The encyclopedia · Advertising & PR · Marketing decision · 2009
Wrigley's Doublemint bet on Chris Brown was suspended in a day and dead by August
The gum maker pulled its ads within a day of Brown's arrest; after his June guilty plea, Wrigley ended it — six months, two decisions, one vanished campaign.
Wrigley · 2009-02-09
What happened
Chris Brown was nineteen years old and one of pop's fastest-rising names when Wrigley put him in national ads as the Doublemint gum spokesman — an endorsement bet that tied the brand's image to a young star's.
On the night of 8 February 2009 Brown was arrested and booked for alleged battery, and he pulled out of his scheduled Grammy performance the same week. The next day Wrigley suspended its Doublemint advertising: the company said it was concerned about 'serious allegations made against Chris Brown', would halt 'any current advertising or any related marketing until the situation is resolved', and that Brown should be 'afforded the same due process as any citizen'.
The suspension was one cut among many in a single week: the Milk Mustache 'Got Milk?' campaign featuring Brown ended that week, radio stations in Cleveland, Pittsburgh and Indianapolis pulled his music, and he withdrew from appearances at the NBA All-Star game. The endorsement market did not wait for the courts.
Brown pleaded guilty on 22 June 2009 to assault — five years' probation and 180 days of labour-oriented service — and on 7 August Wrigley ended the relationship for good, six months after the arrest. The campaign was never revived: the bet that had been suspended in a day was dead by August.
Why it happened
- The campaign was the whole bet: Brown was not one of several faces but the spokesman, so his arrest moved Wrigley's own advertising into the news — silence was no longer an option.
- Suspension was the cheap first move: halting ads 'until the situation is resolved' answered the allegation without prejudging the case — and kept the door open in case the charges collapsed.
- The guilty plea closed the door: 'due process' was exhausted on 22 June, and the probation terms meant the story would stay alive for years — no brand could wait that out.
- The exodus made the end cheap: Got Milk, radio airplay and the NBA appearances were gone within a week, so by August Wrigley's termination matched what the market had already decided.
The lesson
A spokesman is a live asset: Wrigley suspended its Doublemint campaign within a day of Brown's arrest and terminated the deal after his guilty plea. Price the exit before the entrance.
Aftermath
Wrigley never revived the campaign. Brown's plea deal carried five years' probation, 180 days of labour-oriented service and a year of domestic-violence counselling; he returned to the stage within days of the deal ending, performing on Lil Wayne's tour in Virginia Beach, and the music career survived — the endorsement did not.
Sources
- Wrigley suspends Chris Brown ad campaign — Cape Cod Times (AP), 9 February 2009
- Chris Brown losing endorsements, air time — UPI, 11 February 2009
- Chris Brown pleads guilty in Rihanna assault case — CNN, 22 June 2009
- Chris Brown Officially Out as Wrigley Gum Pitchman — Rolling Stone, 7 August 2009
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