Heaven Hill Brands, one of the country’s largest independent and family-owned spirits suppliers, has appointed two Stagwell agencies—Minneapolis-based creative shop MONO and global media agency Assembly—as agencies of record.

The remit spans brand strategy, creative development, media planning and buying, and performance analytics across 10 brands: Heaven Hill Distillery, Heaven Hill Bottled-in-Bond, Heaven Hill Grain to Glass, Widow Jane Bourbon, Tequila Ocho, Lunazul Tequila, Deep Eddy Vodka, Hpnotiq, PAMA Pomegranate Liqueur, and Bluecoat Gin.

Method1 previously handled creative duties for Lunazul Tequila, while other brands were managed by a mix of agencies.

The four-month review, led by consultancy AAR Partners, is the first time Heaven Hill is consolidating its creative and media accounts under a single, integrated team. The pitch began in February and concluded in late May, with final presentations focused on Deep Eddy Vodka and Heaven Hill Bottled-in-Bond Bourbon.

COMvergence estimates Heaven Hill’s 2024 U.S. media spend at $6 million.

Portfolio-wide thinking

Jim Scott, founder and CEO of MONO, said the move by Heaven Hill to hire an integrated team reflects the growing appetite among marketers for data-informed storytelling—and a return to portfolio-wide thinking.

“They operate across the spectrum of the spirits landscape, from tequila to whiskey to gin, and they’ve got to find a place for all of them,” he told ADWEEK. “It was time to kind of get their house in order… and go to market with a more cohesive strategy.”

Founded 20 years ago, MONO operates on the belief that “simple always wins”—a mantra Scott believes is more relevant than ever. “We’re all victims of the feeds and the streams and everything bombarding our world,” he said. “We use simplicity to find out what’s going to make its way through all of that chaos.”

Assembly, Stagwell’s media arm managing more than $5 billion in billings, will embed employees within MONO’s creative teams to ensure media and creative are informing each other from the outset.

“Creative was part of the media conversation. Media was part of the creative conversation,” said Scott. “We don’t want our clients to have to navigate both. It should just be one thought.”

The first work for Heaven Hill Brands are expected to launch in the fall, with additional work rolling out through 2026. While creative directions are still being finalized, Scott underscored the importance of “culturally sharp thinking” in spirits marketing.