Issue #12: Down and Dirty With A PR Guy
It's all about passion for William & Helde when curating their clients
One of the absolute pleasures of being a journalist is that I get to interact with many different people.
Often those interactions — be it a brewer, distiller, chef, musician, what have you — are set up by public relations professionals.
This week, I got an announcement from PR firm William & Helde Inc. that they recently signed a new client, Tilray Group, which includes legendary brewery brands Red Hook, Widmer Brothers and 10 Barrel Brewing. As I looked at their portfolio of clients, I noticed a really cool theme running throughout it.
Along with the breweries, WH represents various lifestyle brands, including Helly Hansen, Danner Boots and Big Green Egg.
Rather than talk to the brands, I wanted to understand how this well-curated client list was crafted. So I set something up with WH General Manager Martin Masionpierre, who I interviewed in this week’s issue.
Building a passionate client list
One of the benefits of writing so often about food and beverage is regularly working with PR representatives who are passionate about what they pitch. And why shouldn’t they be? They get to work with tasty beverages, food and cool people.
The portfolio of clients at William & Helde Inc. stood out to me in an even more substantial way than others. And that’s on purpose, according to Martin.
“This is one of those guiding pieces over the years, you have to make those decisions to be intentional about what you want to do,” Masionpierre said. “You can quickly find yourself with banks, casinos and other companies that have money. That’s great, everyone needs it. But there is a distinction for us that as PR people, we need to be brand evangelists and having worked at some big agencies, you know when the passion isn’t there.”
That helps explain why the client list at WH includes awesome brands like Helly Hansen, Big Green Egg, Philips Sonicare, Danner Boots and recently added Tilray Group breweries Widmer Brothers, Red Hook and 10 Barrel Brewing. (Tilray is a publicly-traded company that works in the pharma and cannabis space, but has recently invested heavily in the beer space and is now the fifth-largest craft brewing company in the US. Other breweries in its portfolio include Green Flash, SweetWater, Shock Top, Breckenridge, Blue Point and Alpine.)
Masionpierre said the recent addition of those breweries helps showcase the critical mass of a certain clientele that helps attract similar, like-minded brands.
“If we’re the front lines, they need to be brands we believe in and stand behind,” he said. “If they make beer, it needs to be good beer. If they make hiking boots, they should be quality. If they’re making things to keep me safe in the mountains, I need to trust in them.”
The addition of Tilray to the WH client list started years ago when Masionpierre was part of a pitch to get 10 Barrel Brewing — then a brewery in the AB InBev portfolio. He didn’t win the pitch, but the brand stayed in Maisonpierre’s head.
Then WH ended up working on a collaboration project between 10 Barrel and Danner Boots on brewer-specific boots. At that point, with a successful campaign, the ethos of the brewery and agency were aligned, Maisnopierre said.
“Their core message is ‘Drink beer outside,’ and we really like that message, and at that point, they said ‘We like what you’re doing, we think you do a good job,’” he said. “That was under the InBev regime and when they moved over to Tilray, with that we picked up Widmer and Red Hook, both Pacific Northwest brands in our backyard.”
Talking to Maisonpierre, you can tell he genuinely likes the brands he works with and fully understands the industries they are part of. I’ve always had a soft spot for pioneer beer brands like Widmer and Red Hook; without a doubt, they helped establish the craft beer industry.
But through the ebbs and flows of the industry, at times they’ve been left behind and forgotten.
That poses a challenge to WH, but one that Maisonpierre is up for.
“It’s going to be a really interesting challenge,” he said. “We’ve seen what Red Hook and Widmer once were and they still make amazing product. I don’t wanna say they’ve been victims, but they’ve been through several ownership and strategy changes over the years, but now with Tilray at the helm, they’re really invested in the space and beer is something they’re really serious about.”
Maisonpierre remembers the two brands as those the cool parents would have in their fridge. Now, he’s ready to help the foundational craft beer brands resurface and bring them back to modern drinkers’ fridges.
And that brings him back to the clients, all of whom he said he’s more than comfortable sitting in the backyard, drinking beers as friends.
What Martin is drinking
Georgetown Brewing’s Bodhizafa IPA, “always a super solid for me.”
Otherwise, he’s often drinking something light as he has two small children running around the house.
Literary Libations
Hi! Alyssa here with your weekly book and drink pairing
I am about ¾ of the way through The Ministry of Time, a debut novel from Kaliane Bradley, and I can’t exactly explain what I’m reading because I don’t totally know. There is (non-consensual) time travel, government spies, forbidden love, social commentary, workplace humor… it’s all over the place.
Is it good? Umm… sorta?
Am I enjoying it? Yes…?
Isn’t that all that matters? No…?
I’m happy I’m reading this as part of one of my book clubs because I have so many thoughts. I shared a snippet of the cover on my Instagram story while sitting on the lake today, and a few of you reached out to say you are also reading the book and have similar mixed feelings.
Today’s cocktail pairing with this book is Sex On The Beach — a drink the time travelers in the book had hilarious reactions to. If you drink this, I take no responsibility for your inevitable hangover.
Maggie’s Sex On The Beach
1.5 oz vodka
½ oz peach liqueur
1.5 oz cranberry juice
1.5 oz orange juice
Combine all ingredients in a tall glass with ice. Stir gently to combine. Sit back and enjoy!
Good reads from the week
The Olympics are off and running, and the New York Times went ahead and gave a nice little guide to French wines.
A few weeks ago, my mom asked me to help clean out the liquor cabinet, which included bottles that were definitely purchased last century. If you’re in a similar boat, or think you might have some bad spirits on your hand, VinePair can help you out.
Wall Street Journal columnist Lettie Teague gave her list of wines she’s gone back to this year. And they’re nice and affordable for the most part.