It's late, one thousand nine hundred and ninety six and fair haired marketing visionary Mark Hall is lossed lossed on a desolate palm tree line ST in the southern Californian City of Corona, call pulls over and checks his map street, but where's the building. All he sees or windowless white Lego, brick offices, nodes change, know people anywhere, not a good omen he's. This is rental car again and cruises the street. Eventually he finds what he thinks is the right building. He had through a set of reflective brown glass doors are receptionist, sits behind a desk filing your nails Hall walks over is this handsome beverages? You must be Mister Hall. Mister Sax is waiting for you, Rodney

is the ceo of Hanson beverages and he desperately needs halls. Help Hollis fresh from helping Arizona, iced tea blow away the competition with its eye catching large pastel. Can sacs of old south African once hauled to work the same marketing magic on his ailing diet, soda and fruit juice company he's been trying to get haul out to corona for weeks, but halls got bad news for Saks. The reason just leads hall to a meeting room as plain as the building's exterior inside is a man in a suit with graying hair. He stands been greets Hall warmly hello mark very good to meet you at last, I'm Rodney Sex. Have you considered our job offer I have, but, but I'm still not convinced sax looks crestfallen needs hall, Hansens, a minor league soda maker with a wholesome image.

I've been having a hard time, none of it drinks or wowing consumers. Two years ago it narrowly avoided bankruptcy MAX needs someone with spark envision who can get Hanson out of its Rudd. Ok, what's putting you off no offense, but I can't work with what you got. Your branch, they're kind of blah I can't do anything with them. Ouch Saks fields heard, but he brushes it off. He bought this generations old family company for years ago, and he won't admit defeat. Not yet maybe giving hall free Reign is the answer: how about How about we give you your own team, and you just do new products that might work Saks fields, an adrenaline rush he's? close the deal he decides to clinch. It with a big incentive

I'll also give you stock options, but one hundred and fifty thousand shares hold math in his head. Add many shares. All he needs to do is get Hanson stock up from about two cents, a share to five dollars a share It will be made for life. Ok, now, I'm in sex smiles good, any thoughts on what kind of product you might start with yeah sort of red bull. This massive in Europe it sold as an energy booster. I think a similar drink would do well in the US too, but we gotta move fast. I've heard red bulls about to expand into the US, but if we get in quick we can steal the market from them. Facts are dreaming big there

now thinking they can stop red bull in its tracks, but their first attempt to top the energy drink business is going to fail badly. So for business, wars comes from capital, one with the spark cash car from capital one. You earn unlimited two percent cash back on all of your business purchases. Think about it. Unless two percent cash back on everything you buy for your business and that cash back can add up to thousands of dollars, you can reinvest back into your business, so you can keep growing. Imagine what unlimited two percent cash back could do for your business. Learn more capital one dot com! What's in your wallet,.

From wondering I'm David Brown- and this is business you're listening to episode, two in our series, red bull versus monster, enerji, be Gore's bull. In the last episode, austrian marketing, Whiz Dietrich Matter shakes turned at Ienergy drink into red bull. In conquered Europe. Now he's bringing red Bull to America, he saw with millions of dollars and a battle tested guerrilla marketing strategy, but matter shakes

is about to run up against a formidable foe. It's late, one thousand nine hundred and ninety seven in LOS Angelus salesman for the: U S: red bull team places, a silver and blue can in front buyer for a grocery store chain, the buyer stares at it. The salesman leans forward go on, try it, the buyer grab the cannon pools the tab. He raises the drink to his lips and sips. He gives the salesman a puzzled glance and takes Bushwick it's better on the second taste. It wasn't sure at first, but you know it not so bad, not great either though maybe but but your stores will make more money from this than Coke Pepsi and 7Up combined, and that's that's a bold claim when you figure that you've only just launched in the US it'll be big here is in Europe and what's more, it sells it

dollars a can. What two dollars for that skinny? Can your kid? No, no! I'm not will pay for the massive energy boost Red Bull delivered the buyer figure out this guy. Is he over confident or is he arrogant? Can this weird drink really sell that well will try it give me a couple of free cases and we'll see how it sells. Nope huh, we don't do free cases, I have to buy them and before you ask we're not going to pay you to put it into your stores either. The buyer can't believe what he's hearing. He's heard enough. Look here buddy, I don't know how things work in Europe, but in this market we get some free cases and if it sells well, we start stocking it. You need us, we don't need you, I'm the one holding all the cards. The salesman shrugs

