’s appeal for larger social occasions and get more placements and floor displays in large-format and big-box retailers.
The 12-packs, which represent the year-old brand’s first foray into larger-sized packs, also will help Arnold Palmer Spiked gain additional advertising opportunities.
“The move into 12-packs will allow us to take AP Spiked from the back nine into consumers’ back yards,” says Chris Steele, a senior marketing manager who oversees the brand for MillerCoors. “If you’re going to have any sort of party or get-together, a 12-pack fits those occasions very nicely.”
Arnold Palmer Spiked is coming off a strong debut in 2018, ranking as the top flavored malt beverage released for the year, and the No. 3 new brand in all of beer and cider, according to Nielsen all-outlet and convenience data through Dec. 29. In its first year on the market, the brand picked up 0.9 percentage points of share in its segment.
So far this year, the brand continues to gather momentum. It has picked up 0.8 points of share of its segment year-to-date, per Nielsen data through March 23.
Even more promising, some 60 percent of consumers have purchased Arnold Palmer Spiked two times or more, per consumer loyalty data from a large chain retailer.
On top of that, 14 percent of AP Spiked drinkers are coming from outside alcohol beverage, per MillerCoors data. “Not just to beer or (flavored malt beverages), these consumers are new to alcohol beverage, which is incremental to the entire category,” says Danielle Rappoport, marketing director of Mexican imports, ciders and flavored malt beverages at MillerCoors.
The brand is supporting its new 12-packs with social, digital and out-of-home advertising, as well as sampling programs and point-of-sale display packages that help the packs stand out on the retail floor.
The 5 percent alcohol-by-volume non-carbonated drink made with real juice and tea also is expanding its number of core investment markets to 24 from 13.
“The hard tea segment continues to grow, and Arnold Palmer Spiked is a big driver of that,” she says. “That’s because consumers love how natural tasting we are, made with real brewed tea and real juice, not to mention our premium credentials having Arnold Palmer on our package. It’s a great proposition and it has plenty of room to grow.”