Starting in 1890, Narragansett Beer was considered the New England beer. In fact, at its height, it enjoyed a 65% market share and was the official beer of the Red Sox franchise. That was before some yahoo from out west bought out the brand in the '70s and moved the brewery to Indiana, marking the beginning of a long painful death for the region's favorite beer.

Quaker City Mercantile has joined a group of New England investors and purchased back the rights to the Narragansett name. We've taken a significant ownership stake in the brand, and control all phases of 'Gansett's market and relaunch strategy.

We started with a total packaging redesign that blended elements of the company's powerful legacy with a fresh modern look. From there, we developed a robust campaign aimed at getting New Englanders to support the beer that's always been theirs by getting it back in local bars and funding a brand new 'Gansett brewery in New England.

In addition to traditional print, outdoor and a 'Gansett Girl street team, we're applying our powerful knowledge of non-traditional viral, web and social media to Quaker City Mercantile's new beer brand. We regularly create consumer produced viral videos that are posted on the ‘Gansett YouTube channel as well as on their Facebook Fan Page, Twitter page and the blog. Our dynamic regional music program will get our beer into bars and venues, and be supported by the brand's new Narragansett blog.

We've also positioned Mark Hellendrung, the president of Naragansett Brewing Company, as the spokesperson of the 'Gansett brand. He'll be using Facebook, Twitter and the 'Gansett blog to facilitate an ongoing conversation with our consumers. It won't be long before you can't go to a bar anywhere in New
England that doesn't have 'Gansett on draft.

To say the least, we're really excited about it, and there's nothing we love more here at Quaker City Mercantile than bringing rich heritage brands back from the brink of extinction—especially brands we own.