The Beermat Blog

UK based beermat manufacturer, Thirstys.co.uk Limited have taken the unusual step of advising their existing and potential customers of an advertisement currently running with Google Adwords is using the term ‘Thirsty?’. The company believe the use of this word is likely to cause confusion in the market given Thirstys is a well know brand in the UK and the name is synonymous with beermat manufacturing.

A company spokesperson said “We have had a number of customers indicate that they believed this advertisment was for our company and they have responded in accordance with this belief. The principle issue here, is that it is very clearly not difficult to confuse the term ‘Thirsty?’ with our own trademark ‘Thirstys’.

Added to which, because the website uses a generic name ‘beermatcompany.com, the casual browser is given no clue that this website has nothing to do with Thirstys until they reach the site. From what we can ascertain, whilst describing themselves as a manufacturer, this organisation does not actually own a print press. In addition, despite the fact that it publishes a UK address (which is shared by as many as 200 other companies), try as we might, we have been unable to identify any UK based employees, only a director based in Holland. The reality is we can all dress as an airline pilot, but in the final analysis, to those in the know, we would still be an ordinary member of the public in a uniform!

For the record we wish to state that Thirstys.co.uk Limited have no association with The Beermat Company or The Beermat Corporation Limited and we shall be seeking guidance from our legal advisors regarding the form of this particular advertisement.”

In the meantime, Thirstys have asked that any individual or company that may have experienced similar confusion as a consequence of this advertisement to get in touch with them.

Ocassionally, designing and printing beermats is only the first part of delivering a campaign, the second part is getting the message in front of a targeted audience. This often requires the distribution of the beermats into clubs and pubs.

UK beermat manufacturer Thirstys offers a complete beermat distribution service whereby they will design, print and distribute the beermats on behalf of the client. Distribution can be by postcode, town, city, region or the entire UK. Thirstys have a comprehensive database of landlords and licensees who are willing to participate in campaigns by placing beermats. Where a campaign is specifically targeted on one area or region, Thirstys will contact landlord and licensees in the area and seek their cooperation in supporting campaign messages.

Thirstys is unique amongst UK beermat manufacturers by offering this in-house service which, since launch, has been in high demand by Thirstys regular customers who have come to relaise the benefits of having their beermats professionally distributed.

Many, but not all, landlords and licensees experience a shortage of beermats and tend to be more than willing to accept free beermats, provided the campaign message does not detract from their surroundings. Thirstys staff are happy to advise on the practicalities of distribution in terms or areas, messages and likely acceptance.

UK beermat manufacturer, Thirstys.co.uk Limited have announced the launch of new volume breaks which will allow purchasers to buy as few as 25 beermats. These new volumes will continue to be litho-printed and, as expected from an established beermat manufacturer, will be genuine beer mats made from pulp board.  In addition to the introduction of volumes as low as 25, Thirstys will also offer other volume breaks of 100, 250, 500, 750, 1000 and upwards.

A Thirstys spokesperson said “although we recognise that most of our customers will continue to require much higher volumes, the introduction of these low volume breaks is to allow our existing customers to use beermats for staff messages, conferences and so on, whilst also allowing businesses that have not utilised beermats before, to dip their tow in the water, without having to break the bank.

Better still, buyers will not have to compromise on quality or impact, because the beermats will, as usual, be manufacturer from pulp board and litho printed, in full colour, if that is required by the design specifications. We will also continue to offer industry leading turnaround times”.

Thirstys.co.uk Limited is a well established UK based manufacturer of genuine, pulp board beermats, litho-printed in full colour. Thirstys can offer different sizes and shapes as required. As well as the UK, Thirstys also have a sister operation based in South Africa. Thirstys export to Asia, Europe and north America.

Yes, it is now possible to order your beermats online. UK based beermat manufacturer, Thirstys, has launched an online shopping cart which allows visitors to select the quantity they require, pay online using a credit or debit card and then upload artwork. The whole process takes around 3 minutes. Thirstys, then offer a 5 day turnaround from the point at which the artwork is approved and accepted.

For those that are unsure of whether or not their artwork is suitable for beermat printing, Thirstys have gone a step further and offer to edit artwork for a low fixed cost. So there is nothing to stop anyone from advertising their wares on a genuine pulp board beermat.

In addition, Thirstys also offer a fixed price design service, whereby they will design the beermats (front and back, for a nominal charge of just £40 plus VAT. These are all special offer prices, therefore no guarantees can be provided as to how long the offers will be available, but for the time being, it looks like a fantastic offer.

To coincide with the launch, Thirstys are offering to print 1000 beermats, in full colour, for just £95 plus VAT, or for smaller campaigns or events, they will print as few as 25 beermats.

Thirstys are a UK based beermat manufacturer

Well beermats have been around for over 100 years, so they have a history most advertising media could only dream of and better still, they are functional. Genuine beermats are made from pulp board, therefore are 100% recyclable. Obviously the first companies to see the benefits of advertising on a beermat were the breweries and they continue to advertise their products on beermats to this day, in fact, they are the single highest consumer of beermats.

However, a more innovative approach to the manufacturing process means that virtually anyone can now use beermats to advertise their business, products or services. The new printing practices mean that beermats can be ordered in much smaller volumes and at a fraction of the price normally associated with short-run print orders. There are some excellent and well established beermat manufacturers based in the UK.

There are now some companies that are marketing pre-printed beermats with generic messages, perhaps ‘happy birthday’, meery christmas, or business and sales messages, such as the ‘customer is king’ or advice on how to pick up a heavy load from the floor etc. The uses are literally endless.

One regional police force in the UK even printed the picture of a man wanted for murder on a beermat. In fact the police appear to be regular users of beermats for campaign messages or information.

Another ‘innovation’, this time brought about by the purchasers of beermats is co-operative advertising, whereby one company will print their information on one side of the beermats and another company will print theirs on the reverse. Immediately the cost of the beermats has halved for both companies. Once again, there are few advertising mediums that can offer this level of flexibility. Added to which, genuine pulp-board beermats are fully functional and, depending on the design, as at home on the table in an expensive restaurant, as they are on the bar of your local.

So, there is plenty to write about beermats, you wait and see!