Cracker Jack Brand Hits Home Run With First-Ever Float In 88th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade®

As PepsiCo's Inaugural Parade Debut, Cracker Jack Float Combines Themes of Baseball, Spirit of Surprise, Family Fun and Essence of Americana … with a Modern Twist

News provided by

Frito-Lay North America

Oct 16, 2014, 06:00 ET

PLANO, Texas and NEW YORK, Oct. 16, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Cracker Jack, the brand known for the "surprise inside" every package, and Macy's are unveiling the biggest surprise yet this Thanksgiving: a float in the 88^th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade^® in New York City. This marks the first time a PepsiCo brand has presented a float in the iconic Parade that has long been an American tradition known for bringing families together. Cracker Jack is one of the many brands that make up PepsiCo's Frito-Lay division.

The Cracker Jack brand will have a baseball-themed float in the upcoming 88th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade(R) in New York City. This marks the first time a PepsiCo brand has presented a float in the iconic Parade that has long been an American tradition known for bringing families together.

The Macy's Parade float caps the Cracker Jack brand's summer-long campaign, "The Surprise Inside Project," which encouraged parents around the country to bring small, but meaningful surprises for their families. Over the last few months, the brand helped hundreds of families pull off a variety of small surprises – from the unexpected at-home spa day to a pop-up picnic in the park to a movie night with loved ones. As with "The Surprise Inside Project," the Cracker Jack float continues the theme of bringing surprises to life by incorporating unexpected elements that add a modern twist.

Inspired by another American pastime – arguably the most famous of them all – Cracker Jack's "At the Ball Game" float will feature a baseball theme that builds on the tradition of Cracker Jack snacks and family experiences at the ballpark. The float will include technological innovations such as live cameras and – for the first time in the Parade's history – a larger-than-life LED screen that will feature live shots of the Parade, giving spectators an opportunity to catch a glimpse of themselves on the big screen. And in a contemporary nod to everyone's favorite photo opportunity, the float includes a family taking a "selfie."

Cracker Jack's "At the Ball Game" Macy's Thanksgiving Day Float Hits it Out of the Park

The float is 36 feet long, more than three stories tall and as wide as three buses lined up end-to-end.
The float features infield, outfield and bleacher seats adorned with giant sculptures as well as live-action cameras capturing the children and performers on the float, as well as spectators along the Parade route.
Fans can find more than two dozen baseballs and bats in various locations throughout the float.
There are more than 100 linear feet of hand-stitched red, white and blue bunting decorating the float.
Below a life-size, fully operational scoreboard, a live musical performance will take place.
Fireworks will burst off the float as it arrives in Herald Square and the live performance gets underway.

"With our first-ever Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade float, we really wanted to bring all of our Cracker Jack themes to life – the tradition of baseball, the spirit of surprise and the essence of Americana, but with a fresh, unexpected twist that was relevant for audiences today," said Ram Krishnan, senior vice president, marketing, Frito-Lay North America. "We can't wait to see reactions on Thanksgiving Day, and hope our float continues to remind fans everywhere that even the smallest surprises can make a big impact when it comes to family fun."

"Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and the Cracker Jack brand make a winning combination, as both iconic American institutions have been surprising and delighting millions of people for generations," said Amy Kule, executive producer of Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. "Featuring the Parade's first-ever giant LED screen providing spectators with the opportunity to become part of the magic as they see themselves reflected on the float via its live cameras, this remarkable new addition to the line-up will capture the imagination of millions as it makes its way down the streets of Manhattan."

The Cracker Jack float builds on the brand's partnerships with both Macy's and Major League Baseball (MLB). To help kick off "The Surprise Inside Project," the Cracker Jack brand partnered with Macy's for this year's Macy's 4^th of July Fireworks^®, a spectacular event that has dazzled millions in New York and around the country for more than 35 years. The brand is also delighting fans through its long-standing partnership with MLB, by including team-specific stickers in Cracker Jack packages for the first time in more than 20 years.

The 88^th Annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade airs nationwide on NBC-TV, on Thursday, November 27, 2014 from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m., in all time zones.

About Cracker Jack

Cracker Jack is one of the brands that makes up Frito-Lay North America, the $13 billion convenient foods business unit of PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP), which is headquartered in Purchase, NY. Learn more about Frito-Lay at the corporate website, http://www.fritolay.com, the Snack Chat blog, http://www.snacks.com and on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/fritolay.

About The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

With more than 50 million viewers across the country and more than 3.5 million spectators that line up along the streets of New York City each year, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade is a national icon that has grown into a world-famous holiday event. For more than 85 years, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade has marked the official start of the holiday season. Growing in size and scale, the Parade proudly marches down a more than 2-mile route in New York City with more than 8,000 participants in tow including Macy's employees, their families, celebrities, athletes, clowns and dance groups spreading holiday cheer. The Parade also features America's best marching bands, fabulous floats and Macy's signature giant helium character balloons. For more information on the Macy's Parade please visit www.macys.com/parade or call the Parade hotline at 212-494-4495. Macy's Parade media materials are available at macysparadepress.com.

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo generated more than $66 billion in net revenue in 2013, driven by a complementary food and beverage portfolio that includes Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Quaker and Tropicana. PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including 22 brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales.

At the heart of PepsiCo is Performance with Purpose – our goal to deliver top-tier financial performance while creating sustainable growth in shareholder value. In practice, Performance with Purpose means providing a wide range of foods and beverages from treats to healthy eats; finding innovative ways to minimize our impact on the environment and reduce our operating costs; providing a safe and inclusive workplace for our employees globally; and respecting, supporting and investing in the local communities where we operate. For more information, visit www.pepsico.com.

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SOURCE Frito-Lay North America