Apr 9, 2008 6:05 AM, PROMO Xtra, By Richard Tedesco

7-Eleven is issuing special Slurpee cups and straws to herald the release of "Iron Man."

The imminent theatrical release of “Iron Man” from Paramount Pictures and Marvel Entertainment is getting a publicity splash on 7-Eleven Slurpee cups and through a new Slurpee Nation web site.

7-Eleven will produce four multi-image, three-dimensional cups with renderings of the movie’s lead character, the Iron Man super-hero and his arch-enemy, Iron Monger, to be available through April 30. 7-Eleven will also be selling a 28-ounce mug molded to represent Iron Man’s Mark III armor suit as a collectible for $3.29. Three Slurpee spoon straws with detachable Iron Man and Iron Monger figurines will also available for $1.49 each.

The Paramount-Marvel movie, starring Robert Downey Jr., is slated for a May 2 release.

7-Eleven is playing off the “Iron Man” promotion to launch a Slurpee Nation site at slurpee.com, with links to the official film site. Site visitors can download a $10 discount coupon toward the purchase of any pair of shoes selling for $50 or more at Foot Locker through July. As part of that co-promotion, anyone buying shoes at Foot Locker will get a coupon for a free Slurpee.

7-Eleven figures the 17-to-24-year-old target demographic for “Iron Man” fits its 18-34 male target demo for Slurpees, according to 7-Eleven spokeswoman Margaret Chabris.

The “Iron Man” ploy extends a strategy 7-Eleven has employed to reach that target demo. The convenience store chain ran similar promotions around “The Simpsons,” “Spider Man 3” and the release of the “Halo 3” video game last year.

“We did research with our core consumers about what interests them most in leisure time activities. The answer came back loud and clear: sports, movies and video games,” said Chabris.

7-Eleven plans to keep the Slurpee cups moving this summer, Chabris said, with upcoming movie and video game promotions slated to run in May, June and August.

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