Dad Knows Best As Josh Cellars Launches New Ad Campaign

Napa Valley and Sonoma vintner and winemaker Joseph Carr created Josh Cellars as a wine he thought his father, a volunteer firefighter who also served in the United States Army, would love.

Now, the brand's distributor, Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits, and The Burns Group are launching a new integrated campaign that pays homage to the larger-than-life father behind the brand name, the original “Josh.”

Media planning and buying is handled by Havas.

“Josh is a tribute brand, one embedded with a genuine story of a son’s love for his father and a vision for honoring his life,” explained Michael Burns, managing partner of Burns Group.

“Our creative idea was to marry the attributes of the man with the distinctive nuances of the wine – both having a lot of character – and both intense and approachable. The imagery and copy are wry and witty, attributes that we think captures the essence of Josh,” he adds.

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The “Long Live Josh” campaign is designed to reach the Josh target consumer of men 35-44 years old and includes print and online banner, ads as well as videos. Digital is a key tactic behind this effort, since the Josh target consumer spends four times more time online than the average consumer.

Video and banner ads will appear across sites that focus on men, travel, news, food, entertainment and health. 

The video component of the campaign opens with splashes of wine on a page, morphing into a red wine stained image of Josh as a young man. The wine spots become words that describe the man and the wine: big, bold, and unforgettable. The voiceover belongs to Joseph Carr, who ends with “I created this wine in his honor. Long live Josh.”

Lastly, print ads, appearing in publications including Men’s Health, Men’s Journal, Sports Illustrated and Rolling Stone, feature the image of the young Josh with the headline: “What do you give the man who taught you the value of hard work? A Labor of Love.”

Copy in the banner ads expand on Josh’s words of wisdom. One ad proclaims, “My Dad always said there was more to life than wine. There’s steak.” Burns Group also redesigned the Josh Cellars Web site to use the same wine drop images.

This campaign represents the first major consumer push for the wine brand. Previously, the Josh brand has been supported with trade advertising. Then, Deutsch began distributing the brand in 2011 and has increasingly grown distribution. In its first year in 2005, for instance, Josh sold 2,500 cases. Now, it will finish 2014 at approximately 600,000 cases, up 80% from just one year ago. Hence, to support this expansion, they are investing in consumer advertising now to grow the brand even further. 

A key challenge is to create a distinct position for the brand in a crowded category and distinguish it from its competition. “We take a special pride in recognizing that the power of a brand emanates from its brand truth,” said Renato Reyes, Chief Marketing Officer for Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits.

“We believe this campaign is a true reflection of what consumers have already decided is a powerful and motivating story. We are simply doing our best to ensure that we get this positive message to as many wine lovers as possible. This heavy investment in digital media, will add even greater momentum to the Josh brand in the marketplace,” he noted.

New York-based Burns Group is a 7-year-old independent marketing agency. Clients include Deutsch's other brand Yellow Tail Wine, as well as Post Cereals, Pfizer, Gorton’s, Columbia Business School, Amplify, Disaronno and Taittinger.

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