WSD had the chance to sit down with Joseph Anthony, CEO of Vital Marketing - a leader in the multicultural, hip-hop and beverage community that works with clients such as Coca-Cola, Remy Martin, and Motorola – to offer his insights on the current Cristal controversy.
The boycott, announced last week, stems from seemingly “racist” comments issued by Frederic Rouzaud, President of Champagne Louis Roederer, featured in a story called “Bubbles & Bling” in The Economist magazine.
When asked about Cristal's association with hip-hop, Rouzaud responded that he viewed it with "curiosity and serenity." He went on to say, "What can we do? We can't forbid people from buying it. I'm sure Dom Pérignon or Krug would be delighted to have their business." The Economist writer Gideon Rachman went on to label the hip-hop connections as “unwelcome attention” for Louis Roederer.
The boycott spread quickly with the help of hip-hop and entertainment websites, prompting Frederic Rouzaud, President of Champagne Louis Roederer, to issue an apologetic statement:
“It has come to my attention that unjust accusations are being made against Champagne Louis Roederer following my recent interview in The Economist. A quick-spreading rumor falsely attributes me with the reference "unwelcome attention." I did not use this phrase and I did not imply such sentiment.”
“The House of Louis Roederer could not have been in existence since 1776 without having the utmost regard for, and interest in, all forms of art and culture,” he said. “Cristal, like other great fashion names, has earned greater renown by being adopted by some of today's most recognized artists, entrepreneurs and opinion leaders.”
“Our goal is that Cristal be most appreciated for what it is […] As winemakers we cannot deny that we have occasionally been a little dismayed at seeing our wine sprayed around in celebration instead of being savored in a glass.”
When I read Frederic’s statement to Jospeh responded:
“I respect the fact that he came out and made an apology but I don’t see the relevance of ‘spraying champagne’ with the hip-hop culture. Everyone sprays champagne, it happens at auto-races, national championships, ect. Even urban consumers, as gaudy and in your face as we may be at times, we don’t spray $400 bottles of champagne. We understand the value of what to drink and what to spray. But I think individual in his position have to be more responsible and more conscious of what they say.”
“People don’t really remember the apology in these types of situations; they remember what caused the problem. It’s going to take a long time for Cristal to regain the trust and respect of this community and show this was a mistake or that it was taken out of context. There is definitely going to be a period where people are going to choose to drink other products and I think it’s going to hurt Cristal in the short term, especially if they don’t make any quick moves to regain the trust of the community.”
“The hip-hop community gave them a mainstream commercial platform. For so long, obviously with Cristal being such a high price point, it was unheard of by the masses. The urban community did an amazing job creating mass awareness of this brand without Cristal having to pay any money to do it. That type of value should be congratulated and accepted, not pushed away and ridiculed.”
“If Cristal were not so far removed from urban culture and had made it – and this is where the arrogance comes in – their mission to understand this culture that has embraced their product so much, they would have come to find it was a little deeper than the picture the media paints.”
“That attitude is going to be Cristal’s demise because a company just can’t make comments on a national platform with out being properly educated. Otherwise, it gives the impression that you see yourself as untouchable or that losing this market will not impact you at all. You have to come out of your closet and embrace the world and make it your business to understand who’s buying your product.”
When asked what all brands can do to reach out to the hip-hop community, Joseph replied:
“I think they have to avoid doing some of the generic and presumptuous type of marketing. A lot of brands that don’t have a clue tend to look for the lowest level of entry as a way to get involved in the marketplace. You have to do your homework and really do the research to determine how your brand appropriately aligns with the target that you’re going after. A lot of people tend to skip that step and try to put a round peg in a square hold, which usually ends up doing a lot more harm for their brand then good.”
“It’s so easy to become a banner or a piece of signage or wallpaper at an event and say, I support urban culture because I sponsored this concert or I did this. You have to put your money where your mouth is and really develop content, develop programs, develop campaigns that show you’re helping to push the culture to its next phase, its next evolution point.”
In 2005, Cristal ranked 8th on the annual "American Brandstand" list of brand mentions in popular music, by far the most popular wine product. The comments issued by Cristal’s president will likely prompt a huge culture shift. Pop icons like Jay-Z have an undeniably huge influence over U.S. culture, particularly with younger adults. Any endorsement coming from these guys carries a huge weight on public opinion, but how much the boycott will affect Cristal sales or any other champagne or sparkling wine brands remains to be seen. For the most part, once a brand or label becomes less popular with its consumer segment, especially after being labeled as “racist”, it is likely to remain out of favor.
