P&G, Walmart celebrate 2012 Olympics with 'Tour of London' display
AMERICAN CANYON, Calif. — In honor of American athletes competing in this summer’s Olympic Games, Procter & Gamble, a Worldwide Olympic Partner, has teamed up with Walmart to bring the “Tour of London” to the United States via a recreation of London.
The 535-sq.-ft. London recreation has been constructed at a Walmart in American Canyon, Calif., and features iconic London landmarks and symbols, including Big Ben, the London Eye and red double-decker buses. The display, designed by Saatchi and Saatchi X, was formally unveiled in time for the opening weekend of the 2012 Olympic Games.
“The display celebrates our dedicated athletes and creates a unique in-store shopping event that customers will remember for years to come,” stated Stuart Heflin, P&G’s brand manager for the Walmart global consumer team. “P&G is behind the Olympic Games and our athletes 100%. We want to give people who can’t travel to Europe the opportunity to feel some of the excitement of the games here at home.”
The Big Ben is 21 ft. tall and includes a working clock in the tower that chimes every 15 minutes. The replica of the London Eye stands 18 ft. tall and rotates just like the world’s largest observation wheel. There are three 8-ft.-tall double-decker buses, two featuring front window-mounted television screens airing P&G Olympic Games-themed commercials. Educational maps featuring facts about the landmarks are posted and available for self-guided tours.
The London landmarks are surrounded by a variety of Olympic Games-branded P&G products. P&G’s tribute to the London 2012 Olympic Games will remain at the American Canyon store until Aug. 10.
In related news, P&G will host on Aug. 2 American Olympic icon Peggy Fleming at an autograph signing for associates and customers at the American Canyon Walmart store. Fleming is an icon of American athleticism and artistry since capturing the gold medal in ladies’ singles figure skating at the Olympic Winter Games in Grenoble, France in 1968.