Perrier's 'Extraordinary' French Open Activation Spans Sky Bars & Kidnaps

For its 2015 Roland Garros activation French Open drinks partner Perrier has built an ‘Extraordinary Bar’ 30 meters up in the air above Paris’ famous Champs de Mars.

This sky bar sees Perrier offers those tennis fans unlucky enough not to have tennis tickets a chance to watch live tournament broadcasts in a way they could scarcely imagine – hanging high above the French capital with breathtaking views of the city as well as the tennis.

Every day through the tournament – which runs from 24 May to 7 June – around 200 lucky customers will be able to enjoy the new Green Apple flavour Perrier or Extraordinary Cocktail Perrier high above the streets whilst watching the tennis on giant TVs.

Those able to enjoy the experience include both competition winners and those chosen at ground level by Perrier street teams on the Champ de Mars itself.

Each 30-minute session will accommodate 22 people.

This unique experience is part of Perrier’s ongoing #ExtraordinairePerrierdéveloppé Roland Garros activation concept.

The tagline ‘With Perrier, everything will be ‘extraordinary’’ lies at the heart of the campaign and the adjective is the master device upon which its innovative experiences, stunts, sponsorship and social marketing are based.

Extraordinary moment with @Perrier #RG15 pic.twitter.com/Qe0uKsXb60

— annelise bouchoux (@abouchoux) May 26, 2015

This sees the drinks brand celebrates its historic Fédération Française de Tennis (FFT) partnership in extraordinary and beautiful ways.

In 2015 the Extraordinary Bar completes a series of activations that also include the ‘Extraordinary Terrace’ and the ‘Extraordinary Place’ – all designed and created by UniteamSport.

The Extraordinary Terrace:

One day a tennis fan is relaxing with a Perrier in a café terrace somewhere in France, when out of the blue a Perrier hostess kidnaps them and whisks them off to Roland-Garros to watch the day’s matches. All of which is captured by hidden cameras.

The Extraordinary Umpire’s Chair:

Ever dreamed of what it’s like to sit intimately above the court in the umpire’s chair? This activation strand offers consumers just such a chance. Thanks to an innovative technology application, Perrier offers tennis fans the chance for a truly immersive tennis experience – to sit in the umpire’s chair on centre court.

The Extraordinary Place:

An ordinary match ticket becomes an extraordinary one, as this Roland Garros strand invites a lucky few fans into its own private spaces at the Suzanne Lenglen or Philippe Chatrier courts for a VIP experience that stretches from a spectator’s kit,

.@Perrier lance un challenge plutot innovant imaginer le prochain spot #pub avec la musique ! #ExtraordinairePerrier pic.twitter.com/MnYRqtDZDE

— Dettachée de Presse (@DettacheePresse) May 22, 2015

to in-seat drinks service and other tournament surprises.

The Extraordinary Wait:

Each day of the tournament day, some of the thousands of queuing spectators in the refreshment areas of Roland-Garros are invited to solve a puzzle for a chance to win Slim Cans of Perrier Green Apple.

Another strand of Perrier’s French Open activity includes its status as title partner for the ‘Perrier Legends Trophy’: this is an 18-year-old tournament for former star players who have made their mark on the tennis world.

The ‘Extraordinary’ also features on the programme of the hotly anticipated Perrier Legend’s Trophy.

The doubles’ competition’s ‘Extraordinaire Perrier’ device aims to ‘spread a sparkle of eccentricity across the four corners of the complex, perpetuating Perrier’s creative and nonconformist spirit’.

In 2015 the legends competition will run from 2 to 7 June and will feature big names such as Marion Bartoli, Kim Clijsters, Lindsay Davenport, Cédric Pioline , John McEnroe , Guy Forget, Marat Safin , Arnaud Clement and many others.

Comment

Perrier often uses Roland Garros as an opportunity to launch a new flavour or brand extension: while this year sees the debut of green apple, last year saw Perrier launch its ‘Slim Can’.

Perrier recently renewed its partnership with the Roland Garros tournament for a further four years until 2018. The brand has a strong presence in the tournament grounds: in addition to hospitality spaces and on-site brand experiences, Perrier’s French Open package also gives it courtside branding and ownership of the player hydration points.

It was back in 1978 that the partnership between Perrier and Roland-Garros first began.

The company’s logo then began appearing on tournament drink coolers in 1989 and on the umpire’s chair in 1996.

In 2000, Perrier began sponsoring the players’ rest area through branded benches and chairs and in 2011 the players’ courtside umbrellas began carrying the Perrier logo.

In all, last year nearly 200,000 Perrier products were consumed by the players and the organisation, while 150,000 products were sold to the public.

When the extension was signed, Denis Cans , President of Nestlé Waters France said ‘We are pleased and proud to support the success of this event for many years and to radiate the brand and its values, while sharing special moments of conviviality with the public ‘.

There is certainly plenty of defendable synergy between Perrier (an iconic, premium French brand that has contributed to promoting France internationally for many years) and Roland-Garros (arguably France’s most exclusive and second most famous annual sporting event).

Links

Perrier YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/user/perrier

Perrier Facebook:

www.facebook.com/perrier

Perrier Instagram:

www.instagram.com/perrier

Perrier Twitter:

www.twitter.com/Perrier

Unite Team Sport Website:

http://www.uniteamsport.fr/

Roland Garros Website: