On Sunday (28 April), Buxton celebrated its sixth year as the official hydration partner for the Virgin Money London Marathon by transforming 12 convenience stores across London into Buxton hydration pit stops.
Nine Whistlestop stores and three Londis stores were selected as part of the activation, which saw the group of retailer point out the importance of keeping hydrated for event supporters and spectators.
The c-store partnership included the installation of marathon-themed Buxton branded free standing display units, window posters, as well as the new Buxton Box – an innovative merchandising solution containing 15 x 75cl bottles enabling retailers to create easy to merchandise secondary displays that are stackable and 100% recyclable (available to all c-stores now).
Severine Hemms, shopper marketing manager at Nestlé Waters UK, said: “We are really proud to have been sponsors of the 2019 Virgin Money London Marathon for another year running and to have brought this excitement to the convenience channel, with our retail partners, Whistlestop and Londis. Convenience stores like Whistlestop in busy train stations, and Londis on the high street, are key retail outlets for Buxton, as two thirds of people who purchase bottled water, do so when they are on the go [HIM CTP 2018]. It’s been great to see so much excitement and additional footfall driven to these stores, which has put hydration front of mind with local visitors.”
Ali Younas, store manager at the Londis store on Brunel Road, added: “Thanks to the support of Buxton, we have had our busiest Sunday of the year, with the activation attracting a host of new faces into our store. It’s so important to leverage big sporting events such as the Virgin Money London Marathon, and Buxton has helped put the importance of hydration front of mind for visiting spectators and add to the excitement surrounding the day.”
