CEO Conversations
Legend Re-born
Narragansett Brewing Company
By Lisa Schroder, Markets Editor
CEO Mark Hellendrung "Hi Neighbor, Have a ‘Gansett."
New England beer drinkers of a certain age will recall that catchy jingle, a combination greeting/invitation, given life by Curt Gowdy as the voice of the Boston Red Sox. And Narragansett lager was the beer.
Narragansett attained a 65 percent market share of the beer market in 1967, and at the time, was a major sponsor of the Boston Red Sox for more than two decades. In the early 1980s, the local brewery stopped production.
How is this relevant?
Well, a few years ago, Mark Hellendrung of East Providence, Rhode Island, started brainstorming ideas. Hellendrung was between gigs, had some experience tucked under his belt. After his education at Brown University, he worked and ended up as president of Nantucket Nectars; also was head of sales at Magic Hat Brewing Company.
Like so many people, Hellendrung will admit that he can’t remember where he first heard of Narragansett Beer.
“I was sitting in bar with buddies, and nothing was striking our fancy," he recalls. “We just started talking about different brands, and someone said, ‘What ever happened to Narragansett beer?’ I talked to a couple guys in the bar, next thing you knew, everybody was talking—fondly and passionately—about a beer they couldn’t find anymore. All that great history, the Red Sox affiliation sparked an interest with me.”
Most people would let the idea go right about there. Not Hellendrung. He did some research and found out Pabst owned the brand.
“Almost on a whim, I called them up and asked them what they were doing with it," he said. "I introduced myself and gave them a little bit of my history.”
Over the course of about two years, the concept took shape, the deal was done and Hellendrung bought the brand back. He is now CEO of Narragansett Brewing Company, based in Providence, as he and a group of New England investors purchased the rights to Narragansett Beer.
He recalls the passion that fueled the nostalgic revival of Narragansett beer. “I look at New England, and I just love the preservation of its history and its roots. You travel around the country and you go to Dallas and Ft. Lauderdale and it’s just ‘strip mall and chains central' - everywhere looks the same. In contrast, New England is picket fences and family-owned businesses that have been here, passed down from generation to generation. I thought Narragansett was something that played into that and was something worth saving.”
BACK IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD
Trivia: Did you know? A young artist named Theodore Geisel (later known as Dr. Seuss) designed an icon for the company, one "Chief Gansett" - that depicted a smiling man who delivered a cold glass, accompanied by a cartoon cat saying "Too Good To Miss."
Bill Anderson, master brewer Hellendrung strives to maintain a balance between rekindling the interest of the brew’s original fans while reaching out to a younger demographic. Careful consideration went into the new look and the new marketing campaign. “We’re going to keep the ‘Hi, Neighbor,’ but we get selective with different customers,” he says, adding that revamping the packaging “was the easiest process—and it was the hardest process at the same time.”
“We had to respect the 117 years’ worth of history, yet we also had to make it look somewhat contemporary—you couldn’t make it look like you just pulled this out of your father’s or your grandfather’s attic, dusted it off, and put it on the shelf.”
To make sure the taste was pure perfection, in early 2005, former Brewmaster Bill Anderson came on board, insuring that what’s in the glass will always be 'Gansett at its very best. The new approach mixes the heritage with the flavor and integrity, but also “puts our own stamp on it as well,” he says. The can has a cool new graphic design. “All the elements are from the past, blended with a more contemporary look.”
Today, the beer is brewed and bottled in Rochester, New York, under strict supervision of the company's crew in Providence. (In 1914, the company had the most modern bottling plant in the region and was the largest lager beer brewery in New England. Those buildings have since been demolished.)
MAKING A CASE
Narragansett’s long-time affiliation with the Boston Red Sox is a relationship Hellendrung hopes to renew, and he wants to get the beer back into Fenway Park. “Unfortunately, Anheuser-Busch spends a significant amount of money for the marketing rights there, all the tap handles," he said. "And every brand in the world wants to be in there."
Curt Gowdy, voice of the Boston Red SoxStill, he is optimistic. For now Narragansett continues to make headway into several local venues including the Pawtucket Red Sox and Brockton Rox, Seekonk Speedway, the Providence Civic Center, the Providence Bruins, and PC basketball in Schneider Arena.
And Hellendrung doesn’t want to extend that geographic reach too far. “New England is all about Narragansett, and I think that’s enough for me,” he insists. “I think what’s pretty cool is that something like 85 percent of New England’s population is within 90 miles Providence, so it’s a pretty dense area."
However, humans like things that are hard to get, that are unique to a region (especially if it tastes good).
Apparently there are some Red Sox bars down in New York City, he’s heard, where the bar owners go to Connecticut and buy the beer and bring it down there—even though it is not technically for sale in New York. There is even a Hollywood tie. “Neal McDonough, an actor in Hollywood (he appears in the HBO series "Band of Brothers") is apparently a huge Narragansett fan," explains Hellendrung. "He wants to get it by the pallet-load out in Southern California. Now if we can just figure out how to get it there."
Meantime, the CEO continues to forge ahead and grow relationships and contacts throughout New England. His travel stops include UMass Amherst, Nashua, Hartford, Somerville/Cambridge.
“Part of my job is helping to find those launch pads within our market," he said. "Right now we’re in some of the top restaurants here in Providence, Newport, Narragansett, plus neighborhood bars, and colleges too."
Currently working with 11 distributors, including three in Connecticut, he says that he thinks about New England without state borders. “I’ve really come to appreciate the connection between Hartford, that Hartford/Springfield/New Haven corridor. We're in Westerly, Block Island, Narragansett, Newport. Two-thirds of the tourists down there are Hartford County and Fairfield County residents, they taste, remember, and are spreading the word.”
A six-pack, held aloft. JUST RIGHT FOR DRINKING
So what's it tastes like?
"We spend an inordinate amount of time sampling people—just giving them an ice-cold taste of Narragansett beer,” he says. “Every weekend we’re in bars buying people beers or at package stores giving out samples. Just getting people to try the beer. It’s great just seeing the ‘Wow, that’s a good beer’ look on their face.”
It takes time, he admits. “We can only go so far, so fast.” But tap into that nostalgia, and the memories flow. “If you walk into a barbecue with a 30-pack of Budweiser, or whatever, nobody says a word. It gets plopped into the cooler, you reach in and crack a beer open. If you walk in with a 12-pack of Narragansett beer, it’s instant stories, instant memories,” he says. “It’s almost like this long-lost uncle has come back to the family.”
Cheers to that.
