Thursday, February 18, 2010

N.C. icons Pepsi and Cheerwine join together

A frequent Society contributor once lived in D.C. and would order cases of Cheerwine because it was so hard to come by in the nation's capital. Apparently, getting Cheerwine in Raleigh hasn't been easy either.

But no longer.

"A distribution deal with Raleigh-based Pepsi Bottling Ventures will bring Cheerwine to more grocery stores and other retail outlets in the Triangle market, the Carolina Beverage Corp. and Cheerwine Bottling Co. announced Tuesday," says the TBJ.

“PBV has fantastic relationships with local retailers and institutions where we’ve never been available before,” said Jim Leland, Cheerwine’s vice president of sales, “and we’re excited to announce to Cheerwine drinkers that, wherever they see Pepsi, they’ll now likely see us.”

The partnership brings together two soft-drink brands that were created in North Carolina.

“We’re pleased to have the two most iconic brands that are both born in North Carolina – Cheerwine in Salisbury and Pepsi in New Bern – together in our home base, Raleigh,” says Paul Finney, senior vice president of sales and marketing for Pepsi Bottling Ventures.

Raleigh has long been one of Cheerwine’s top markets, said the company, which expects sales to grow substantially with its new Pepsi partnership.

1 comment:

Kevin Brewer said...

This is what I call a transitional period for Cheerwine -- and me.

Until the Pepsi/Cheerwine distribution deal is complete, there is no Cheerwine in area stores. I've checked -- and talked to someone at Harris Teeter about it.

I could always order in the mail.