Top 10 marketing moves from July 2025
Bold advertising displays were a common marketing thread in July, with spirits brands featuring on billboards from London to New York.
Look up at a building in July and you might have seen a spirits brand planted on there, with visuals from one brand dominating New York’s Times Square, and another taking over Wembley in London for a huge boxing showdown.
Meanwhile, a big-name Tequila brand’s battle to use ‘additive-free’ messaging could also be seen across the US.
Elsewhere spirits brands took advantage of the Northern Hemisphere’s high temperatures, with one gin brand turning to ice cream and a spherical canned cocktail brand releasing an inflatable pool.
Continue on for the 10 best marketing moves from July.
For our previous marketing roundups, check out what spirits brands got up to in May and June.
Bombay Sapphire keeps it cool with ice cream campaign
Bacardi-owned Bombay Sapphire hosted a ‘Gin & Gelato’ activation in London that aimed to immerse UK cocktail enthusiasts in the “ultimate flavours of summer”.
Up until the end of August, the brand is pairing its gin at a selection of top bars in the UK; Bob Bob Ricard and Scott’s Richmond in London, Science & Industry in Manchester, and The Dome in Edinburgh. The gelatos are inspired by the botanicals that define Bombay Sapphire’s signature spirit.
Natasha Curtin, global vice-president of Bombay Sapphire, said: “What better way to celebrate summer in the UK than with this ultimate pairing: expertly crafted Bombay Sapphire cocktails and refreshing gelato, inspired by our 10 hand-selected botanicals.”
Patrón blurs the lines in new adverts
Bacardi-owned Patrón has launched a new campaign in the US, called Censored Truth, which aims to address transparency.
The campaign features a mix of censored adverts, bleeped audio, and redacted language. It was launched in response to the Consejo Regulador del Tequila (CRT) over its additive-free marketing. Patrón’s previous additive-free campaign in the US debuted in February and saw its exports banned for four days in February by the CRT, Tequila’s regulatory body. The CRT believes the term ‘additive-free’ is misleading, and cannot be scientifically proven.
Roberto Ramirez-Laverde, Patrón’s global senior vice-president, said: “Our Tequila is made with just three ingredients, and we think people deserve to know exactly what goes into their drink. Censored Truth is our way of doubling down on that promise – even if you need to read between the lines or we have to bleep out a few words because of efforts to restrict what we can share.”
Stauning celebrates its 20th birthday with a makeover
Danish whisky maker Stauning marked its 20th anniversary with a new look for its core Rye and Høst expressions.
The makeover features refreshed packaging that blends Scandinavian design with “classic whisky cues”. The brand’s symbol has been updated to tell the story of the distillery’s nine founders through nine distinct lines and a central grain motif. A new bottle, meanwhile, sports clean lines, and is inspired by the simplicity of Danish design.
Scott Milne, marketing director at Stauning Whisky, said: “In a competitive whisky market, it’s essential to stand out and offer something unique.
“Our new look celebrates Danish taste and invites a broader audience to see whisky from a different perspective.”
Nemiroff unveils knockout activation in London
Ukrainian vodka brand Nemiroff unveiled a 3D activation near London’s Wembley Stadium in support of its countryman and boxing world heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk.
The activation was displayed at Boxpark Wembley, London, on Saturday 19 July before Usyk’s title fight with Britain’s Daniel Dubois. Called The Dance of Two Champions, the advert blended Usyk’s training dance with Nemiroff’s bottle, while also highlighting the brand’s title of Supreme Brand Champion 2025.
Yuriy Sorochynskiy, CEO of Nemiroff, said: “We’re proud to bring the spirit of Ukraine to iconic moments like this one – and proud to be recognised as a global benchmark for vodka.”
Casa Redondo hits the small screens in the Netherlands with Licor Beirão campaign
Casa Redondo created a TV campaign in the Netherlands for its Portuguese liqueur, Licor Beirão.
The campaign was developed with its Dutch distributor, A Brand New Day (ABND), and follows the brand’s launch in the market last year. Daniel Redondo, CEO of Casa Redondo, said: “This was the first time Licor Beirão developed a campaign entirely conceived and produced for an international market.”
