Urban
JULY 2003
According to Davis, the distributors understood the strategic
decision of Heineken USA because, as he puts it: "We have a unique
business proposition for them. We now sell over 70 million cases
per year, so we have critical mass, we have shown solid growth
and we can offer the distributor a much higher margin than
domestic brewers."
Heineken Beer has proved to be a constant factor in a turbulent
American beer market. But Heineken USA realised that, long term,
there was a potential risk of the brand losing its appeal and its
relevance to consumers. As Davis explains: "The demographics
are changing, especially for beer. Hispanics and African Americans,
who are now still in a minority, will be bigger in size than
Caucasians in 2030. So we've decided to focus on these very
targetable groups. Targetable, because they are grouped in
relatively small areas."
Scott Hunter Smith has been working for Heineken USA for six years
as brand manager Heineken African American. He focuses on urban
people. Not necessarily people from the big cities, but (young)
people with an urban mindset. "There is a fusion, a blending of
cultures of African Americans, Caucasians and Hispanics. It's the
African Americans who are a major driver in this urban mindset.
Take hip hop for example, a very popular form of music. The CDs
are mainly bought by white people, while the artists are mainly
African Americans."
Smith operates in the heart of urban culture. In his view that is the
only way you can keep track of developments and identify new
trends at an early stage. The ability to rapidly pinpoint new trends
and bring the Heineken communication into line with these is
essential to keep the brand relevant for this target group of 21 to
34-year-olds. "That's where the future of our brand is, so we want
to be part of that culture and lifestyle. We want the urban consumer
to consider Heineken as 'my beer'. A brand that is relevant to
them and their life. If you don't change at the same speed as the
consumer, you'll die."
The urban lifestyle revolves totally around fashion, food, language
and, most of all, music. Music is the most important pillar of this
new culture. Heineken USA has decided to concentrate much of
its marketing activity on the music scene. At the moment Jay Z is
one of the most prominent urban musicians. He played a starring
role in a Heineken commercial that was aired for the first time
