Guinness sent me out a calendar this week as I'm on their direct marketing mailing list. The cover letter with the calendar included a voucher to get a discount on cans of Guinness[1], and also indicated that if I presented said letter at the new Guinness Merchandise shop on Westmoreland Street, I'd get a free gift (_{terms and conditions apply, while stocks last, etc.}).
I stopped by on my way to work this morning. The T's&C's required me to buy something in order to get my freebie, which, well, no big deal. I figured, you know, I'd get a small Guinness-branded item (Guinness Chocolate, anyone?).
However.
Not being one to buy a pig in a poke, or rather a pig in the hope that the accompanying free poke did not contain a non-pig, I enquired as to the nature of the free gift.

Socks.

Yes, Guinness Socks, but SOCKS. I mean, a keyring, a pen, a LED flashlight that breaks the third time you use it, fine. But SOCKS? What were they thinking?

[1] Previous Marketing FAIL: they replaced the voucher with "call this number and we'll issue you a voucher". That lasted, oh, about two months before they went back to including the vouchers with the mailer.

So I've gone to The Bar with zadcat three times since she arrived. Last night, the third occasion, Colin The Barman saw me standing at the counter from the other side of the bar and indicated I should sit down and he'd look after me. Shortly thereafter he arrived over with the required pint + glass of Guinness. That's paying attention to your customers, that is.

Guinness in Africa: it aint' a brewery full of typography, is it?