After successfully making Modelo the #1 selling beer in the country, Constellation opens their playbook for Pacifico.
Constellation knows a thing or two about building a brand.
Working off powerhouse brands like Corona and Modelo (the newly minted #1 selling beer in the country) Constellation officially became the second largest beer vendor in dollar sales in 2023, overtaking Molson Coors.
But Constellation’s success wasn’t built on the backs of Corona and Modelo alone. Pacifico finished the year as the 22nd largest beer brand, ahead of stalwarts like Mike’s Hard Lemonade and Blue Moon, with dollar sales up an incredible +28.8%. And if you ask the bullish team at Constellation, there’s still a whole lot of runway and excitement about what this brand could become…
An authentic, smooth, pilsner-style lager, Pacifico dates back to 1900 when it was first brewed in the small Mexican port of Mazatlán. In the 1970s a group of California surfers traveling the beaches of Baja discovered this local cerveza and returned to the U.S. with as many cases as they could carry.
Today that story continues to resonate with the brand’s many fans, and represents the core of Pacifico’s ethos: adventure, discovery, authenticity. As a result, Constellation’s third largest beer brand is seeing enormous success with younger, active, legaldrinking-age consumers.
“Pacifico is a Gen Z and Millennial lifestyle brand,” says Pacifico’s Senior Director of Brand Marketing Ryan Anderson. “So we lean into that consumer culture when determining how to show up in market.” Pacifico is positioned as a beer for adventurous, lifestyle moments and encourages their consumers to “Live Anchors Up.”
With a target audience that is digitally driven, Pacifico meets these consumers where they are with a heavy digital investment. “We know this brand is more active than others,” says Anderson. “So, we use that to identify and partner with the right organizations.”
Partnerships this year include the U.S. Open of Surfing and the Winter X Games. Pacifico is also rolling out retail programs across Cinco de Mayo, as well as summer and fall brand partnerships highly relevant to Gen Z & Millennial consumers, such as Solo Stove, Duvin (a fashion brand that makes breezy beachwear) and Lakai.
But Constellation knows that successful brands aren’t built overnight. “We are very disciplined in our approach and while the growth has been great to see, our focus continues to be strategic,” says Anderson. That future looks bright for Pacifico, as the brand continues to expand and attract more Gen Z and Millennial consumers. “That yellow label is pretty hard to miss.”