Bud Light brings back Victory Fridges at a pop-up appliance store

Dive Brief:

Bud Light is opening a pop-up appliance store with the Cleveland Browns to sell replica Victory Fridges in downtown Cleveland, according to a press release shared with Marketing Dive.
The "B.L. & Brown’s Appliance Superstore" will be open Sept. 3 and 4 from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m. Anyone who purchases the fridges, which range in price from $199.99 to $599.99, will also receive a redemption code for stocking it with discounted Bud Light.
As part of the campaign, Bud Light is partnering with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) Superstar and Browns fan The Miz, who is starring in an infomercial about the store that will air on local Cleveland TV on Friday, Aug. 30. The opening of the store on Sep. 3 will feature appearances by The Miz, Cleveland Browns players and former players, Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson, the Bud Knight and others.

Dive Insight:

As brands gear up for football season, Bud Light is pulling together several marketing tactics with the opening of the B.L. & Brown's Appliance Superstore. The limited-time pop-up store could generate fan interest and go viral on social media as Browns fans line up to buy a branded beer fridge. The store, and the infomercial featuring The Miz, is an attempt to tap into nostalgia for the days of local appliance shops and their low-budget local ads.

The effort is a follow-up to last season's Victory Fridge campaign in which Bud Light stoked the enthusiasm of Cleveland Browns' fans. At the time, the Browns were fighting against an epically disastrous record, going 0-16 in the previous season and 1-15 in the year before. Bud helped ride the anticipation for a win to break the dry spell with its Victory Fridges, whose smart technology would automatically unlock to reveal Bud Light beers once the team locked in its first win. Placed in Cleveland's FirstEnergy Stadium and purchased by area bars, the fridges bore the message: "When the Browns Win, Cleveland Wins."

Following a victory in the third week of the season, the fridges were unlocked. Since then, the team has been "hearing from Browns fans who want Victory Fridges of their own," Browns' VP of marketing Andy Goeler said in a statement. The appliance store allows Bud Light to tap into this interest. The campaign also features a celebrity influencer in The Miz, a WWE star and Cleveland native who participated in last season's campaign with a locked refrigerator of his own.

Like other beers, Bud Light is battling dwindling sales by attempting to tie itself to culturally-led experiences. Earlier this month, the brand teamed up with musician Post Malone on a fashion collection with a campaign that included a pop-up shop. Previously, Bud Light announced plans to debut an Area 51-themed special limited edition label, in response to a Facebook posting that tried to rally supporters for a rush on the secret base. And in one of the year's most memorable Super Bowl ads, the brand tapped into "Game of Thrones" fandom by killing off its Bud Light Knight (who returns as part of this campaign).