Blimpie sports promo turns MSG into garden of eating

Nation's Restaurant News, April 14, 1997 by Paul King

NEW YORK -- New Yorkers love their sports teams -- especially when they're winning -- and Blimpie Associates hopes to capitalize on that love this play-off season.

Blimpie's began a partnership in January with Madison Square Garden, the home of the New York Knicks basketball team and New York Rangers hockey team. Under the agreement MSG became a Blimpie franchisee, selling Blimpie sandwiches in four MSG food courts and hawking the new Blimpie's Jr. in the stands.

In addition, Blimpie Associates bought the right to trademark itself as "the official sandwich of the New York Knicks and New York Rangers."

Now, with both teams assured of reaching the play-offs this season in their respective sports, the company is preparing to roll out a beverage promotion tied to the teams.

"It will be a `Coke To Go' promotion," explained Ron Feigenbaum, director of marketing at Blimpie. "Customers can get a special cup with the `official sandwich' logo imprinted on it. It will be a way for customers to show support for their teams."

Blimpie Associates hopes to get a lot of mileage out of its association with MSG. Feigenbaum noted that, regardless of any special promotions, the arrangement is a great marketing tool simply because of the prestige of MSG.

"More than four million people go through Madison Square Garden every year," Feigenbaum said. "That strengthens the visibility of our brand tremendously."

Of course, it doesn't hurt that Blimpie signage is displayed prominently throughout the arena. The advertising includes several 3-foot-by-6-foot dioramas in the Garden's concourse area; Blimpie logos on the auxiliary scoreboards at both ends of the playing surface; and rotating ads on the 15-foot-by-30-foot, two-sided marquee on the Seventh Avenue side of the arena.

The marquee, which changes every two minutes, features "Blimpie's Presents The Great Subs," which consists of profiles of various substitute players on the two MSG teams.

Blimpie Associates also is running television commercials on the MSG Network during Ranger games.

In addition, all 150 Blimpie franchises in the New York metropolitan area advertise the chain's tie-in with the Knicks and Rangers.

Feigenbaum admitted that the return on investment is tough to measure.

"Tracking the impact of our association with MSG is very hard because nothing is linked directly to sales," Feigenbaum said. "However, one thing we have noticed is that the arrangement has enhanced our relations with our franchisees. This has been a great vehicle to tie all our franchisees together."

Specifically, he noted, the link to successful sports teams builds pride among franchisees and store employees.

"Much of our success is tied to the energy level of our store employees and store owners," he said. "There is much more interaction between staff and customers in a Blimpie's store than there is in a chain like McDonald's or Burger King. The better our employees feel about their jobs and the company, the more their excitement is passed on to customers."

At the Garden, Blimpie's has done well, according to Chuck Troccoli, vice president of food and merchandise at MSG. He noted that sales of Blimpie sandwiches are triple what MSG's nonbranded sandwiches were last year.

Blimpie Associates' tie-in with the Knicks and Rangers is not the franchiser's only link to professional sports. Blimpie's products also are sold at Nassau Coliseum, home of the New York Islanders, and the franchiser also is a sponsor of the New Jersey Nets.

Feigenbaum said the company continues to seek similar nontraditional venues. Blimpie Associates just signed a deal to sell its sandwiches at Yankee Stadium this year, in Club Level seating and at the Sidewalk Cafe.