"FANmercial" honors Blimpie's 50th birthday celebration

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Aug. 4, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Blimpie^® (www.blimpie.com) fans submitted hundreds of ideas garnering thousands of votes to create fan-inspired commercials in honor of the brand's 50th birthday. Now, they'll have the chance to not only select their favorite FANmercial, but win an amazing prize as well.

Fans will vote and a winner will be randomly selected to choose from one of three great prizes -- a trip for two to Las Vegas; a 65" Samsung Smart LED TV with GoPro Hero3+; or $2,500 cash. The FANmercial finalist videos will be released on Blimpie's Facebook page August 4th, 2014. Fans can vote on the commercials throughout the month of August. The commercial with the most votes will be announced on or before September 26th, 2014.

"From idea generation to video production, the FANmercial has been a tribute to the creativity and passion of Blimpie's fans as they celebrate our 50th Birthday with us," said Steve Evans, vice president of marketing at Kahala. "We're excited to unveil the final video spots for everyone to enjoy. The FANmercial's we have seen so far are terrific. Our fans are so creative and the videos are so much fun to watch."

The FANmercial project has run entirely on Blimpie's Facebook page and contributed to a 25% growth in Facebook fans for the brand. In January, Blimpie launched a two-month campaign encouraging fans to submit ideas for the brand's next TV spot. This spring, more than 11,000 fans voted on their favorite idea.

Rather than using a traditional video production team, Blimpie engaged video production powerhouse, POPTent, to bring the FANmercials to life. POPTent hosts a community of more than 50,000 video creators equipped with the tools to produce engaging, high-quality videos for some of the largest brands in the world, including FedEX, General Mills and GEICO.

Facebook Likes = FANmercial Luck!

• To vote for your favorite FANmercial, visit Blimpie's Facebook page and become a fan, then check out the new FANmercials scheduled to debut on August 4, 2014. Voting will continue through the month of August.
• The winning voter will be selected in one (1) random drawing to be held on or before September 26th, 2014.
• The winning voter will choose one of three prize packages:
  • a trip for two to Las Vega
  • a 65" Samsung Smart LED TV with GoPro Hero3
  • $2,500 cash prize
• No purchase necessary
• Fans may vote once a day

50th Birthday and Background
It's a year of excitement and anticipation as stores celebrate 50 years of selling craveable subs and being America's Sub Shop®.  Blimpie kicked off the yearlong celebration April 4^th with 50-cent regular-sized Blimpie Best subs for the first 200 customers that entered each store. More recently, Blimpie launched the Hoboken Hero Sub, a new sub that was introduced to guests as a way to pay homage to the birthplace of the Blimpie sub and brand. It all began 50 years ago when three high school friends in Hoboken, N.J., set out to create the greatest sub sandwich on the planet. They called it a Blimpie as they thought their newly created sub sandwich resembled a blimp. A half century later, that sub has become beloved by millions, and the brand has grown to hundreds of locations around the globe.

About Blimpie
Headquartered in Scottsdale, Ariz., Blimpie^® serves sub sandwiches prepared with quality ingredients along with delicious salads. Founded in 1964, Blimpie has grown to approximately 600 franchised restaurants across the U.S. and abroad.  In 2006, Blimpie became part of Kahala Brands^™, one of the fastest growing franchising companies in the world with a portfolio of 15 quick-service restaurant brands. For more information about Blimpie visit www.blimpie.com. For more information about Kahala Brands, visit www.kahalamgmt.com.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140804/133061

SOURCE Blimpie