AUSTRALIA. In a one-off promotion that seeks to entertain and inform passengers, William Grant & Sons has kicked off a major six-week activation for Hendricks at Melbourne Airport in partnership with The Nuance Group’s F1RST Tax & Duty Free.
Launched on 31 October, on the eve of the legendary Melbourne Cup horse race (won by Dunaden earllier today), the joint promotion aligns the quirky, Victorian theming of Hendrick’s with the gaming spirit embodied by Melbourne during the spring racing carnival.
William Grant is anchoring the promotion around a unique ‘Cucumber Cup’ centrepiece located in a promotional space in front of the landside F1RST store.
Replicating the flavour of a Victorian fair ground, the stall permits four people at a time to play at aiming wooden balls at holes, with each successful shot helping to advance a cut-out horse towards the finishing post of the Cucumber Cup.
The cup’s name reflects Hendrick’s distillation process, which infuses the gin with the essence of cucumber and rose petal.
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A very different kind of ‘Cup fever’ comes to Melbourne |
Winners of the competition receive a set of Hendrick’s playing cards. All participants can take away a free photo of themselves at play with top hats and hobby horses, along with promotional material including the Hendrick’s Gin newsletter, The Unusual Times.
Dedicated promoters are overseeing the activity, while F1RST staff are responsible for product sampling within the bounds of the store.
William Grant’s creative team designed and built the Cucumber Cup in the UK specifically for the Melbourne promotion.
https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=https%3A//api.soundcloud.com/tracks/132371057&color=ff5500&auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_artwork=trueIn its airside Departures stores F1RST is also featuring its signature Hendrick’s bathtub, with a bird-cage display in airside Arrivals.
The investment in Cucumber Cup for Melbourne is recognition of the importance of the Australian market for Hendrick’s, emphasised Kate Minner, Regional Marketing Manager Asia Pacific for William Grant & Sons.
“We developed this activation specifically for Melbourne, which is part of the Hendrick’s approach,” she told The Moodie Report. “Every activation we do is different to maintain the uniqueness of the brand.”
The emphasis is on fun and there is no obligation to purchase in order to participate, Minner noted.
Added Scott Hamilton, William Grant’s Regional Manager Australia & South Pacific: “What better time to do a promotion like this than Melbourne Cup time and coming into the Christmas period?
“We have some ambitious targets in Australia for 2012 so this activation will give us a strong platform to launch from.”
Supporting the Cucumber Cup activation is the giveaway of a cocktail recipe book or a tea-time pack (a cup and saucer set) with purchase of a 1-litre bottle of Hendrick’s. “This will add to the sales objective while inherently supporting the Victorian theming of the brand,” Hamilton said.
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From left: Melbourne Airport’s Frank Pangalidis and Deborah Price go ‘trackside’ to join F1RST Tax & Duty Free’s Alicia Lucchesi and Lionel Peters in racing for the coveted Cucumber Cup |
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William Grant & Son’s Scott Hamilton and Kate Minner celebrate the launch of the Cucumber Cup promotion |
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From left: Frank Pangalidis, Retail Development Manager, Melbourne Airport; Alicia Lucchesi, Human Resources Manager, F1RST Tax & Duty Free; Jo Traikos, Promotions Manager, F1RST; Scott Hamilton, Regional Manager Australia & South Pacific, William Grant & Sons; Lionel Peters, General Manager Victoria & ACT, F1RST; Deborah Price, Manager Retail Strategy, Melbourne Airport; Kate Minner, Regional Marketing Manager Asia Pacific, William Grant & Sons |
According to Lionel Peters, General Manager Victoria & ACT of F1RST Tax & Duty Free, Hendrick’s has answered the call to provide fun for passengers by leveraging its Victorian-themed branding.
“This theming works in well with the Cucumber Cup concept,” he said. “We had the opportunity to offer Hendrick’s that promotional area and tie it in with the whole spring carnival.”
Key objectives for The Nuance Group included brand recognition and development of staff knowledge, Peters said.
“Premiumisation is also something that we look at very strongly and train our team in. With Hendrick’s being the most expensive gin we have on our shelves, it is important that we work with William Grant & Sons to invest the time to train our team.”
Promotional staff contracted by William Grant & Sons are also providing tastings in Departures, Arrivals and the landside location during morning and afternoon peak times.
About Hendrick’s
Hendrick’s is billed as a gin ‘unusually made’ in Scotland by Scotch whisky distillers William Grant & Sons. It is the blend of two different styles of gin – the Carter Head and the Bennet – using 11 botanicals and infused with the essence of rose petal and cucumber. Handcrafted in batches of 450 litres, Hendrick’s is sold in bottles that reflect the black glass of pharmacies from the late Victorian era, when William Grant & Sons was founded.
