Four Roses Bourbon UK Campaign: Hiding the Brand Name Raised Awareness by 31%

Alcohol
CPG
Alimentación y bebidas

Four Roses bourbon was a favorite of top UK bartenders but had low awareness among consumers. Vivaldi Group identified a Discovery Generation of drinkers who choose drinks as an expression of curiosity and style, and built a campaign that deliberately hid the Four Roses name, using the brand's distinctive assets across out-of-home, digital, retailer data and on-trade so that finding it became the reward. The campaign raised brand awareness by 31%.

Client: Cuatro Rosas
Industria: Alcohol, CPG, Food & Beverage
Servicios: Brand, Innovation & Experience, Marketing Strategy & Acceleration
Region: United Kingdom
Vivaldi lead: Jake Varrone, Associate Creative Director, Copy and Content

The challenge: loved by top bartenders, unknown to consumers

El bourbon Four Roses era un éxito entre los mejores barmans del Reino Unido, pero era poco conocido entre la mayoría de los consumidores.

What Vivaldi did: a campaign that hid the brand to make it a discovery

Research identified a Discovery Generation of whisky drinkers who value curiosity and originality and pick drinks to express their style. Vivaldi built a campaign that kept the Four Roses name hidden and played with the brand's distinctive assets, so that finding it felt like a discovery, linking on-trade with consumer communications across paid, owned and earned media.

The outcome: brand awareness up 31%

By intentionally hiding the Four Roses name, the campaign tapped into the Discovery Generation's mindset and raised brand awareness by 31%, with a deeper connection to a new generation of whisky drinkers.

Four Roses UK campaign at a glance

Client	Four Roses Kentucky straight bourbon, with UK partner Spirit Cartel
Industria	Alcohol, spirits
Region	United Kingdom
Punto de partida	Strong with top UK bartenders, low awareness among consumers
Público	The Discovery Generation: drinkers who choose brands to express curiosity and style
Vivaldi scope	Audience research, campaign idea, integrated paid, owned and earned media; out-of-home, digital and retailer data; on-trade links (marketing strategy and acceleration, brand, innovation and experience)
Outcome	Brand awareness up 31%

Why Four Roses needed a new generation of UK drinkers

Spirit Cartel saw an opportunity in UK whisky drinkers’ growing appetite for trying new things, and wanted Four Roses to become the drink of a new generation. The bourbon already had credibility where it mattered most to the trade, with top bartenders, but most consumers had never heard of it.

Vivaldi’s research showed that this group, the Discovery Generation, chose drinks for more than taste: the choice was a way to show their style. They saw themselves as curious and stylish and did not want to follow the crowd, and the more elusive a discovery, the more rewarding it felt.

En lugar de agrandar el logotipo o llamar la atención a gritos, dejamos que la intriga creciera cubriendo la marca, convirtiendo Four Roses en una joya oculta que se sentía aún más especial cuando se encontraba.

This strategy resonated perfectly with the British audience, who thrive on the thrill of uncovering something unique. By not overtly pushing the product, but instead teasing its presence with “Don’t mention it,” we allowed consumers to feel like they were in on a secret, making the discovery of Four Roses more personal and meaningful.

Una mujer hace una foto con su teléfono a un anuncio en una pared blanca de Four Roses Bourbon. La marca está oculta y dice

How hiding the name turned Four Roses into a discovery

Instead of making the logo bigger or shouting for attention, Vivaldi built the campaign around discovery. The Four Roses name was kept hidden and the brand’s distinctive assets did the talking, so finding the brand became an experience in itself and felt more special for being earned.

Out-of-home advertising, digital and retailer data were joined into one connected ecosystem, and an integrated approach across paid, owned and earned media linked on-trade activity with consumer communications. Vivaldi’s guide to accelerating brand growth describes the same principle of earning attention rather than buying it.

Un teléfono que muestra una campaña de marketing para Four Roses Bourbon que oculta su logotipo y dice "sin etiquetas, sin spoilers, hashtag no lo menciones"

Un anuncio de Bourbon Four Roses. El logotipo está oculto y dice "Don't spill it, Pop Brixton".

Results: a 31% rise in brand awareness

Four Roses brand awareness rose by 31%.
The brand built a deeper connection with a new generation of UK whisky drinkers.
On-trade credibility with top bartenders was connected to consumer communications.
The campaign showed that less can be more when it comes to capturing attention.

Anuncio publicitario de Four Roses Bourbon en una calle muy transitada. La marca está oculta y dice

Four Roses Case Study Summary

Four Roses bourbon was respected by top UK bartenders but little known among consumers. Vivaldi identified a Discovery Generation of drinkers who prize curiosity and originality, and built an integrated campaign that deliberately hid the Four Roses name so that finding the brand became the reward. The campaign raised brand awareness by 31% and connected the bourbon with a new generation of whisky drinkers.

About Four Roses

Four Roses is a Kentucky straight bourbon whiskey distilled in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky. In the UK it built its reputation first among top bartenders before this campaign introduced it to a wider generation of whisky drinkers.

Four Roses campaign FAQs

How did Vivaldi raise Four Roses brand awareness in the UK?

By 31%, with a campaign that deliberately hid the Four Roses name and let the brand’s distinctive assets do the talking, so that finding it felt like a discovery. Out-of-home, digital and retailer data were connected in one ecosystem across paid, owned and earned media.

Who is the Discovery Generation?

A group of drinkers Vivaldi’s research identified who choose drinks not only for taste but to show their style. They see themselves as curious and stylish, avoid following the crowd and find a discovery more rewarding the more elusive it is, which is why a hidden brand appealed to them.

Why would hiding a brand name increase awareness?

Because for an audience that values discovery, a brand that has to be found feels more special than one that shouts. Hiding the name created intrigue, turned the act of finding Four Roses into part of the experience and made the brand worth talking about.

What can other spirits brands take from the Four Roses campaign?

That credibility with bartenders can be turned into consumer awareness by linking on-trade with consumer communications, and that the right audience insight can matter more than media weight. For the Discovery Generation, less visibility created more attention, and awareness rose 31%.