Branding: Todd English, Beer Gourmet

By JULIETTE ROSSANT It is a bit surprising to see Todd English endorsing an everyman beer by Anheuser-Busch after endorsing Samuel Adams by Boston Beer. Once upon a time, way back in '02 and '03, Todd was appearing at Food & Wine's annual bash in Aspen, cooking up a special tasting menu for journalists on behalf of Boston Beer (see Super Chef, p. 121). He used to get business advice from friend and Boston Beer owner Jim Koch (see Super Chef p. 121). Then, suddenly this year, Boston Beer replaced Todd with David Burke at the annual Aspen bash. Todd's transfer of celebrity-cum-expert endorsement from one beer to another is not extreme enough to cause commotion -- not like Rick Bayless's endorsement of healthy meals for Burger King. That endorsement did not just bring out the bloggers (e.g., Too Many Chefs) but even Newsweek (see "Breast Intentions"). Still, with all due respect to the Anheuser-Busch corporation, it's just hard to imagine going to an Anheuser-Busch beer from one of Boston Beer's labels. Anheuser-Busch, however, puts forth a strong argument against such comparison: Michelob is brewed with the same European hops as Samuel Adams -- and both are at the lower end of import pricing structures. "We are the largest brewer in America, but Boston Beer is not a microbrewery," John Costello, product manager for Michelob and Michelob Light, told superchefblog. Look at the photos (right), currently available at the Anheuser-Busch website . Todd smiles for camera but is hardly the smoking, sultry, pin-up guy portrayed in his own online photogallery. An odd bunch of flowers (?) hangs nebulously between Todd and grill, the lighting looks off and somehow "indoor"... These are the only images of Todd which superchefblog could find online at AB websites, listed under a hard-to-find "Beer Gourmet" section that does not name Todd at all. Anheuser-Busch told superchefblog that this is an oversight which they are working on: AB's Costello said to look for a re-vamped Michelob.com site in about 60 days and called attention to Todd's appearance in print ads and POS posters. AB then sent superchefblog print material (see image below and click on it for a high-resolution, large version -- very possibly the best publicity photo ever taken of Todd). Why has Anheuser-Busch signed up Todd? Michelob's Costello says his brand wants to elevate the image of Michelob and Michelob Light and create more occasions for drinking them. He told superchefblog: Todd is world renowned. He has a great image. He is an excellent chef. Chefs lend some credibility: they have to share a core belief that beer, like wine, has a place at the table. Beer, just like wine, pairs well with food. It is about saving a place at the table: beer is an invited guest. How did Michelob and Todd English hook up? Costello narrated: We got a proposal from Todd -- not related to this, to sponsor his PBS program, Food Trip [see previous article]. We were interested in a pure media buy. We met -- that program fell through. But we had a culinary strategy. He fit into our strategy to tie into marketing at epicurian and culinary events. We have a personal services contract with Todd, he does some appearances and we use his image. Their agreement covers 2004-2005 and is renewable. Todd stopped by the Anheuser-Busch stand at this year's Food & Wine Classic for an hour, though he didn't do a cooking demonstration, and he has hosted a dinner for 500 guests and appeared at AB's annual meeting, according to Costello. Anheuser-Busch seems clear on what it's getting out of Todd: what is Todd getting out of AB? From a general Haute Cuisine perspective, the answer is clear: by aligning with Michelob, Todd is diluting his Fine Dining brand. But one has to ask further: had he not already started that dilution by endorsing Boston Beer previously? Does the mere fact of endorsing a beer dilute the brand of a super chef, whose definition is pegged to Fine Dining? This larger question is perhaps best answered briefly by saying, everything depends on execution. There is no reason that beer should not be a Fine Dining ingredient, of course. Producers, however, want to see their beers accompanying fine meals: they want to peg beer to wine. Boston Beer has been a leader in the effort to peg beer to wine. Furthermore, regarding their split with Todd, they told superchefblog that they do not have a formal agreement with David Burke. David merely appeared for them at a few events this summer, and they work with other celebrity chefs, too, around the country, encouraging consumers to pair fine beer with fine food. Boston Beer would not comment on their split with Todd, except to say that Jim Koch and Todd are "still friends." Todd has not replied to superchefblog's questions, but AB's Costello argues for them both: We look to help him to expand his brand: it's a win-win situation. He sees it as a very good relationship: our beer and our brand make sense [to him]. Our demographic for Michelob is 28+, a little older -- more refined, educated, affluent. We want to gain credibility with in the culinary arena. Looking at the specific case of Todd English, a number of partners and friends have chastised Todd for chasing sweet deals (see Jim Koch's advice in Super Chef p. 125 and the advice of others on pp. 118-119, 124) -- and, let's face it, the smell of greenbacks wafts strongly when a player like Anheuser-Busch passes by... Nor is Todd by any means alone when it comes to such temptation. Switching from one sponsor to a competitor in the same industry (beer), however, could prove to be an incendiary device, with an aroma most corporate sponsors do not particularly relish. At this point, then, whatever the bigger issues are, Todd might do better to stay with Anheuser-Busch on a more permanent basis than he did with Boston Beer, rather than move on for perhaps an even bigger deal. One might go beyond the obvious branding concerns into real super chef territory: perhaps Todd does not intend to stay in the Fine Dining arena. This is a question that poses itself before all super chefs, as more and more business opportunties arise that are farther and farther afield from Fine Dining. Just as beers -- first a higher quality producer like Boston Beer but now even the King of Beers, Anheuser-Busch -- are trying to leverage themselves into Fine Dining (to help them maintain or raise prices -- on standard Samuel Adams or premium Michelob), so too are super chefs faced with the possibility of spinning out of the more limited Fine Dining market into mass-market consumer areas like Fast Casual Food and Fast Food and beyond -- comparable to mass-marketed beers like Michelob. As always, super chef godfather Wolfgang Puck led the way along this road, particularly with Wolfgang Puck Express (see Super Chef pp. 37-39), but now we've also seen the trend with TV chefs, who have gone from the Haute Cuisine championed by Julia Child to the everyway ways of Rachael Ray. Clearly, Todd is not the only chef who feels pulled in different directions -- and he has already ventured into the mass-market arena with his Figs restaurant chain, a one-time frozen pasta line, an olive oil -- and olives. Meanwhile, though he may feel the mass market's tug (see previous article), Todd ain't no Michael Jordan and ain't nowhere near selling products with only a silhouette (see David Falk's comments about the Michael Jordan brand in Super Chef p. 208), so let's make sure he's always clearly labeled in all ads -- OK? Previous articles: Cooking Under Fire: Doused Romancing the Stove - or The Way We Worked? Todd English: Pitching After Puck? English is Italian: No Stars Cooking Under Fire: Already Over Done? Todd English's Foodie Hotel Todd English: Pots and Pans Pucked? Todd English: Childrens Oscars (Update) Ming Tsai TV Todd English Winner Gets "English is Italian"? Todd English Slums With Jeffrey Chodorow Todd English: Trip Over Table? More Halloween Mexicana, from Rick Bayless Todd English Flipflops between Bush and Kerry? Iron Chef: America vs. USA Todd English: American Chef Gone Wild Technorati Tags: superchefblog, Juliette Rossant, super chef, celebrities, chefs, food, restaurants, cooking, branding, cuisine, newsweek, Newsweek blog link --> subscribe to superchefblog --> back to superchefblog