Jupiler is coming home
Jupiler may be Belgium’s major pils brand, but its new packaging, which it is hoped will boost sales during the FIFA World Cup, still raised a few eyebrows. Now, “Belgium” figures larger on the packaging than the brand’s name; actually, the name Jupiler does not appear on the front label.
Obviously, AB-InBev, which owns the Jupiler brand, is giving its Belgian beer the same makeover it bestowed on Budweiser in 2016, when it renamed Budweiser as America.
The temporary label swap was meant to inspire drinkers to celebrate America and Budweiser’s shared values. Same with Jupiler and Belgium, it seems.
As delegates were reminded at the recent Brewers of Europe Forum in Brussels (7-8 June 2018), Jupiler is finally owning up to its Belgian origins. Because, when it was first launched in 1966, it aimed for a Germanic appeal – by adopting the faux German ending “er” as in Dortmund”er” or Münchn”er” Bier and the Gothic (German) font.
Let’s hope the Belgian national soccer team will survive long enough in the FIFA World Cup 2018 held in Russia to make Jupiler’s rebranding worthwhile and not an own goal.
