Maker's Mark Just Hopped On The NFT Bandwagon. Here's What We Know So Far
The food industry has undoubtedly embraced NFTs in more ways than one, as an increasing number of individuals and brands have joined the NFT club in a bid to appeal to their consumers. According to Eater, entrepreneur and owner of Industry Spirits, Andrew Friedman, worked with a Seattle-based photographer Brian Wells to promote bottles with custom labels that made their way into the market as NFTs, allowing customers to purchase digital art along with limited-edition bottles.
Meanwhile, celebrity chef Tom Colicchio went a step further and declared in December 2021 that he was working on his NFT business (CHFTY Pizzas) with fellow chef, Spike Mendelsohn. The company website states that it hopes to "build a community that is focused on connecting holders with their favorite chefs and foods." Additionally, per Prestige, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell were some of the first fast food companies to launch NFTs in March 2021 and were joined by other brands including McDonald's and Burger King. Alcohol brands such as Bacardi, Dictador, and Dalmore stepped up their game as well and released NFTs last year.
The latest brand to join the NFT community is Maker's Mark. According to PR Newswire, the brand will be teaming up with Louisville-based NFT company Party Horses for the project.
It's an ambitious project
According to PR Newswire, Party Horses has declared that Maker's Mark is going to be its "official bourbon partner" this year, and 1,000 "early adopters" will be able to get their hands on "limited-edition Party Horses commemorative labels." Party House co-owner Justin Delaney said that the brand simply wants to "create beauty, destabilize the disappointing, and collaborate with others to build amazing things." Well, one of its earliest collaborations is with well-known bourbon brand, and the NFT art for this collaboration has an interesting premise: "What if horses attended the Kentucky Derby to cheer on the human race?"
According to Party Horses, those who were a part of the early-access pre-mint on March 1 will be given access to a complimentary bottle of special edition Maker's Mark bourbon. Also, the company has plans to host online and offline events before the Kentucky Derby Horse Party, and all eligible NFT holders will be gifted the special edition bottle from Maker's Mark this fall.
NFT holders will be able to attend an exclusive Kentucky Derby party in Louisville on May 6 that will feature a Grammy award-wining artist. Party Horses has announced on its FAQs page that around 9,700 NFTs will be accessible to the public, and the mint will take place on March 15. As of now, it's hard to say whether Maker's Mark intends to continue experimenting with NFTs in the future — only time will tell.