see you're, not ready for Red Bull, who that's ok, so stores prefer to play it safe I'll, get that I'll come back another time, leaving yeah no big deal when the time is right. You bye, open, stands up, shakes doctor buyers, hand and heads for the door feels like he's about to miss out on something something that could the big wait. Okay, I'll buy a couple of cases. Red bulls only just arrived in America, but its sales strategy is leaving US store buyers stunned. No one has heard of red bull, and yet it salesman ACT like buyers or losers if they don't get that it's the hottest drink around. But for the moment red Bull isn't worrying about winning over grocery stores. Instead, the company

targeting America's most fashionable bars and nightclubs red full, wants to replicate its european strategy, make itself a fixture on the party scene and build a reputation as a cool mysterious, underground drink. Officially red bull presents itself to bars as a standalone drink, but everyone knows the real story from the New York clubs to most happening bars in LA red bull is seen as the ideal mixer with alcohol. If you want to party late into the night, kitchen, an energizer so good that hip consumers will pay eighteen dollars for a vodka red bull, soon, red Bull, Sweeping America's big cities, I'll claim circulate about it's invigorating ingredients, phone claim. It's made with the semen of bulls, others reckon it contains amphetamines, but rather than address the rumors red bull

jokes, as matter shakes, tells his US team. Our biggest threat is a lack of interest. Mystery and a hint of danger are important. These rumors make Redbull more interesting. Red bull is not the only enerji drink fighting for America's attention in ape: one thousand nine hundred and ninety. Seven. Four months after recruiting Mark Hall Hanson launches its answer to red bull. The company calls its competitor drink. Hansens, Energi, it's not a drink that will win prizes for innovation, like red, Bull, Hanson, Zenergy, comes in eight ounce cans and pushes its caffeine and taurine content aided by Hanson's existing relationships with retailers. Hanson Zenergy rapidly tops Americas embryonic enerji drink market, but it's rain barely lasts a year as

Google expands its US distribution and steps up its marketing, Hansens energies, marketshare crumbles. My two thousand and one red grab two slash three of the energy drink market with its nightclub strategy and is now moving into stores in a big way and Hansen's energy. Well, it's fading fast. It's not only losing ground red bull, but also to a rush of new energy drinks and among these new challengers is brash tonic from LAS Vegas. It's summer, two thousand and one and a limousine is prowling the streets of San Francisco heads turn as the limo heads down market street blasting rock music. But

history in stop and stare the sides of the limo are painted with an unfamiliar logo. The word rock star in big yellow capital letters with a star replacing VA. Suddenly a man with a shock of gel carrot, red hair burst from the limo sunroof. He strikes a crucifix pose while holding two large cans of rockstar in his hands start yelling at startled San Franciscans party, like a rockstar, drink, rockstar, enerji, double the strength, double the size, redheaded thirty, something is Russell Weiner. The son of conservative talk show host Michael Savage Whiners. The founder of rockstar he's only just launched his drink, but he's thinking big literally instead of the eight ounce cans used by other Enerji drinks, why energy booster is sold in black. Sixteen ounce cans, emblazoned with a yellow star and for the

name, two dollars price tag as red bull spend the same yet twice the Energi whiners double for your money. Ploy works rock star selling fast within a year, wiener sells nearly three million dollars worth of rock star by two thousand and four rock stars grabbed seven percent of the energy drink market, making it America's number. Two enerji drink red, bold still way out in front. It's got fifty nine percent of what's becoming a fast growing five billion dollar year market for Hanson Rockstar's arrival on the energy drink scene is the killer blow with sales of Hansen's energy in free fall. Calls Hanson, chief Rodney sacks into a crisis meeting at the company's headquarters in Corona Hog straight to the heart of the problem. Rodney

