Oberto Beef Jerky takes a page right out of Bridget Jones’s Diary
In a pivotal scene in the 2001 film Bridget Jones’s Diary, our heroine meets her match at her parents’ annual post-Christmas turkey curry buffet and she cannot possibly take him seriously as he is wearing a reindeer sweater, which she calls a jumper because she is British – and apparently one of the most influential women of the last 70 years.
Oberto Beef Jerky has an ugly sweater contest on Facebook.
Since then, ugly sweaters, like perhaps cat selfies, have certainly had their moment. Miramax even branded the “Reindeer Jumper scene” the “Ugly Sweater Party scene” even though Ugly Sweater Parties did not exist in 2001 – at least not in our national consciousness.
So it is perhaps not terribly surprising December 16 is now National Ugly Christmas Sweater Day and Oberto Beef Jerky is celebrating with NFL players Rob Gronkowski and Richard Sherman. It’s only natural, right?
To kick things off, Oberto released a video on Facebook featuring Gronkowski and Sherman “hanging out in a garage talking about their ugly sweaters, all while eating jerky.”
But the fun doesn’t stop there. The brand wants fans to join Gronkowski and Sherman by sharing pictures of themselves wearing their best ugly sweaters in the comments section below the video with the hashtags #ObertoUglySweater and #Sweepstakes from December 15 to 18. Couldn’t be simpler, right?
As of Friday, the video had about 50,000 views and 75 comments.
The winners, which Oberto said will be to be chosen at random, will win the sweaters worn by Gronkowski and Sherman, which have since been autographed. It was not immediately clear whether the sweaters will be dry cleaned first or if megafans will have the option to elect otherwise. It was also unclear why two grown men paired their sweaters with shorts and sandals.
The video is a part of Oberto’s digital video series, Gronk & Sherm Talk about Stuff While Eating Jerky, which launched in the summer and includes 16 videos as of National Ugly Christmas Sweater Day.
In addition, Oberto said it will donate 20% of sales from its online shop from December 15 to 31 to the Gronk Nation Youth Foundation, an organization that says it is dedicated to inspiring and supporting youth through positive involvement in sports, community activities, education and fitness, and Sherman’s Blanket Coverage Foundation, which says it was formed to provide students in low-income communities with school supplies and clothing so they can more adequately achieve their goals.
"It was awesome getting to perform on camera with [Sherman] and the Oberto team,” Gronkowski allegedly said in a statement. “But in the spirit of competition, if you ask me, I would win the #ObertoUglySweater contest without question. However, I’m still looking forward to the challenge from the fans and seeing their best ugly sweaters!”
“For me, I always love seeing the fans in their gear on Sundays and showing their support,” Sherman purportedly added. “So it’s awesome that I have the opportunity to now team up with [Gronkowski] and our Oberto family to help give back through this fun ugly sweater social contest. I can’t wait to see the fans send in their creative, yet ‘ugly’ holiday style!“
But Oberto is hardly the first brand to tap into the ugly sweater trend perhaps launched by Jones.
Coke Zero hopped on the bandwagon in 2013 with its Ugly Sweater Generator. Additional brands include beers Miller Lite and Budweiser, as well as pet food brand Cesar’s.