Hate shaving? Then you'll love November. Since 2004, the Movember Foundation has been partnering with businesses, local organizations and sports franchises to raise awareness and money for a variety of men's health issues by encouraging men to grow facial hair for a good cause. The goal of the Movember movement, a combination of the words "moustache" and "November," is to "change the face of men's health."
NHL and AHL hockey players have long embraced the Movember agenda, beginning the month clean-shaven and embarking on a 30-day competition to see who can grow the thickest, funniest or most creative facial hair. Nicknamed "Mo Bros," the players seek out sponsors to help raise funds for the charity.
A sports promotional and event marketing agency helped the Milwaukee Admirals with a Movember promotion last fall. The Admirals, an AHL team, partnered with grooming products manufacturer Lucky Tiger Grooming for Men to help raise money for prostate and testicular cancer research.
The Milwaukee chapter of Movember hosted a number of events throughout the city to publicize Movember and promoted attendance at the Admirals' games, says Kim Salli, the Admirals' manager of merchandise. The team publicized the moustache contest online and on its website. Fans could sign up online to join the Admirals Movember team, which included team owner and CEO Harris Turer, and players such as Scott Valentine, Kevin Henderson and Taylor Beck, or visit www.movember.com to donate to the cause. Fans could also view the progress of the moustaches over the course of the month.
The Admirals offered a Mo-Package for $49 which included two ticket vouchers, good for any game in November, a donation to Movember, plus an exclusive Mo-Waukee Admirals T-shirt which depicted the team's skull logo sporting a Fu Manchu moustache. The package could be purchased through Ticketmaster or on the Admirals' website. This was the first Movember promotion in which the team gave away T-shirts, says Salli, who notes the team did experience an increase in sales as a result.
Fans who joined the Admirals' Movember team and raised a certain amount of money were invited to a Stache Bash on November 27 with free food and the opportunity to meet the mustachioed Admirals players. In addition, at the last game of the month on November 30, Lucky Tiger distributed fake moustaches to the first 1,500 fans at the door. A number of fans grew facial hair or wore the fake moustaches to support the cause. Even the Zamboni sported a moustache for the occasion.
"The players really got into it," says Salli. "We showed images of the participating players' moustache progression on the Jumbotron." On the website, the Admirals conducted a poll for fans to pick which player had the best moustache. Choosing fake moustaches as a giveaway "was a no-brainer," Salli says. "Promotional items are extremely important at our games."
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