Dive Brief:
- Heineken-owned Dos Equis announced via a news release that it is partnering with the streetwear and lifestyle brand "Mexico is the S--t" (MITS), known for a jacket that is stitched with the company's name. The partnership will include pop-up shops and events featuring up-and-coming Mexican talent, streetwear designers, visual artists and musicians.
- The collaboration is part of Dos Equis' "Keep it Interesante" platform launched earlier this year and will include social media, sponsored content, merchandising and a special-edition "Mexico is the S--t" can.
- Dos Equis and MITS hosted a kick-off event on at Remezcla House in Brooklyn, New York, on Sept. 15 to celebrate the partnership and Mexican Independence Day. The event featured a mural by Los Angeles-based artist Teddy Kelly and performances by Neon Indian, Marcelo Cunning and DJ Chava.
Dive Insight:
The MITS campaign shows Dos Equis hopping on a broader trend, where marketers are partnering with lifestyle and streetwear fashion brands to support emerging artists and appeal to their typically young fans and followers. Pepsi did something similar for soccer-themed marketing that ran around the World Cup this summer. The soda brand teamed with several international clothing brands on merchandise that featured designs from up-and-coming artists. The campaign also included limited-edition packaging. Similarly, Froot Loops recently linked up with Awaytomars to source a cereal-inspired capsule collection from 700 of the retailer's designers.
Dos Equis is also celebrating its Mexican heritage through limited-edition cans carrying the MITS message and pop-up events — the type of experiential marketing that is favored among younger drinkers like millennials. A culturally-centered approach could resonate with Hispanic consumers as well, who have high spending power but are frequently overlooked by marketers. The demographic is savvy with digital and social media and also tends to over-index on cause-related purchases, according to recent research by Nielsen.
Staple beer brands have struggled with younger consumers, who are drinking less beer and choosing wine and spirits instead. Dos Equis recently dropped its popular "Most Interesting Man in the World" messaging strategy, which debuted in 2006. The brand replaced the longtime lead actor Jonathan Goldsmith with French actor Augustin Legrand in 2016, and research showed that the switch wasn't connecting with millennials.
In March, Dos Equis pivoted away from the "Most Interesting Man" conceit to "Keep it Interesante," which encourages beer drinkers to keep their friends entertained by embellishing stories. The brewer got off to a rough start this year, with sales volume down 5.8% from the previous year as of mid-February, according to a Beer Business Daily report cited in Ad Age.
