(Source: Yahoo! Finance)
Establishes Prominent UK Promotional Partnerships
STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–May 2, 2005–The sold out WrestleMania® Revenge Tour exploded across Europe during April 2005, selling out every one of its 14 live events. WWE fans from the UK, Italy, Germany, and Ireland snapped up more than 104,500 tickets in record time with the culmination being the production of WWE’s flagship television programs Monday Night RAW® (on Spike TV) and WWE SmackDown!® (on UPN) at Birmingham’s NEC Arena on April 25 and 26.
The past six months has seen incredible growth for WWE in the UK. Furthering the brand’s bond with UK fans, WWE has established strategic relationships with leading UK retailer ASDA and The Daily Star, one of the UK’s largest national newspapers. Starting this month, ASDA stores throughout the country will feature the WWE brand and WWE Superstars on 2.5 million packages of seven private label cereal brands. As part of the cereal initiative, ASDA will provide in-store point-of-sale and WWE will offer ASDA cereal buyers the chance to win a family holiday to the WWE Royal Rumble® Pay-Per-View in Miami, Fla.
“WWE’s explosive style of entertainment cuts across cultures and boundaries and it was clearly proven on this tour where fans in four countries attended 14 sell-out events in seven days,” said Kurt Schneider, WWE’s EVP, Marketing. “Just like our fans, retailers are taking notice, too. In particular, the cereal promotion with ASDA is the type of long-term relationship we are striving to establish with major retailers around the world.”
Nathaniel Southworth, Toy Buyer, ASDA commented, “With the combination of fantastic everyday low prices on WWE action figures and the Superstars of the WWE visiting our stores everyone at ASDA is sure this will be an absolute knockout. Hopefully, the shoppers won’t be wrestling too much to get one of the many great action figures on offer into their trolleys!”
The Daily Star was involved in the current tour through the integration of its “Star Girls” into RAW and SmackDown! The Daily Star was strategically woven into the creative story line of both programs using actual features from the pages of the Daily Star. Following the WrestleMania Revenge Tour, an exclusive DVD will be available to Daily Star readers through a national promotional campaign.
WWE licensees and retail partners participated in the WrestleMania Revenge Tour through a major 16-event appearance schedule featuring the hugely popular WWE Superstars. The initiative connected WWE retail partners to more than 100,000 consumers, creating multiple consumer touch points, a critical part of WWE’s international “power period” concept. WWE Superstars met fans at Virgin, HMV, Big W, WH Smith, Eaons Book Stores and Woolworths throughout the UK during the tour, helping to put the brand front and center for those retailers’ patrons.
Coming off the success of the WrestleMania Revenge Tour, the SmackDown! brand will be returning to the UK in June. The WWE SmackDown! Summer Bash Tour will hold events in Ireland, Scotland and the UK.
Thanks again for reading,
Joe