Hanson Zenergy is hemorrhaging market share, the prob is the handsome brand it. This is too wholesome people associate Hanson with natural sodas smoothies juices that doesn't work for enerji drinks. We need our enerji drink to break away from the handsome brand. Sax is horrified away absolutely no way, I'm building a wider beverage brand here and that brand is handsome. I'm not just throwing that away, because one product struggling which and killed out there look at the image of red bull look at rockstar. Our brand is so out of step with them and the people who drink energy drinks. We need a brand that says action, adrenaline and fire energy drinks are punk rock, not the friggin eagles. The two and glare at each other's axe is

wedded to a strategy of applying the Hanson brand. Every beverages company makes but halls not backing down love. You hired me for my marketing expertise and I'm telling you that unless we create a new brand for our Enerji drink finished in that market, let me do my job tie my hands Jack says nothing for a moment. He it's the idea of dropping the Hanson brand holes. Logic ring true fine, but let me be very clear. I hate this idea, but you I did hire you for your expertise. So what do you have in mind? I knew

attitude more aggressive and rebellious brand and Enerji drink for party hard, blue collar, guys with tattoos red bulls for yuppies and snooty new Yorkers. I want our enerji drink to be sold in big. Sixteen ounce cans like rockstar, be grungy in all american you gotta name. I've got a few ideas: hammerhead fat boy, Deuce igniter, but the one I'm leaning towards his monster. I have come to care a lot about that furniture in my home. I really believe it's more than just a place to sit or rest or drink on. This is the. If that life happens around and I falling in love with the look, the quality value of the furniture, I've gotten from article article IV online, only furniture company- they keep prices low in quality high by get

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He Tom it's been years. You still in Memphis Ray yeah, I'm still Memphis. She hadn't did the exhibition floor. She ran I'll walk with you. The bear head toward the exhibition hall there expecting the usual brands and stayed boots, but as they enter the hall, a blast of Jimi Hendrix Voodoo child grabs their attention. They turned to see where the music is coming from and their jaws drop before is a huge decked out in speakers are pumping out. Hendrix's guitar shredding, the full of young models gyrating to the music in black leather bras, mini skirts and over the knee boots. What the hell the

smack pair stare at the boots giant logo of huge green him. That looks like it's been torn into the black wall by the claws of an enormous beast. I the logo are the words monster energy, monster energy, never heard of it. One leather clad women shimmies towards them, she's cheese, watching two big black shield. Sixteen ounce cans of monster you guys need a boost, then you'll need these. Who are you? People monster energy, that new energy drink from Hanson store owners can't believe it hands the guys who make those nicey nice, sodas, yeah monsters, one heck of a curveball for Hanson New Drink is far from sunny. It's mean it's moody, a hyper caffeinated blend of taurine B vitamins, Jin Ginseng and the amino acid l carnitine. The

splash in Vegas is only the beginning for monster marketing Chief Mark Hall. In the months that follow halls team hits the road they are on a mission to win over stores one by one. For a month they toured the sunbelt racking up the miles as they build monsters presence coast to coast and to help them with their mission hall rage, the red bull playbook it's summer, two thousand and three and the uh ESPN sponsored X games. The annual extreme sports competition is underway in LOS Angelus halls here too, and he's come prepared, he's packing fifty five thousand dollars in cash and he's going to use it to get x, games athletes backing monster final. He heads to the locker rooms

flashes his cash at wide eyed, skateboarders, Bmx, bikers and freestyle motocross riders within hours. The x games are full of competitors wearing monster. Branded helmets tops it's the start of an action: sports arms race between energy, drink makers, hall pumps, millions of dollars into sponsoring the extreme sports elite and with each new daredevil he signs. Awareness of monster grows a few years monster spending fifteen million dollars a year on its roster of action, sports stars. Next to the hundreds of millions Red bull spending, it's peanuts. The austrian enerji drink giants already got five hundred athletes on its books and now red bulls about to take the battle to a new level. In November, two thousand

for Red Bull buys the Jaguar racing formula, one team and renames it red bull racing the following year: red Bull, snaps up an austrian soccer club and rebrands it Red Bull Salzburg in two thousand and six Red Bull buys a NASCAR team and also reboots major League soccer squad. Metro stars is the New York Red Bulls. Keeping this port. Only of sports teams is going to cost the company hundreds of millions, but it's worth it. Each one puts the red bull brand in front of millions of people each day, bye, not enough, no matter how much Redbull spends it just can't seem to stop monsters advance with its rebel image in super sized can monsters winning over legions of Americans by two five monster, replaced rockstars the number two enerji drink and

