November 2005 The Bush League A Knoxville company spills few beans in launching a second ad campaign By Sara C. Shoemaker It’s well known that Bush Brothers & Co. operates under a shroud of secrecy more typical of government installations than a maker of beans. This is especially true when guarding the secret family recipe for its top-selling, nationally branded Bush’s Best Baked Beans.
Recently, Bush’s management has lifted the veil—if only slightly—to spur momentum for its second year advertising campaign to promote its homestyle, ready-to-eat chili this fall—this time in a larger, 26-ounce family-sized glass jar.
The century-old, family-run Knoxville company began pushing its name about 10 years ago when it introduced the company founder’s grandson, Jay Bush, and his canine sidekick, Duke, in a series of television ads in which Duke threatens to give away the closely guarded baked beans recipe.
Bush Brothers has since grown to a $240 million empire representing baked and variety beans, sauerkraut, greens and hominy.
Adding chili in 2004, Bush’s entered the U.S. market in the number three slot behind Hormel and Campbell’s—yet differentiated its product by touting high-end quality comparable to chili made from scratch.
Bush marketers hope to generate a similar consumer following using the same family connection with ads featuring “Cousin Drew,” a Bush relative who created the chili recipes, and reprising Jay’s role (sans sidekick).
Chili is a popular family meal choice, according to food marketing research. But, of the 210 million chili eaters in the country, only 37% buy ready-made chili (citing poor taste and flavor as the factors that keep them away).
This set the stage for Bush’s to leverage its established beans legacy to influence consumers’ opinions about its chili.
“The recipe is based on what consumers told us was most like homemade. That recipe is being as carefully guarded as the baked bean recipe,” says Ron Dix, Bush’s senior vice president of marketing and sales.
It’s still too early to tell if Bush’s has won over chili lovers because it takes more than one year to determine a campaign’s success, says Scott Emerine with Creative Energy Group, a Johnson City-based food marketing agency. (Bush Brothers is not a client.)
“A company can begin to compare previous year’s sales against current year sales to evaluate a product line and its effectiveness,” he adds.
For those outside the company, advertising is still one of the only ways to gain a glimpse of what the company is up to. Beyond the carefully crafted ad campaign, they’re still not talking.
Email to a Friend
Print-Friendly Format