SOMERS, N.Y. -- Pepsi-Cola Co.'s All Sport sports beverage has linked up with General Mills' Wheaties cereal for an on-pack coupon promotion that is just arriving in retail stores.
The coupon, good for a free 32-ounce bottle of All Sport, is printed on the front panel of 12-ounce boxes of Wheaties. Consumers can clip the coupon at home and return later for their free beverages.
A million and a half special cereal boxes are being produced and shipped to stores for this promotion, said Gary Hemphill, a Pepsi-Cola spokesman. The two companies expect the boxes will sell through by early November.
The link with All Sport "makes sense from a Breakfast of Champions sports connection," Hemphill said. "It seems to be a perfect fit."
Wheaties gets an added value from the promotion, while All Sport gets prominent exposure for its logo on the breakfast aisle -- a location that would normally be inaccessible to the brand.
The coupon, with an image of the beverage bottles and the words, "Free All Sport Body Quencher" and "Clip Here," stretches across the front panel of the cereal box. The entire back panel of the box is devoted to a description of the drink, with another large image of the bottle.
Since its introduction in March of this year, All Sport has captured a 10% market share in the sports beverage category, behind entrenched market leader Gatorade.
Hemphill added that Pepsi's goal is to get people to sample the beverage. "We think this is a great way to stimulate trial," he said.