Food Lion, the Official Supermarket of NASCAR, will soon
launch one of the biggest multiple-vendor promotions in the
history of the grocery industry, according to the CHARLOTTE
OBSERVER. Food Lion will give away $20M worth of prizes in a
six-week promotion that starts May 22. A series of spots will
star Richard Petty, Terry Labonte and other NASCAR notables and
air on local TV. Gatorade, Kellogg, Procter & Gamble and Hormel
are among 40 companies involved in the promotion (Tawn Nhan,
CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 4/15). The promotion, backed by a match-and-
win game board contest, will run through June 19. Food Lion
VP/Marketing Jay Abraham: "Traditionally you'll have Coke or
Pepsi doing promos that they take out to the retailers. Very
rarely do you see the retailer doing it." BRANDWEEK's Steve
Gelsi reports other participating sponsors include Kodak, Pepsi,
Oscar Mayer and Kraft cheeses and barbecue sauces, and RJR. The
promo includes point-of-purchase race car mockups and 40-foot
banners outside of stores. Instant prizes range from coupons to
a Limited Edition Richard Petty Series Winnebago valued at
$175,000 (BRANDWEEK, 4/15 issue).
