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October 2006 - Strategy Magazine
Tribute: Labatt Blue

50 years of Labatt Blue: Timeline

by Lisa D'Innocenzo
page 48

1950s

Hugh Labatt of the Labatt Brewing Company travels to Pilsen (now in the Czech Republic) where he perfects the recipe for Labatt Pilsener lager - a crisp, refreshing beer that contrasts with the heavier ales popular in Canada at the time.

The new brand is introduced in Ontario in 1951 and in Manitoba five years later. Because of its characteristic blue label, fans of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers football team adopt the beer as their own, nicknaming it "Blue." The name sticks, buoyed by the fact that the Blue Bombers went on to win back-to-back Grey Cup championships in 1958-59.

Advertising during this time, featuring a cartoonish Bavarian spokesperson called Mr. Pilsener, highlights the brew as a "thirst quencher," a positioning that eventually becomes extinct due

to regulations.

1960s

In the early '60s the name Labatt Blue is officially registered. In 1968 the wildly popular "When You're Smiling" campaign, by J. Walter Thompson, hits the airwaves.

Like much advertising during this decade, the tone is absurdly happy. The lyrics, which instruct consumers that "next time you order, just call for Pilsener - the true-blue lager beer" plays over images of young people dancing on a beach, playing touch football and enjoying a hot air balloon ride. (The iconic blue hot air balloon, first introduced in the '60s - and originally red - will reappear in commercials until the '80s.) A voiceover, meanwhile, explains the virtues of Blue. In one spot, viewers learn that, "Pilsener has today's flavour for today's people. It's the true-blue lager from Labatt's that never wears out its welcome. Ever." The commercials end with a shot of the Labatt Blue label, accompanied by the jingle "Blue, blue, blue, blue, blue, call for Blue."

1970s

Labatt continues with the "When You're Smiling" campaign, with different spots showing young folks tobogganing, floating down a river on oversized beer caps, and more. However, there are a couple of changes from the earlier advertisements. The tagline changes from "The true-blue lager" to "The true-blue friendly beer," and later, "Blue smiles with you."

While in the early '70s the voiceover remains - serving up statements like, "See why Labatt's Blue is catching on with people who like beer and like to smile" - it is later dropped. Also, the cut to a label at the end of commercials gives way to a close-up of a frothy pint of Blue, or a glass of the brew with bottle. And the "When you're smiling" ditty becomes customized to match the action in the ads. For instance, a commercial starring a group of friends happily washing cars goes, "Get together, help someone, get together, get it done and let Labatt's Blue smile with you."

And in 1979, Labatt's Blue becomes the best-selling Canadian beer in the world. Some observers have since suggested that the "When you're smiling" advertising worked so well, it helped Blue hold on to its top-selling rank in Canada despite a lack of consistent ad positioning after it ended.

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