U.S. brewers woo import drinkers
By Michael McCarthy
USA Today
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NEW YORK — The image persists of the target beer consumer as Buckboard Buddy with a six-pack, shotgun and pickup. But the world's biggest brewers are spending millions this summer to take aim at more upscale consumers: the import beer drinker.
Patrons at Murphy's on Nuu'anu Avenue enjoy their beverage of choice. If domestic beer giants Anheuser-Busch and Miller Brewing have their way, that choice will be one of the brewers' new import-style high-end beers.
That's because growth for the $60 billion U.S. beer industry is not in cheap suds but in high-end imports and light beers.
The overall beer market grew only 1.4 percent in 2002. But import beer sales grew 6 percent, while domestics eked out a 0.7 percent rise, according to the Beer Institute in Washington, D.C. Imports now have an estimated 11 percent share of the U.S. market.
That's why longtime domestic beer giants Anheuser-Busch and SABMiller's Miller Brewing are taking aim at the 25- to 34-year-old, mostly urban consumers who prefer Euro-style imports such as Heineken and Guinness over Budweiser and Miller.
Anheuser-Busch, the world's largest brewer, is rolling out a new import-fighter called Anheuser World Select that it bills as "world class beer" developed by 10 brewmasters from around the world. This "continental pilsner" succeeds Michelob as Anheuser-Busch's top-tier beer.
"What World Select does is provide an alternative to those high-end beers that are out there," says Pat McGauley, Anheuser-Busch's director of high-end brands. "And it's made in America."
Meanwhile, Miller is ramping up U.S. distribution of its Pilsner Urquell brand, a Czech beer with a 151-year-old tradition.
What "distinguishes" Pilsner Urquell from other U.S imports, such as Stella Artois from Belgium, is that it's also a premium brand in its home markets, says Pat Moertl, director of imports for Miller Brewing.
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"Consumers are looking for brands with distinctive products and imagery — and they're willing to pay more for them," Moertl says.
In their quest to capture some of the import-beer market, U.S. brewers are targeting 25- to 34-year-old, mostly urban consumers
The anti-import strategy by Anheuser-Busch and Miller sets up a showdown with Heineken USA, which markets Heineken and Amstel Light in the United States.
Although Heineken has lost its crown as the best-selling import to Corona Extra, it's still the prime target for Anheuser-Busch. The St. Louis brewer has a financial stake in Corona brewer Modelo in Mexico.
Benj Steinman, publisher of Beer Marketer's Insights, said he believes that Anheuser World Select (packaged in a green rather than brown bottle) is "clearly aimed at Heineken." And it gives Anheuser-Busch another weapon to add to its most powerful import-fighter so far: the low-carb Michelob Ultra brand.
Heineken spokesman Dan Tearno says the company is "flattered by the attention" and ready to fight.
"They want what we have," Tearno says.
It's no accident that the beer wars are heating up for summer: Almost 40 percent of beer is sold during the four months of May through August, according to the Beer Institute.
Details:
• Making it a world war. Anheuser-Busch is rolling out Anheuser World Select initially in 10 markets, and not just in the United States: New York, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Denver, Las Vegas, Hawai'i, the New Jersey Shore, London, Hong Kong and Newport, R.I. Ad agencies Hill Holliday in Boston and Jefferson Studios in St. Louis will position it in the United States as a world beer that combines the flavor of an import with the freshness of a domestic. The slogan: "Ten Brewmasters. Four Continents. One Beer."
• The Pilsner that started it all. Miller will position Pilsner Urquell as the "original pilsner" that changed beer tastes. It is rolling it out in eight import-friendly U.S. markets: New York, Washington, Boston, Chicago, Atlanta, San Francisco, Denver and Seattle. Ads from Ogilvy & Mather in New York ask: "Have you tried the Pilsner that invented Pilsner?"
• Younger and hipper? Heineken will make a hip pitch for 21- to 25-year-old consumers, says Brian Citron, assistant brand manager. The brewer is rolling out a sleek, limited edition, aluminum bottle dubbed "H2" that will go into nightclubs in New York, Miami and Boston.
