Volkswagen Beetle says goodbye in Times Square billboard
Volkswagen is bidding farewell to its small car in a big way.
The vehicle giant rolled out a new ad campaign, “The Last Mile,” that includes a string of videos that nod to its iconic Beetle, which ended production this year after selling nearly 25 million units. There are also large billboard placements in New York's Times Square.
Volkswagen billboard in Times Square, New York. (Shawn M. Carter, FOX Business)
The video spots, which launched Tuesday and will have placements during the Sugar Bowl and Rose Bowl games New Year’s Day, show off an animated cover of The Beatles’ “Let It Be” and feature guest spots from Andy Warhol, Kevin Bacon and social media influencers.
“We animated live-action because we wanted it to feel whimsical, with the feel of an old postcard, but which was extremely modern in design,” Johannes Leonardo, the creative agency that headed up the ads, said in a report on MediaPost. “Every block of color is never perfectly aligned, so there’s no perfect line. It’s a technique which brings warmth to the visuals.”
Volkswagen in 2018 announced it would discontinue its Beetle as it looked to lean more into the electric-vehicle arena with brands like Ford and Tesla, which both released new electric models in the recent past. Earlier in 2019, Volkswagen said it would begin building its own zero-emission vehicles at its 3 million-square-foot Tennessee plant.
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| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VWAGY | VOLKSWAGEN AG | 8.88 | -0.14 | -1.55% |
This “is not just a goodbye for Volkswagen,” the carmaker said in the report, “it’s one for everybody to bid farewell to the world’s most popular and significant car. More importantly, the campaign signifies Volkswagen's commitment to its next chapter as we enter a new decade.”
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Volkswagen brought in more than 235 billion euros, or $263 billion, in revenue in 2018, The Volkswagen Group’s stock is up 20 percent on the year and 20 percent year-to-date.
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