Revolutionary from the inside out, Stillhouse is a uniquely bold new player in the whiskey category that pays homage to some of America’s original entrepreneurs - the moonshiners - by cutting against the grain to craft a spirit that goes beyond its origins.
A distinctive digital presence is crucial for any brand launch, especially one targeting the 21-34 year old demographic. Stillhouse Spirits Co. turned to AvatarLabs as a creative partner because of our deep history and portfolio in entertainment marketing, where sleek and sophisticated online and mobile experiences are required capital in reaching this audience.
We began with a user experience strategy that provided a hierarchical structure, and organized content within an intuitive visual interface responsive to mobile, tablet and desktop that’s built to expand. Knowing that a large percentage of visitors would access the site via mobile, we chose a vertically scrolling interface that natively lent itself to organic exploration.
Our strategic design approach was built around four key pillars:
To leverage the innovative, one-of-a-kind packaging, we opened the website with a 3D, explorable 360° version of the stainless steel canister that we rendered in house. Our sophisticated animation and subsequent visuals worked together to underscore the product’s unique qualities. Scrolling down, the six flavors slide onto the screen, highlighting the collectability of the disruptive packaging. As the continuous animation unfolds, a frame freezes over, signaling that Stillhouse is best enjoyed ice cold. A pour spout descends, landing in the mouth of the can, which inverts and pours a shot. The three key qualities of the product are revealed on the end frame: unique packaging, premium ingredients, 100% clear.
The Home section is where we begin to define and deliver the essence of the brand through imagery that depicts an aspirational lifestyle full of endless vitality, fun and cool. These bespoke, stylish and shareable images pair with copy to exemplify an energetic, premium, “made in the USA” feel. This design aesthetic continues throughout the site, including The Goods, where we showcase each of the flavors within distinctly themed portrait-style backgrounds.
The Enjoy section highlights Stillhouse’s versatility and the three ways it is best enjoyed: shot, on the rocks or as a punch. The variety of recipes feature bright images that pop on dark backgrounds, explicitly designed for mobile users to display to bartenders on their devices.
In order for the site to remain fresh and dynamic, we concepted the Spotlight and Buzz sections. Within these two, Stillhouse has the ability to feature all types of media content from press items, videos and images to curated Instagram, Twitter and Facebook feeds; all filterable by content type.
Finally, to serve the brand long term, we created a content management system that enables Stillhouse’s in-house team to easily update each element of the site moving forward.
With a digital destination that defies expectation, the Stillhouse whiskey launch was met with an unprecedented level of demand, nearly selling out of its inaugural production.