KEY POINTS:
First there were the keyrings and towels, then the billboards, which led to the best selling books. Now New Zealand brand marketing success story Tui is getting on the sauce.
Tuimato Sauce - DB Breweries' take on the Kiwi bloke's quintessential condiment - is poised to hit supermarket shelves nationally after proving a massive hit in test marketing in the lower North Island.
More than 60,000 bottles have been sold from just 59 stores in the Wellington to Taupo and Gisborne area since February - making it the number two brand behind Wattie's tomato sauce cans in the test market.
DB Breweries' commercial manager Nick Rogers said tomato sauce was a natural extension to the merchandising range, which runs the gamut from greeting cards to garden gnomes.
"New Zealanders drink tomato sauce. They love it ... it's barbecues, it's fish and chips, it's pies, and whether we admit it or not everyone enjoys a pile of tomato sauce on it."
A Herald taste-test found most punters happy with DB's foray into condiments.
Mr Rogers said the sauce has fitted the merchandising target market - males - beyond even their own expectations.
And it was not because there's beer in the sauce.
"We could've put a lot more in and still come under food standard [requirements]. But that's not what it's about. It's nice to have that product truth that there's beer in it. But it's a sauce primarily."
The cooking process removes almost all traces of alcohol, so getting trolleyed on Tuimato is unlikely.
"You might have to drink 50,000 to 60,000 bottles really quickly, and I think you'd come across other problems beforehand."
The chunky tomato sauce, produced under licence by Delmaine Fine Foods, is the latest addition to the merchandising empire which sells over $2 million worth of products annually. A shining success has been the Yeah Right books, the first edition of which sold more than 39,000 in 2006, second only behind David Lange's biography.
The Tui Brewery in Mangatainoka has become a tourist attraction in its own right, drawing 35,000 people annually to its grounds, which now house a museum, conference rooms and 14ha park grounds.
Mr Rogers said other items bearing the Tui brand are in the offing - pies and sausages being one idea "on the whiteboard.
"The opportunities are unlimited but it's just making sure that they're right and they're special and they fit within the boys' world.
"You don't want to overly commercialise the brand but the demand for the brand in different areas is very strong."
The expansion beyond beer had been driven by demand.
"We actually got tired of people stealing our signage on the side of roads and our posters in pubs.
"We're really just catering for that need - and making it fun at the same time.
"Every time they have a touch point with Tui they walk away with a smile on their face."
The sauce was distributed throughout New Zealand on May 1, and is expected to be available on supermarket shelves from Monday.
DB expect to sell around 15,000 bottles a week.
TASTE TEST
Omkar Rane, 23, CBD Auckland "Quite tangy, quite good."
Sam Eg, 35, Grey Lynn "Normal taste, beautiful, a little bit sour ... I like it."
Lena Jeong, 22, CBD Auckland "A little bit sweeter ... it's nice, better than normal tomato sauce, nicer texture."
Jim, 60+, Auckland "Hard to tell the difference, it's quite ordinary."
Denise Porsch, 25, Brazil "Too sweet, can't taste the alcohol, just tastes normal ... maybe a fan of tomato sauce would love it."
