Peter Jeensalute - Unit 1 Writing - Martinellis Sparkling Cider PDF

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Martinelli’s Sparkling Cider

Peter Jeensalute University of the People BUS 5112: Marketing Management Dr. David Robinson November 18, 2020

2 Martinelli’s Sparkling Cider S. Martinelli & Company is a local Watsonville apple juice and sparkling cider manufacturer privately held by descendants of the founding brothers for four generations. The long family history of this company starts in 1850 when Luigi (Louis) Martinelli moves from his home country Switzerland to the California Gold Rush in San Francisco, eventually making his way down to Pajaro Valley (present day Watsonville). Nine years later, Stephano (Stephen) Martinelli joined his brother to help with apple farming, staring a soda water business in 1861. The now premiere product of fermented apple cider was made from apples from Louis’s farm in 1868, the start of S. Martinelli & Company (S. Martinelli & Company, 2019). The exploration of the product holds an extensive history of innovation, adaptability, and sustainability. Soda waters, ginger ale, and patented ‘Orange Champagne’ made the initial product line before the invention of fermented apple cider. About fifty years later, the product made a switch to non-alcoholic cider due to Prohibition in 1920. After fifty more years of sales, the company discontinued its sale of hard cider in 1977. Starting in the 1990s, the product line had its first expansion into fruit blend juices and ciders, with apple cranberry in 1991, to applegrape in 1997, to a larger expansion in 2005 with offerings such as wild berry and mango. Due to the mild climate of cool nights and warm days, apple orchards were very prevalent in Watsonville of the Parajo Valley, making the town known as the ‘Big Apple’. Local orchards are the suppliers for the product, with a rule of thumb in selecting the best apples that are only good enough to eat. The longstanding relationships of past generations ensures that the company provides excellent supplies for their fruit processing, as well as overall sustainability of the local economy (Fairchilds, 2012). The company is a significant reason as to why the apple industry in the city of Watsonville still survive today. Their dedication to sustainability of orchards and local

3 wildlife, as well as energy and water conservation, is a commendable addition to their offering (S. Martinelli & Company, 2019). Martinelli has a successful past in promotion of their product. In 1890, the company was awarded a gold medal of excellence at the California State Faire in Sacramento – the first of 50 gold medals – which brought about the trademark brand of “Martinelli’s Gold Medal”. The year 1917 ushered in the first use of iconic glass bottles before Prohibition, taking inspiration from the canning industry, which then turned into their ‘Unique Golden Apple’ glass bottle in 1933 with their ‘Drink Your Apple a Day’ slogan. Post-World War II, with the emergence of a new market, the company advertised its golden apple bottles on an iconic 1950s photo postcard with the image of a beautiful young lady with their product. The company expanded their packaging to their 25.4 oz champagne bottle which is used today. The company continues to use their connection with four generations of Martinellis as an outreach campaign, putting the story of their great-grandfather and founder on every bottle (S. Martinelli & Company, 2019). The Martinelli brand has quite the famous reputation in the United States, which have affected where the company has sold its products. In 1926, the United States Navy made Martinelli’s Sparkling Cider the choice drink during Hawaiian operations. Following suit in 1929, due to the Great Depression, champagne was a challenging drink to represent in Hollywood movies, thus making the company’s cider the “champagne of the movies”. During the 1930s, deliveries of the product were brought to fair and exhibitions in Ford Model B flatbed delivery trucks with its ‘Drink Your Apple a Day’ slogan. Today, one of the company’s best distributors is Costco, the nation’s third-largest retailers. It also can be found at other major retail store and supermarkets including Safeway, Wal-Mart, and Target. The company has also utilized online sales though their own website and their partnership with Instacart. Its own company store

4 and tasting room is in Watsonville where customers can visit the museum and sample their company’s products (S. Martinelli & Company, 2019). Price for this product is easily displayed from the company’s website, with different retailers giving slight variations with retail market pricing. The company has priced their 25.4 oz. Organic Sparkling Cider 6-pack product at $49.00, coming to a little over $8.00 per unit. Searching other retail distributors for this product, the markup is around $2.00 per bottle above the manufacturer’s price. Similar products from other competitors such as Welch’s or Knudsen are similarly priced, at or above $9.00 per unit. An interview with the company and Costco revealed that China broke into the market in the late 1990s undercutting price of the comparable product of that time to half, causing some alarm (Sykes, 2011). It seems thought that the enduring appeal of Martinelli’s product with its history as a well-known apple cider manufacturer has made its prices competitive. The company’s current marketing shows their purpose is “to be the Gold Medal brand of premium apple juice and sparkling cider products that help make every day a celebration.” Martinelli’s values center around ‘Gold Medal’ service, passion, welcoming of new ideas, high ethical standards, and teamwork. As far as a value statement, an adjustment could be made that highlights the company’s rich history in the local apple economy and ties to family relationships that have made the company thrive. It’s about the personal relationship with the customer. S. Martinelli & Company: For those who make every day a celebration, Martinelli’s Gold Medal brand of premium apple juice and sparkling cider is the beverage that bonds your family to our family tradition of four generations of excellence.

5 References Fairchilds, K. (2012, December). Cheers! California Bountiful. http://www.californiabountiful.com/features/article.aspx?arID=358 S. Martinelli & Company. (2019). Making Apple Juice Since 1868 - Our History - S. Martinelli & Co. Martinelli’s. https://www.martinellis.com/about/history/ Sykes, C. (2011, December). Costco Connection - December 2011 - page30. Www.Costcoconnection.com. https://www.costcoconnection.com/connection/201112? pg=30#pg30...