The Absolut story began in the small town of Ahus, Sweden.It might have ended there as well, if not for the brilliant andcreative marketing campaign that saw this once obscurevodka skyrocket to become one of the world's top sellingspirits and one of the most recognizable icons of the 20thcentury. For 20 years and counting, Absolut has forged sucha unique and intriguing image that its ads are coveted, tornfrom magazines, hung on walls, and even traded amongother Absolut enthusiasts. In that short span, and without thebenefit of television ads, Absolut has captured our collectiveimagination and risen to the level of a cultural icon.
In the 1970's, American consumers accounted for 60% of thevodka purchased worldwide. However, 99% of the vodka con-sumed in the United States was being produced inexpensivelyby American distillers, the prevailing opinion being that allvodkas were alike and that the cheaper the vodka, the better.
At this same time, Absolut's financial struggles made thecompany realize that the key for the distillery's survival layin exporting its product to the United States. But if Absolutwas to face the challenge of breaking into the American market, it would have to create an image that set it apartfrom the cheaper American vodkas, and justified its higherprice tag... essentially creating a luxury market for a productthat was viewed in America primarily as a commodity.
The company saw American consumers as being continuallyassaulted with superiority claims, which had eventuallygrown boring and unpersuasive to the American audience.What Absolut needed was a way to show that it was the bestvodka available, without actually saying that it was the bestvodka available.
After creating Absolut's distinctive packaging, a squat bottlewith a short neck, round shoulders, and a label that wasprinted directly on the bottle glass, in 1981, the company settled on their first (and quite possibly, their last) ad campaign. They created an ad featuring a bottle of Absolut,photographed with a halo over it. The caption: "AbsolutPerfection.
With those two words, Absolut launched one of the mosteffective ad campaigns of the 20th century. The company hadasserted its superiority, but had diffused the pompousness ofthe claim with a simple touch of humor. The concept wasconceived and an entire generation of ads was born. Eachfeaturing a simple, yet stunning image of the Absolut Vodkabottle uniquely posed or draped with accessories, eachextolling the virtues of the product in increasingly creativeways, and each infused with just enough humor to disarmtheir grandiose claims of excellence.
Since the early days of the campaign, Absolut ads haveevolved dramatically. The trademark Absolut bottle may nowbe seen fashioned out of Christmas lights, or pictured as the19th hole of a golf course. Each state has its own Absolut ad,as do most major cities. Even artists such as Andy Warholand Al Hirschfeld have designed ads featuring the nowfamous bottle. And a hand-signed and numbered lithographof artist Yrjo Edelmann's "Absolut Citron" now sells for $500.
When the Absolut ad campaign began in 1981, the companywas selling 20,000 cases annually in the U.S. In 1995, salestopped 3 million cases, an increase of 14,900%