Indiana Beverage is a family-owned beverage wholesaler that has been serving the 24 counties in NWI since 1939. Recently, Indiana Beverage was excited to announce a partnership with one of its suppliers that would immediately become the talk of the beer industry. In August of 2020, Guinness Beer revealed that it would be the official beer of Notre Dame fans and alumni. This was huge news on a national level, but it was even greater on the local level for the communities that Indiana Beverage serves in and around the South Bend Market.
Chris Wallin is a brand manager for Indiana Beverage and has been with the company for over 14 years.
“This really goes back to August of 2020. That was a monumental day in the history of beer. Think about things that go really well together: the most recognized team in college sports, the Fighting Irish, and the world's most recognized Irish beer, Guinness. That's pretty much a perfect relationship if you asked me,” said Wallin.
The new Notre Dame and Guinness-inspired packaging has driven the awareness of this partnership from the start because the outer packaging and the individual cans of Guinness contain the Notre Dame logo. The dual-branded point of sale is an essential component to driving brand awareness. Beer drinkers throughout the Region should keep an eye out for Guinness and Notre Dame branded signage at retail locations across Northwest Indiana.
Within the next few years of the seven-year partnership, Indiana Beverage looks forward to expanding the branding and marketing of Notre Dame and Guinness. In particular, the company is excited for the branding opportunities on campus at Notre Dame as well as Northwest Indiana as a whole.
“You could go to a bar on campus or tailgate and get a pint of Guinness that has the Notre Dame logo on it, which is pretty cool. There isn’t a more local partnership. The thing about Notre Dame is that they have one of the biggest fan bases in all sports, so you could even go anywhere in the country and find a Notre Dame bar,” said Wallin. “And for Guinness, that brand is just as recognizable worldwide. It might be the most recognizable imported beer.”
Because Notre Dame and Guinness are so well known, Indiana Beverage looks forward to the community-building opportunities the brand partnership brings. Sports and beer go hand-in-hand, and Indiana Beverage aspires to provide beer drinkers and Fighting Irish fans with the perfect drink for social gatherings.
“People are always looking for a reason to get together, and having a beer during football season is one of the most famed occasions. When you talk about Guinness being the official beer of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, people attending any game, not just football, will have that sense of camaraderie,” said Wallin. “The partnership is driving sales, especially locally here in Valparaiso and South Bend. When people see that Notre Dame logo paired with Guinness, it really just elevates the brand in the consumer's mind and in turn drives the desire to purchase.”
This partnership allows Indiana Beverage to bring a new experiential marketing piece to local bars with the new Ripples Machine. The Ripples Machine is a device that allows customers to “personalize” their pint. Having the ability to print selfies or a picture on their drink, creates a lot of excitement at local bars.
“People who might not otherwise try a Guinness seem to be more willing to step out of their comfort zone and give it a try so long as we can print a pic of their dog on it. There is a lot of fun stuff we can do with the machine to help promote Guinness and Notre Dame,” said Wallin.
While the first two years of the partnership have featured small branding experiences for Notre Dame and Guinness, Indiana Beverage looks forward to ramping up future opportunities to bring this partnership to the forefront with Region residents. During the next six years, Indiana Beverage also hopes to dispel rumors of Guinness being a heavy beer.
“One of the biggest misconceptions overall is that Guinness is a heavy beer. Even for me, before I even tried Guinness for the first time, I always wrote off dark beers and heavy beers. It's really quite the opposite," said Wallin.
It might surprise someone who has never given Guinness a shot, but one serving of Guinness only has 125 calories. Clocking in at just 4.2% ABV, Guinness really is a perfect choice for tailgating at Notre Dame or catching the game at home with friends.
Give Guinness a shot the next major game day. Visit https://www.guinness.com/en-us/our-beers/ to learn more about Guinness Beer, and check out https://www.indianabev.com/ourportfolio to see the many brewery partners Indiana Beverage has in Northwest Indiana.
