a
You will rarely see an
occasion in Sierra Leone
where there isn't Star Beer
vehicle for sharing the unique brightness
that only Star Beer delivers.
Time to Shine
Many of these programmes are brought
together through Star Connect TV, a
weekly one-hour television programme
that showcases Star events on National
TV network stations. Star also features
regularly on TV with the Star Gameshow,
broadcast weekly since 2003. Consumers
can win exclusive tickets to the Gameshow
through on-trade promotions.
Currently, as part of Star's new pay-off,
'Shine on', consumers can win millions of
prizes in the 'Time to Shine' promotion
by checking the underside of their crown
cork for a raffle code that can be entered
for the draw by SMS. There can be little
doubt that HEINEKEN has a shining Star
in Nigeria.
Star Beer's success story isn't limited to
Nigeria. In Sierra Leone, it considers
itself a national icon - with good
reason. "Star is the only lager beer
brand that's locally brewed. In addition,
Star is produced by Sierra Leoneans and
made from malt that's partly mixed
with locally-grown sorghum," explains
Tweneboa Kodua Donkor, or TK, as the
Commercial Manager of Sierra Leone
Brewery Limited (SLBL) is known to his
colleagues and accounts.
Quarter 2 2012 World of HEINEKEN 23
Star is the mainstream brand for
everyone of legal drinking age in Sierra
Leone, especially young, working-class
urban and sub-urban consumers with
a substantial income. Sierra Leone has
survived a civil war and currently finds
itself in a state of rebuilding, and people
rarely miss out on an opportunity to
celebrate or be merry.
"Star vibrates fun, happiness and
togetherness. These are characteristics
Sierra Leoneans love about themselves
and others, so they strongly identify
with Star. You will rarely see an occasion
in Sierra Leone where there isn't Star
Beer. And that, by the way, goes for
other countries in the West African
sub-region too," TK says.
Star's popularity is certainly reflected in
its performance in Sierra Leone. For the
past three years, it's seen positive growth,
up from 18% in 2009 to 40% in the first
half of 2012. These positive figures have
allowed Star to reclaim its number one
position as the nation's favourite beer.
Distribution and Marketing
What is Star's secret? A combination
of distribution and marketing, says
TK. Although SLBL doesn't handle the
distribution itself, it ensures that the
brand gets to the point of sale by seeing
to it that the distributors are able to
