Stella Artois Says 'Yes, Chef!' to More Collabs With The Bear

Carmy’s fine-dining restaurant opens in season three of FX’s The Bear, and Stella Artois has reserved a seat at the best table. The brand, which kicked off its partnership with the Emmy-winning series during the show’s sophomore season, will be integrated into the drama once again, popping up during key moments.

Additionally, Stella Artois is also featured in exclusive pre-stream content that finds two of the show’s cast members—Corey Hendrix (Sweeps) and Abby Elliot (Sugar)—discussing what it’s like to film the series. And fans can snap up giveaways and learn about Bear-related events through a Stella Artois “Drop Shop.” (Recently, Stella Artois and Hulu hosted a pop-up dining event in L.A. where dishes from Carmy and Sydney’s “chaos menu” were served.)

Here, Anheuser-Busch’s Chris Jones, group vice president of marketing, premium brands, reveals why Stella Artois is in business with The Bear.

MUSE: What made you decide that The Bear was a good fit? I assume, like all of us, you were wowed by season one?

Chris Jones: We were, of course, huge fans. But, more importantly, there is such a natural fit between Stella Artois and The Bear. We are a brand that brings people together over quality, shared experiences, often involving food. This is where genuine connections are forged. And The Bear illustrates this idea on so many levels, but also in a captivating way that is relatable.

You obviously can’t give away anything about this season and where we will see the brand in the episodes. But, can you give me some examples of how Stella Artois was integrated into the show during season two?

There are multiple Stella Artois placements throughout season two with both product and signage at pivotal moments. There are the celebratory cheers, the back bar signage in various scenes and our high-visibility billboard placements towards the end of the season. In addition, between breaks, you also saw custom interviews held over some delicious Stella Artois—just one example of the many unique ad units we worked together to develop.

What kind of reaction have you gotten from consumers to this beer-meets-Bear collaboration?

The conversation from our pop-up Chicago bar events ahead of the show created quite the stir. And once the season dropped, we saw a significant spike in brand conversation, leading to results that drove brand affinity and drove awareness throughout the year.

What do you expect to get out of your partnership?

Our partnership with The Bear is multi-faceted and, of course, designed get more people to give Stella Artois a try. There is no doubt this partnership has helped further Stella Artois’ image as a culturally relevant brand and, since going live, we’ve seen a positive trajectory on many aspects of the business. It has helped us stay top of mind during the critical summer season, a time where we are focused on cutting through and driving trial.

Does Stella Artois have a long history of collaborating with TV shows and films?

Stella Artois has always had a prominent presence in the world of entertainment and is one of the leading beer brands in Hollywood. Every year, you can count on Stella Artois being featured widely in some of the most relevant shows and films out there.

Our collaboration with The Bear is building on this legacy and taking it to new heights, going beyond traditional placements to deliver highly customized content and experiences for our consumers all summer long.