Route 22
A case study in grand opening events
Co-Communications organized such a successful launch of the first
Route 22 Restaurant in 2000, the restaurant owners hired us again
to handle the launch of their second venue in Stamford, CT in 2006.
Route 22 Restaurant is a concept restaurant which features American
fare, nostalgic décor, party rooms, an arcade room with video
games, large flat screen televisions, and a merchandise area which
sells Route 22’s own T-shirts, caps, glassware and die-cast
cars. The restaurant’s unique recipe for eat-ertainment has
established it as a top destination in Westchester and Connecticut.
Here’s how we did it…
The Challenge: The grand opening of Route 22 restaurant
in 2000 was an event that launched the restaurant and celebrated
generosity. Since there was not a large advertising budget, the
Public Relations effort had to play a significant role in building
the brand.
The Solution: Co-Communications orchestrated a
“grand opening” event and issued creative press kits
to ignite the media’s interest. The event recognized fundraising
efforts of Northern Westchester neighbors for the new Maria Fareri
Children’s Hospital at Westchester Medical Center. The event
kicked-off as Master of Ceremonies Mike Bennett, WHUD radio personality,
welcomed all guests to the event and introduced one of the restaurant
proprietors, an active participant in the development of the hospital.
The guests were commended for helping to reach its $25 million goal
in its “Reach for the Stars” fundraising campaign.
Guests gathered both inside the restaurant and in a spacious tent
outside where various food stations were set-up. An impressive line-up
of vintage cars surrounding the tent had car enthusiasts in awe.
A mouth-watering raw bar was elegantly displayed inside and hot/cold
hors-d’oeuvres were generously passed throughout the evening.
The featured entertainment, Back in Time, played an array of tunes
that took the guests back to yesteryear. There was no need for scuffed
footwear, as guests indulged in a complimentary shoeshine break
at one of the restaurant’s old-time shoeshine booths.
To spark the media’s interest, we created a unique press
kit – a silver lunch box with the Route 22 logo – which
was distributed to approximately 50 Westchester media outlets and
national trade. The attention-grabbing press kit was information-intensive
and included press materials on both Route 22 and the new children’s
hospital. A full press kit was sent out prior to the grand opening
event, and local media were invited to cover it. Post-publicity
efforts involved the distribution of “after-event” press
releases and publicity photos of guests who attended the event.
The Results:
- Nearly 400 guests gathered at Route 22’s grand opening
gala on September 21, 2000.
- The restaurant launch received widespread media coverage including
The New York Times, Nation’s Restaurant News, News 12, and
The Journal News.
- Since the restaurant’s opening, business has grown rapidly.
The restaurant runs a 45-minute wait time for dinner and brings
in a large business lunch crowd from its neighbor, IBM. Revenues
reached $3 million in its first year, and the retail merchandise
shop generates approximately 10% of sales.
- The Public Relations Campaign garnered The Journal News “Best
of Show” award out of 450 entries.
- Due to the rapid success of the first restaurant, a second restaurant
was open in Stamford, CT in May 2006 with similar initial results.
|
