Vulture Droppings is the blog from Gyro Worldwide in Philadelphia. According to the agency’s casual observations, Budweiser is usurping Pabst Blue Ribbon as the brew of choice among Philly’s urban hipsters.
Here’s a bit of their reasoning, or speculation, as the case may be:
Others say PBR tried to cash in on their hipster status by sponsoring local bands and taking out cheesy ads in alt weeklies. Why couldn’t the brand just sit still, shut up, and allow itself to continue to be discovered generation after generation? They took the short view, tried to cash in, and scared away the flighty trucker-hatted Strokes boys who hate, above all else, to feel like they’re being sold to.
Hmmm. Maybe the “trucker-hatted Strokes boys” are constantly in need of something new to define as cool. Maybe no brand need bother themselves with attempts to appeal to this group. Maybe PBR never did bother with this group, other than to acknowlege their “flighty” existence.
I’m fairly confident PBR’s base—factory workers and other value conscious drinkers in working class bars where hipsters dare not tread—will sustain the brand over the long haul.
