Mississippi Aquarium beaver billboards show similarities with new Buc-ee's opening soon
A new billboard by the Mississippi Aquarium is putting one of its animals in the spotlight, taking its cue from the billboards advertising the new Buc-ee's Travel Center opening Monday, June 9, in Pass Christian.
Buc-ee is the beaver mascot for the Texas-based company.
The Aquarium used its own beavers as models for billboards on Coast highways that remind motorists to visit the family-friendly venue.
"We heard you like beavers. (And clean bathrooms.)," one billboard reads. It, too, is a nod to Buc-ee's, which prides itself on clean restrooms. Another Aquarium billboard says, "We've got beavers, too."
"We have quite a bit of different animals here," Aquarium spokeswoman Nicole Martz said in a phone interview. "We pride ourselves on all that we have to offer. We brainstormed a bit and thought it would be a great way to showcase these guys and also show a bit of Southern hospitality — and make people smile."
Your questions answered: How big is the new MS Buc-ee's? When does it open? How many gas pumps, electric chargers?
It started off with the Aquarium planning its next advertising campaign, to keep things fresh while attracting new and repeat visitors. From there, it grew into a spotlight on beavers and a nod to the new business, expected to bring thousands of new visitors stopping in Mississippi to check out the travel center.
"We were thinking about how to keep things fresh and showcase some of our offerings, so we were looking at what animals might not get as much sunshine as they could," Aquarium spokeswoman Nicole Martz said in a phone interview. "The beavers came to mind because they are one of the first things you see when you come into the aquarium. People kind of gravitate towards them."
Elvis, B.B. and King, as they are called, are curious critters, native to Mississippi, like the musicians they are named for, Martz said.
"They are so adorable," she said. "They are so charismatic and they have their own personalities. They love to learn new things, and they are so much fun to watch."
Here's what happened: Mississippi Aquarium releases 10 Kemp's Ridley sea turtles.
Scott Gregory, general manager for Lamar Advertising, said his company works with the Aquarium to get their billboards in strategic locations and make sure the artwork is going to hold up among other things.
He said the Aquarium team's creativity is impressive.
"We've gotten a lot of positive feedback from that, but really, it's thanks to them," Gregory said. "They are really creative with their design and everything that's going on, right on top of Buc-ee's coming in. They knocked it out of the park with that."
"There's definitely lots of buzz in the area," Martz said. "We're all about Southern hospitality and community. We wanted to make people smile and get people talking."
Gregory said he enjoys how the Aquarium is using billboards to playfully promote their animals and events.
We asked the Aquarium if Elvis, B.B. and King would be attending the grand opening at Buc-ee's as special guests to the travel center's mascot. It seems they will be giving it a miss this time around.
"Well, they do like to chew things, as beavers do, so I don't know if they chewed up their invitations, but we're definitely cheering everybody on over here," Martz said.
Lici Beveridge is a reporter for the Hattiesburg American and Clarion Ledger. Contact her at lbeveridge@gannett.com. Follow her on X @licibev or Facebook at facebook.com/licibeveridge.
This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Mississippi Aquarium makes play on new Buc-ee's opening with billboards
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