Bob Valentijn, marketing director at ABND, added: “It brought us great joy to introduce Licor Beirão to the Dutch public together with the team at Casa Redondo. We’ve received a lot of positive feedback on the product’s exceptional taste and the already iconic TV campaign and activations.”
Kavalan teams up with bartenders in South Korea
Taiwanese whisky producer Kavalan launched its ‘Team Kavalan’ campaign in South Korea for the second year running.
The distillery joined with its distribution partner in the country, Golden Blue, to relaunch the campaign, which saw “overwhelming success” in its inaugural showing in 2024. Under the banner ‘One Whisky, Two Perspectives’, the campaign brings bartenders from some of South Korea’s best venues together to craft cocktails that offer contrasting interpretations of Kavalan. The collaboration for the first three months of the campaign will be between Bar Cham and Bar Sookhee.
Golden Blue CEO Park Soyoung said: “This year, we are excited to collaborate with even more bars in Korea to enhance Kavalan’s brand value and deliver diverse experiences.”
Absolut meets mental health at Tomorrowland
Pernod Ricard-owned Absolut Vodka looked to address issues around loneliness at this year’s Tomorrowland festival.
The electronic music festival took place over two weekends – on 18-20 and 25-27 July – in Boon, Belgium, and welcomed more than 400,000 attendees. Through its diversity and inclusion committee, Absolut hosted various onsite and online experiences at the festival. Festivalgoers could access a WhatsApp group for crosscultural exchange and to access news of onsite activities, and they could also wear United We Dance bandanas, which acted as an identifier for likeminded individuals.
Deb Dasgupta, Absolut Vodka’s global vice-president marketing, said: “As the spirit of positive change, we’ve always believed in bringing people together across borders, identities, and perspectives.”
BuzzBallz makes a splash with pool
Ready-to-drink (RTD) brand BuzzBallz has released a limited edition inflatable pool in the US for the summer.
The pool is shaped in the design of a BuzzBallz container, and aims to turn basic backyards into “full-blown BuzzBallz celebrations”. The pool is six-feet wide and comes with a pull-tab floaty and lid, which makes the pool’s cover. It is painted in the brand’s Berry Cherry Limeade blue flavour, said to be a fan-favourite.
“Fans have told us they love BuzzBallz so much, they wish they could swim in one,” said Jess Scheerhorn, BuzzBallz vice-president at Sazerac.
Fans must be aged over 21 to use and purchase the pool, and alcohol is neither included nor recommended during use.
Tarsier looks to the jungle
Manchester-based Tarsier Gin has unveiled a new design and look for its bottle.
The new bottle is said to be more sustainable than the previous one, and is made of 58% post-consumer recycled glass, to minimise the distillery’s impact on the environment. The design was inspired by the jungles of Southeast Asia, and features etchings inspired by the textures of bamboo, bark, ferns, and jungle foliage. This reflects the natural habitat of the tarsier – the primate the brand is named after.
Tim Driver, co-founder of Tarsier, said: “This new look captures everything we stand for – exploration, depth, and a spirit of wild discovery.”
Tarsier’s range of spirits is being relaunched, with a new recipe for its flagship Southeast Asian Dry Gin, a renamed Lychee & Raspberry Pink Gin, and the return of Yuzu Marmalade Vodka.
Arkay takes a bite out of the Big Apple in Times Square
Non-alcoholic brand Arkay lit up New York’s Times Square with an advertising campaign in July.
Reynald Vito Grattagliano, founder and CEO of Arkay Beverages, said: “Going live in Times Square marks a new era for Arkay. This is more than an ad – it’s a message to the world that zeroproof ‘spirits’ are here to stay, and we are leading that revolution.”
The campaign cost US$6 million, which was funded by Mexican conglomerate Licor Zone. Arkay was founded in 2011 and offers a wide range of nonalcoholic ‘spirits’, including whisky, rum, vodka, Tequila, and gin alternatives.
The company is inviting rival nonalcoholic ‘spirits’ brands to take a spot on its Times Square billboard – for free.
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