2025 Category Excellence in Promotion: Weigel's & Coca-Cola Consolidated

Weigel's and Coca-Cola Consolidated partnered to create a season-long strategy around NIL ath­letes Christian Moore (baseball) and Karlyn Pickens (softball) of The University of Tennessee, offering free 24-ounce Coca-Cola products for specific achievements such as Moore's home runs and Pick­ens' strikeouts. These promotions — communicated solely through Weigel's social media accounts — seamlessly linked sports excitement and community connection with customer engagement. 

When the baseball team won the national cham­pionship — a moment of immense pride for the community — Weigel's Director of Marketing and Merchandising Nick Triantafellou and Director of Loyalty Jessica Starnes quickly pivoted and worked together to coordinate a one-day celebration that featured 10 free items for loyalty members from Coca-Cola and other vendor partners. This achieved a record-high daily penetration rate of 40.5%. 

Coca-Cola Consolidated played a pivotal role in the success of the collaboration by providing exceptional support, flexibility and resources to execute both the season-long and post-championship promotions. The company successfully managed the distribution of 94,000 free Coca-Cola products across Weigel's 83 stores without any disruptions in stock levels, and collaborated on promotional materials and messag­ing to highlight the NIL athletes and the giveaways, helping to create cohesive and engaging marketing that resonated with customers. 

Through meticulous planning, seamless execution and a shared commitment to creating unforgettable moments, this partnership drove measurable results, increased brand visibility and strengthened com­munity ties. Social media campaigns tied to the NIL promotions and national title celebration generated 6 million impressions in the week of the championship. Active loyalty users increased by 12%, showcasing the promotion’s ability to drive long-term engagement.

Click here for the full winners' list for the 2025 Convenience Store News Category Excellence Awards.