New York Apple Association Takes Marathon Campaign to New Heights

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New York Apple Association takes marathon campaign to new heights

November 14, 2006

The New York Apple Association stretches its promotional boundaries as a sponsor of the ING New York City Marathon every year, and the Nov. 5 event proved to be the biggest and best one yet.

The number of major retailers that support the event also increases each year, and stores in this year's participation list included Gristedes, D'Agastino, Agata & Valentina, Fairway Foods, ShopRite/Wakefern Stores, Foodtown, Key Food, A&P, Kings, Pathmark and Balducci's. The stores displayed door posters identifying them as official retailers of the McIntosh apple. NYAA also provided the stores with McIntosh p-o-s cards identifying the variety as the "Official Apple" of the marathon.

At least two Gristedes stores along the marathon race route featured full bins of McIntosh apples at their storefronts, with staff members handing out apple samples, recipes and other literature.

"We partnered closely with the retail sector to promote New York-grown McIntosh in the city as a tie- in with the marathon," said Jim Allen, president of the association.

This year NYAA also partnered with the National Supermarket Association, providing it with more than 300 English and Spanish posters for New York City retailers. This group represents Hispanic- owned medium-sized grocers in Manhattan such as C-Town, Aim and Bravo chains. NYAA also provided the organization with Hispanic variety guides created just for this purpose.

The marathon, which is held each year on the first Sunday in November, is always a tremendous success for New York City and its sponsors. The event draws more than 85,000 applicants and attracts many world-class professional athletes who come for not only for the more than $500,000 in

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prize money but also for the chance to excel in the media capital of the world before 2 million cheering spectators and 260 million worldwide television viewers.

Every participant to cross the finish line in Central Park is handed a New York-grown apple, adding to the celebratory atmosphere created by their momentous accomplishment.

"We hand out upwards of 50,000 apples to people crossing the finish line each year," said Peter Gregg, spokesperson for the New York Apple Association. "The project is a perfect fit for the state's apple industry and for the marathon participants and viewers because New York City is known around the world as 'The Big Apple.' It has been a huge success and one we look forward to supporting in the future."

NYAA also runs TV spots on several major and local networks and outlets, including WNBC.com and Telemundo, the Spanish-language network, which is owned by NBC Universal.

Promotions are in place by October each year for even greater exposure and early sales opportunities. The 2006 ING New York City Marathon marked the eighth consecutive year that NYAA has sponsored the event.