HOW MALÖRT IS CRUSHING BRAND IDENTITY
If Malort Can Do It, So Can You
Around Chicago, there is a liquor known as Malört. Its taste can be best described as “pungent”. Quite frankly, it’s terrible, but many Chicagoans (like this author) swear by it as a shot of choice. It’s a staple in “The Chicago Handshake”, along with a can of Old Style. Malört’s presence percolates around the city wherever you look.
So how did a Swedish liquor endear itself to an entire community, and establish a foothold in one of the major markets in the USA? Through smart brand strategy, and a bit of luck.
Malört’s Abbreviated History
Skpping past it’s prohibition era origins, Malört’s existence and success in Chicago can be traced directly back to merch and community. In 2011 Sam Mechling, a local bartender and marketer, started selling and promoting Malört as a bit of a joke.
At the time it had a loose connection to the city in the prohibition era, starting as a medicinal alcohol aged in wormwood to get around prohibition laws. Bartenders, including Sam, took what is a questionably tasting drink and turned it into an inside joke within Chicago. That started as the backbone to the brand’s success.
How Smart Brand Strategy Secured Malört’s Place in Chicago Lore
Taking a shot and making “The Malört Face” became the first step. Social media brought it into greater prominence and popularity, though it was Sam’s fandom and brand savviness that started the resurgence of the company. Buying a round for friends only to get them with shots of Malört slowly became a Chicago cultural rite of passage. Through unlicensed t-shirt sales, Malört started making a further impact on the community, establishing a strong foothold in the city. Rather than a lawsuit, the owners recognized the value that was being created and brought Sam into the fold.
Today, you’ll see Malört merch everywhere. You’ll see it in collaborations with local sports teams and festivals. Their merchandise and brand identity leans into the joke with phrases like, “Malört: Tastes Like Liquified Existential Dread”, or my personal favorite “Malört: These Pants Won’t Shit Themselves.” The bottom of their website contains the tagline “Weeding Out The Weak Since 1933”.
If you visit their merch website you will see a broad variety of apparel and promotional items that reinforce this message. Imagery on these items are often tied to the city of Chicago, using a lot of color schemes and local aesthetics. They lean into the joke, knowing the drink is a bit bitter to the American palate but worth the experiential bonding.
Lessons in Brand Identity and Smart Merchandise
The brand doesn’t compete in taste, quality or price. It’s purely experiential. The apparel and messaging that come from Malört are what keeps it popular.
Brands like Malört that recognize the public discourse about their products/popularity can respond in kind. Malört adapted to their newfound popularity and released messaging and merchandise to turn that burst into brand longevity.
When companies understand where they fit within their local communities, they have the opportunity to endear themselves to those communities. When companies create messaging and merchandise to further engage with those communities, they entrench themselves in the culture. That’s how you take merchandise and brand strategy and use it to wisely secure longevity in a volatile business world.
As costs rise, and technology disrupts the world around us, brands that prioritize maintaining their culture and community will be the ones to thrive. How does your brand fit into your own community? How can you cultivate your brand identity and use smart merchandising strategies to build something similar?
There are many ways to lead in the business world. We often remember the 4 p’s; price, product, place and promotion. Don’t forget that promotion can be the difference between success and irrelevance. It would have been easy for Malört to fade away into Chicago’s spirited history. Instead, it became one of the most recognizable brands in the city.
Having the right design partner can make all the difference. We handle apparel and design for some of the world’s most creative artists. Interested in leveling up your design to be the rock star at your next trade show? Contact us today.
NOTE: We are not affiliated with Malört, we just like what they do.