Bud Light has partnered with SDSU to release the limited-edition Jackrabbit cans for this year’s football season
There are more than 250 FBS and FCS football teams, and out of those schools, only 26 teams are featured as part of the Bud Light can collection, with the Jackrabbits being one of them.
Bud Light has partnerships with universities from across the country, with their logos appearing on the cans. Recent success on the field was a main factor in why Bud Light chose to put SDSU on the cans.
“When we could get our brand in the market it’s a very good opportunity,” said Jonathan Treiber, the general manager of Jackrabbit Sport Properties. “Seeing the Jacks getting promoted at a higher level compared to a lot of bigger colleges, is pretty good for the brand.”
Beal Distribution in Sioux Falls was instrumental in getting SDSU’s logo on Bud Light cans. They were the first ones to raise their hands to have Bud Light invest in SDSU. This is not a cheap promotion but it’s a great investment to push the SDSU brand, Treiber said.
“These limited edition cans are available through Jan. 11,” said John Beal, Beal distribution sales Representative. “ Since they’re doing so well in the market we only have 1,000 cases left in the inventory, and when they’re gone, they’re gone.”
There were 26,000 cases brought to the state and since the cans became widely successful, they hope this partnership will continue in future years.
Bud Light and SDSU have been working together for years, and the goal of this collaboration is to spread brand awareness and use the image of SDSU and Bud Light. Beal hopes this collaboration will gain the attention of college students and get Bud Light in their hands, and to Jackrabbit sport fans.
The Jackrabbit cans have been a success in the Brookings bars and the liquor store, and businesses have seen an increase in the “take” rate for Bud Light sales.
“We saw an increase in sales following the release of the special-edition cans,” said Bill Heldt, the Brookings Municipal Liquor Store Manager.
The Liquor store sold 150 cans when the product was first released. The average was 50.
“In Brookings we put the cans in the bar during happy hours and also had a promo during the games, “ Beal said. “ Hopefully in the long run it increases revenue for us and the bars.”
Jon’s been working on getting these Jackrabbit cans for more than two years. After agreeing to a partnership, Beal Distribution was heavily pushing Bud Light to put the back to back champions on the can, but Bud Light was going to charge more money for the addition. So they agreed to add the Jackrabbit logo on the front.
“Our main goal is to target people who have interest in Jackrabbits, not necessarily targeting students on campus but targeting people who have interest in the Jackrabbits,” Treiber said. “The opportunity to have our logo in front of a new audience is always great.”
“In Brookings we put the cans in the bar during happy hours and also had a promo during the games,” Beal said. “Hopefully in the long run it increases revenue for us and the bars.”
