The Beatles Get Ready To Clean Up In Aisle 8

One thing that’s been piquing the interest of those who see next week’s Beatles remasters as a sort of last gasp for the recorded-music industry: Where will people in record store-lacking areas of the country (a.k.a. 92ish% of the populace) buy the albums? Mall stores are an ever-rarer breed thanks to the slash-and-burn strategy of Trans World; meanwhile, big-box stores like Wal-Mart and Target have decimated their selections to the barest minimum. Apple Corps has decided to market these reissues through a throwback strategy of its own: Grocery stores! According to Brandweek, the Beatles remasters will be in stock at retailers like Starbucks, Whole Foods, 7-Eleven, and Blockbuster, in a strategy that, according to EMI catalog honcho Bill Gagnon, “will allow us to reach the everyday places people shop… We’re bringing the music to where they are.” Not only does this little bit of market-blitzing prove that the Fab Four are one of the rare bands out there who can unite the Cheeseburger Big Bite crowd and strictly organic shoppers, it allows the label to get its foot in the door at those outlets. At least, for what Gagnon calls “pretty significant [projects] to get these outlets’ attention”—which, uh, at this point will I guess include a remastered version of the Beatles’ 1? Yeah, OK, maybe we need to rethink that portion of the strategy. 7-Eleven, Whole Foods Come Together for Fab 4 [Brandweek] [Image via cereal-box.net]