Gearing up for Father’s Day, both Planters and Miller High Life were looking for ways to remain culturally relevant and get drinkers and snackers alike to consider them as an option.
“The Champagne of Beers”, Miller High Life has been Miller’s flagship beer since 1903, and a go-to choice for dive bar lovers throughout the U.S. Coupled with an iconic dive bar snack, also with a rich history— salted, roasted peanuts from Planters— this partnership was a match made in dive-bar-heaven. All that was left was to bring it to life.
The idea? Bring an epic, nutty dive-bar to life and create an unforgettable experience for consumers, powdered by Planters and Miller High Life.
For four days only in High Life’s backyard of Milwaukee, WI, the brands transformed the iconic Planters NUTmobile into the The Nuttiest Dive Bar- a (s)hell of a dive bar experience.
Groups of six could book 90 minutes in the Nuttiest Dive Bar, with activities including a photo wall reminiscent of an old photo booth, a nut-shaped jukebox to blast divey-tunes, classic bar games, and, of course, warm Planters peanuts and refreshing Miller High Life to enjoy throughout the experience.
Everything in the NUTmobile was transformed to be as accurate to a dive bar as possible, with dollars tacked to the ceiling and even that signature dive bar smell. And for those who missed out, they had the opportunity to bring a little piece of The Nuttiest Dive Bar to their homes with nutty dive bar merch and swag up for grabs via giveaways.
When working with two iconic brands like Planters and Miller High Life, it was important to find the right balance so that one didn’t get lost in the activation.
Even though the Nuttiest Dive relied highly on the Planters IP of the NUTmobile, Miller High Life was able to shine through with meticulous attention to detail that resonated with the Champagne of Beers lovers.
Finding this balance allowed both brands to shine and highlight their distinct brand values, while working in harmony to create a once-in-a-High-Life-time experience for consumers.
To accurately share this story with consumers and media, high impact visuals were necessary for the success of the program. Miller High Life prides itself on the details - connecting everything back to its signature dive bar culture. With The Nuttiest Dive Bar, Miller High LIfe and Planters had the obvious visual equity with the Nutmobile, but the build out of the dive bar inside is what really drove home the success of the program with media and ultimately made consumers interested in visiting.
Whether it was the money on the ceiling, the vintage dive bar decor on the walls, or the Planter’s peanuts in the trays at each high top, it was clear that this Nutmobile was more than just any peanut on wheels, it was a brand-forward Miller High Life dive bar experience.
"It was such a good time. We all enjoyed the ambiance of the Nuttiest Dive Bar. The beers were cold, the peanuts were tasty and plentiful. The Miller High Life money was clever and cool. It was very nice to get cozy. The people that were there were wonderful. They made sure everything was perfect... It's too bad more people don't have the opportunity to have this experience. We all felt very blessed to be there."
-Real consumer quote
An instant success, reservations sold out in less than 60 seconds and the waitlist quickly grew with fans traveling to Milwaukee just to get a picture of the Nuttiest Dive. Consumers raved over the details and called for the Nuttiest Dive Bar to go on tour so more people could experience it.
Despite this being a one-time regional activation, the locality of this activation did not slow down the media results, thanks to perfect partnership and undeniable details. The Nuttiest Dive garnered a whopping:
And all that reach and relevance came at a price cheaper than peanuts, as the program’s total CPM was only $0.15.
