Do you ever wake up in the morning and say “I’m going to make a huge PR mistake”? If you are Pittsburgh Pirates President Frank Coonelly you might.
You see, there is a bar (of course there is….why else would this story be on Smokes and Booze?) called The Stroll Inn, that came up with an outstanding promotional idea…every time the Pirates lose, they take $.05 off a pitcher of Yuengling. This means that if the Pirates have a season like last year (105 loses) you will be drinking pitchers of beer for about $2. Not only does this sound great, but their slogan is even better “PIRATES LOSE, YOU WIN”.
While we are sitting here and laughing, you can imagine what the Pirate front office was thinking. You got it…..WE MUST MAKE THEM STOP.
Enter Angela Criscella, an account executive for the Pirates, who (after hearning of the promotion) circulated an Email that said said-
"An occasional joke and jab is expected here and there, but to create business by ripping on the home team is ridiculous and in my opinion distasteful."
She then suggested bar patrons to -
"take your business away from the Stroll Inn and to other local restaurants instead."
Really? Chain letters are so 1990. But then again, what do you expect from an organization who’s president then calls the owner, a Ms. Estelle Aversa, and scolds her. No, I’m serious….her words-
Mrs. Aversa described Coonelly as ``very cold and not very nice.''
She said, ``He was scolding me. He was ignorant, not a very nice man.''
You can hear the interview HERE.
While Ms. Aversa has since pulled down the sign and stopped the promotion….in the end, this is the kind of publicity that she could never afford. Since the incident business has doubled. I hope they cash in on this fiasco and gain some new customers. Personally, since the Pirates ended the skid last night against my Reds, I hope they start it up again and the beer is $1 at the end of the season.
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