It’s All About The Thrill

By Robin Jay

For Austria-born marketing guru Dietrich Mateschitz, the epiphany of a lifetime came during a business trip to Thailand on a mission – of all things – to sell Blendax toothpaste for Procter & Gamble. There, he became infatuated with a high-sugar, high-caffeine drink called ‘Krating Daeng’ (which means Red Bull) that mostly truck drivers and other intensive-labor-driven workers bought for stamina.

Some colleagues thought Mateschitz was nuts when he suggested launching a similar energy drink in Europe and the United States. But the shy executive stuck to his guns, connected with the founder of Krating Daeng, and in 1987 co-launched Red Bull. Today, 27 years later, it is the highest-selling energy drink on the globe, selling more than 5 billion cans in 167 countries in 2014. Why the super success? Because Mateschitz knew it was never just about a sports drink in a can – it was about an adrenaline-driven lifestyle brand. His company’s slogan, “Red Bull gives you wings,” is marketed ingeniously through a campaign of worldwide thrill events – like cliff diving; air racing; ice climbing; mountain scaling; sky diving, and racing about anything on wheels (just to name a few).

Mateschitz has told reporters, “Red Bull is an invitation, as well as a request, to be active, performance-oriented, alert and to take challenges. When you work or study, do your very best. When you do sports, go for your limits.”

Get a load of some of the Red Bull’s best thrill-sport action scenes performed by some seriously rugged athletes joyously juiced up on Red Bull in the last year…

 

 

Alex Megos climbs ‘Beekeepers Apprentice’ at the Buttermilk Boulders near Bishop, CA, USA on November 18, 2014.
PHOTO:  Ken Etzel

 

 

 

 

 

 

March 23, 2015. Leg 5 to Itajai onboard Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing. Day 05. Phil Harmer finds space to brush his teeth away from the saltwater. PHOTO: Matt Knighton

 

 

 

 

 

TJ Rogers poses for a portrait at Red Bull’s Last Resort just outside of Halifax, Canada on September 19, 2014.
PHOTO: Scott Serfas

 

 

 

 

 

 

Marco Waltenspiel, Marco Fuerst and Georg Lettner fly their wingsuits in tight formation above the crater of Mt. Bromo in Indonesia on March 2, 2015. PHOTO:  Wolfgang Lienbacher