Wining for a Rebrand
A small business owner found himself struggling after opening a winery with no brand and no marketing plan. See what I created to overcome the struggles of operating a small business in rural Southern Illinois.
Skills: Graphic Design, Branding, Social Media Management, Event Planning
A small business owner in my hometown decided to expand his business by opening a winery in 2025. Located in the poorest county in Illinois, outside of a town of 300 people, on a road with little traffic. He knew marketing was the make-or-break for his business.
When I took him on as a client, his marketing was a combination of nonexistent and inconsistent. Two different names were being used to advetise the current restaurant. There was no name for his entire property, which includes a restaurant, campground, short-term vacation rentals, an event venue, and now a winery. The only advertising was inconsistent Facebook posts; a sign was placed by the road, and they built a website, but told no one about it.
My first order of business was creating one all-encompassing brand for the entire property and all the businesses he ran on it. I named it “Grand Chain Vineyards” and positioned it as an upscale, resort-style property that people from cities an hour or two away could travel to and enjoy a relaxing weekend on the poperty.
Next, I branded all the businesses he ran on the property to align with the “Grand Chain Vineyards” brand. I got rid of all previous brands and names of the restaurant and began referring to it by its official business name, “Due South,” then added BBQ & Grill as a subtitle so newcomers would know what to expect.
The Campground had 80+ foot-long pull-through, full-hookup sites meant for million-dollar big rigs. I rebranded it “The RV Resort at Grand Chain Vineyards,” signaling that we had amenities and accommodations for a more wealthy clientele.
Although I wanted to rename the winery to “The Tasting Room at Grand Chain Vineyards,” the business and liquor licenses were obtained under the “Grand Chain Winery” brand, so we moved forward with the original name.
Once branding was set in stone, I created digital and physical assets that were consistent with it. I redesigned the website, social media pages, menus, and in-store advertisements.
Next, I worked with the owners to start innovating their marketing plan. I added important information to their website, like menus, event venue FAQs, operating hours, and email list sign-ups. I made their RV Resort available to book online using Hipcamp and integrated that service into their website and social media pages. Then we started planning events at the property to attract customers who wouldn’t normally visit a winery. We hosted trivia nights, Fourth of July fireworks, and theme nights. Revenue was generated through online ticket sales, and each event more than doubled sales for the day.
The owner chose not to make the vacation rentals available for online booking or list them on platforms like Airbnb or VRBO. His staff was so busy with the business we had generated, they could barely keep up with cleaning the vacation rentals between reservations without online booking.
Once this overhaul was complete, I delivered a large portfolio of digital assets, thriving social media accounts, a polished website, and an online booking platform for the RV resort, and blueprints for planning profitable events. We achieved the goal of creating a marketing program that the business could sustain on its own.
