Why Hendrick's gave a lighthouse a glow up to promote its coastal-theme gin

Lighthouses at East Sussex, The Wirral, and Hendrick's hometown of Girvan were chosen for the marriage of gin and seascape, sating a thirst for visual drama while adding to Hendrick's Cabine of Curiosities.

The brief

Red Consultancy was asked to develop a PR campaign for the limited edition which sought to engage 'curious' gin drinkers by bottling the scale and majesty of the sea.

Standing apart from the mass media in space and time the campaign strove to provide a sense of escapism for those wishing to break free from the banality of everyday life.

The idea

Accentuating its 'not for everyone' ethos this approach eschews the mass market by encapsulating an otherworldly spirit grounded in the magic of the snaking British coastline.

Focussed on three lighthouses the primary idea was to turn the blank slate of their white-washed walls into a canvas for storytelling and to highlight the need to protect the natural environment.

Each projection was overseen by multidisciplinary artist Claire Luxton, running for one month in April as a kaleidoscope of color, nature and history.

This seaborne activity dovetailed with land-based activations including tasting events, media campaigns and a partnership with London restaurant Seabird.

The results

Hendrick's lauded the work as its most successful PR campaign to date, citing an increase in sales volumes and distribution of over 100%.

This was achieved on the back of 174 items of coverage, reaching over 15.7m people; including spots in The Scotsman; Evening Standard and BBC Radio Merseyside.

Hendrick's soaked up the saturation coverage, noting a 315% increase versus two previous limited releases.

This campaign was a winner at The Drum Awards for Out of Home 2022. You can see all the winners here. The Drum Awards for Marketing are currently open for entry. Find out how you can enter now.