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Yo, Dinosaurs
August 16, 2006

Life’s a double-edged sword for the industry’s “heritage” brands. On the one hand, they build continued loyalty by doing well that which they always have. Yet in so doing they risk looking old-fashioned, even silly, to young customers.

Those thoughts leap to mind after reading an e-mail from Big Boy, the Warren, Mich.-based coffee-shop chain that has been around, well, forever. It recently kicked off a franchise opening in an Orlando, Fla., suburb by sending out invitations that suggest the aging brand is still hip, sort of.

“I’d like to holla’ at my peeps living the good life sunshine style. To Shaq and the mouse: much love,” write the company’s PR peeps, who sign the invitation “Big Boy.”

Alas, the writers can’t keep up the hustle and flow because they’re obliged to talk about burgers, cod and pasta—dishes that have been around for, well, as long as anyone can remember. In short, the invite’s copy starts sounding really out of date.

I guess the lesson here for aging brands is to figure out who or what you want to be at any given moment—urban hip, country cool, yuppie rich, mainstream staid, etc.—then take control of the message. Going part way and then reverting back to your heritage theme makes you sound out of touch, dog.

Word up: A spokeswoman for Big Boy admits the company did not send invitations to the new-store opening to Florida residents Shaquille O’Neal and Mickey Mouse. “We just had a fun play on words,” she says.

Posted by David Farkas on August 16, 2006 | Comments (0)