is closing in on red bull, and that's when Anheuser Busch comes calling. Bush is the brewery giant behind Budweiser and it's Zion. In early two thousand and six, a senior executive from Anheuser Busch heads two corona like a deal with Hanson CEO Rodney. Sacks. We want to get more non alcoholic drinks into our distribution network where best buy monster an we want to distribute it. We're doing just fine thanks. Why would we do this? Well, we've noticed that you're selling monster directly to stores. That's very labor intensive and it limits how fast you can grow. Our network can get you into more stores, bars and clubs much faster than you can alone, also we're global or we could help you take monster beyond the US Now that's an appealing offer it's a

next to make monster grow even faster. Ten sacks knows it in two thousand and six Hanson and Anheuser Busch strike a distribution deal turn the heat on red bull. The alliance also gives Hansen stock. Another boost thanks to monster in share prices, jumped more than one thousand percent in just a few years. Hello is now one of the hottest stocks of the 2000s right up there with likes of Apple Amazon and Google and sisters not done yet. Two thousand and seven begins hands and starts releasing more and more monster branded drinks. It launch new flavors, bigger cans and even a monster branded chilled coffee to take on Starbucks Frappuccino, all of which help blow away even more market share from red, bull. In November, two thousand and eight months

inches ahead of red Bull to become America's leading energy drink. It's grim news for Red Bull boss matter shakes for you he's refused to expand the red bull range beyond the original formula and it companion sugar free version. Now there are six knows he can no longer sit back, it's time for a refresh it's time for red Bull to slay the monster here. The next and final episode, red bull heads to extremes of the earth former Hindu monk delivers a small but powerful punch to the energy drink. Kings and monster is accused of having blood on its hands. What the experience. Driving a luxury vehicle wasn't just limited to inside your car

brown and I'm back with Gretchen Sour, the brand manager of Lincoln's new in Kc. With a few more burning questions, you know the classic features I love about. Lincoln's are all there in the new in Kc, but there were some things that I guess pleasantly surprised me like a terrific turbocharged engine and if you order it special, it has a towing capacity. As I understand it up too, what is it three thousand pounds? Yeah that's correct, so we have to really awesome turbocharged engines on or am Casey the first one is our two leader which has two hundred and forty five horsepower and two hundred and seventy five pound feet of torque. And then we have our optional two point: three liter turbocharged engine, which has two hundred and eighty five horsepower, and three hundred and five pound feet of torque. In fact we're one of the only vehicles in the segment to have a step up engine and then, as you mentioned, if you pair it with our class to trailer tow package, you can get up to three thousand pounds of tell

capacity, which is just amazing and in this segment it. It is when you say in this segment, because, technically speaking, I guess people think of the Mkc as a compact suv. But in so many ways it has all the features of a completely full size s. U V and tons of space to yeah. It's funny. You mention that, because you know internally and and then some of our reporting structures, we have segments and contacts premium and small premium. But really our clients tell us how important this vehicle is and how many that that overall they're willing to buy? What's it like working at Lincoln these days? It's you know it. It must be pretty exciting, especially as these new doors open to places like China and the Far EAST I mean once upon a time it was like. The asian market place was invading America it now. It seems that Lincoln is exporting

american luxury abroad. That must be pretty fun. It's really interesting. You mentioned that I joined Lincoln back in twenty sixteen and June. I was fresh out of Texas as a one of our territory wraps and it was given the opportunity to join this brand. We are doing so much here, we're piloting new technologies, piloting new services, testing things out learning failing and trying again, we almost Harkin ourselves to a little bit of a startup in some ways in the fact that we have this ability to fail and learn from it. It's really a great opportunity to really work on something. That's as you saying we're re envisioning american luxury. Nineteen Lincoln Mkc learn more at link

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From wondering this is business worse, we hope you enjoyed this episode and we hope you'll subscribe on Apple podcasts, Spotify, Google, podcasts, Stitcher Iheartradio or wherever you listen to podcasts. There's a link on the episode notes. All you have to do is tap or swipe over the cover. Art and you'll also see some offers from our sponsors. We hope you can support our show by supporting them now, if you like what you've heard, we'd love it, if you could give us a five star rating and while you're at it tell your friends how to subscribe. Another way you can support us is to answer a short survey in one tree, dot com survey and don't forget to tell us what business war stories you'd like to hear. Just a quick note about the conversations you've been hearing, we can't know exactly what was said, but this dialogue is based on our best research. I'm your host David Brown, Tristan Donovan, wrote this story edited by Emily Frost.

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