DOLE'S 1ST MULTI-ITEM PROMO TIED TO 'THE SWAN PRINCESS'

LISA A. TIBBITTS

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif. -- Dole Food Co. here has engineered a multi-tiered promotion to coincide with the release this month of the animated feature film "The Swan Princess."

The tie-in was crafted to encourage display activity in supermarkets for a group of Dole products during two key holiday periods. This is the first time the company has used a multiple-product promotion.

To date, about 11,250 stores have bought into the promotion on one tier or another, including all 60 Tops Markets, Buffalo, N.Y., and 40 King Soopers, Denver, the company said.

"The movie hits Nov. 18. We're looking for major displays two weeks prior to Thanksgiving and then, based on [the movie's and the promotion's] success, some customers want to come back and rerun [the promotion] at Christmas," said Marty Ordman, director of sales promotions and special events for Dole. "If we get the execution we're looking for, it should be great."

Dole created a three-tier promotion for supermarkets based on the number of products they are willing to display. Dole products involved in the promotion are canned pineapple, tropical fruit salad, canned pineapple juice, dates, raisins and frozen juices. The promotion's design was handled by Reach Marketing, Westport, Conn.

"Everybody knows what displays can do for your business. It's critical for us, especially for us with our pineapple, which is a seasonal item," Ordman noted. He outlined the levels of promotion:

With a 50-case display, Dole gives each store a large header card. A consumer who purchases four Dole products receives a Swan Princess poster with $40 worth of coupons for other Swan Princess merchandise from J.C. Penney's photo studio, Tyco toys, Scholastic books and others. A cardboard cutout of the Prince and Princess characters from the movie holds a tear-pad of the posters.

With a 75-case display, Dole provides the posters and a large plush swan with a retail value of $400 for the retailer to give away. A ballot box will be displayed in-store. The swan can be used as a ceiling dangler, on or near the display or another area of the store. It's up to the retailer.

With a 125-case display, Dole promises to deliver the posters, the swan and one of three sweepstakes prizes the retailer may choose: a $100 shopping spree "fit for a princess;" a Sony CD player and the movie soundtrack or $100 worth of Swan Princess merchandise.

Ordman estimated that 80% of the sell-in has been at 75 cases.

The tie-in was especially attractive, Ordman said, because no other packaged goods companies are involved, so Dole would have no display competition in supermarkets."The Swan Princess" was produced by Nest Entertainment and distributed by New Line Cinema. Llicensing and promotion are handled by Leisure Concepts, New York, the film's exclusive licensing agent.