When it comes to hospitality PR, Sprouthouse believes that a comprehensive opening press strategy is the key to long-term success. A great example comes from Music City with Graduate Nashville Hotel and its rooftop bar and restaurant , White Limozeen. Despite opening during a pandemic, the hotel’s food & beverage concepts garnered national attention and support from both locals and visitors alike.
Goals
- Generate awareness around the re-opening of Graduate Nashville after COVID-19 shutdowns and establish the hotel as a safe, must-visit destination.
- Effectively launch White Limozeen, Graduate Nashville’s rooftop bar and restaurant through media and influencer outreach, hosting, programming, and more.
- Garner top-tier local, regional, and national press coverage tied to the hotel’s re-opening and White Limozeen’s grand opening, while also continuing the momentum post-opening and beyond.
Action Plan
- Announced the re-opening of Graduate Nashville to local, regional, and national media (following COVID-19-related closures), while effectively communicating all safety procedures and precautions.
- Invited select, top-tier drive market media to experience the property first-hand—remaining sensitive to varying comfort levels with travel—to generate noteworthy regional and national coverage.
- Announced and pitched the opening of White Limozeen bar and restaurant to local, regional, and national media, highlighting the strong culinary and bar programs, interior design, and key team members.
- Continued the momentum post-opening with creative storytelling and pitch angles, including seasonal menu spotlights, fall/spring drive market destinations, holiday programming, recipe shares, team member profiles, the hotel’s “9 to 5” Dolly Parton-inspired Presidential Suite, and more.
- With every day bringing a new set of COVID-related challenges and unknowns, we remained flexible and responsive to shifting trends and what media and guests were looking for. In doing so, we ideated timely promotions, media experiences tailored to each individual’s comfort level, appropriate pitch angles, and more.
Results
- Secured reopening press for the hotel + opening press for White Limozeen in Business Insider, Eater, Food & Wine, Forbes, Good Morning America, Nashville Business Journal, Nashville Lifestyles, Nashville Scene, New York Magazine, People, PopSugar, Southern Living, The Local Palate, The Washington Post, Travel & Leisure, and more. In total, White Limozeen opening month press generated over 6 billion impressions.
- Continued the momentum with meaningful post-opening press pieces, including features in AFAR, Eater, Garden & Gun, Louisville Courier–Journal, Nashville Guru, Restaurant Hospitality, Style Blueprint, The Tennessean, Veranda, and more.
- Secured key media overnight + dine-in reservations at the hotel and restaurant during the critical first few months post-opening, including writers from Epicurious, Garden & Gun, Liquor.com, Nashville Lifestyles, National Geographic, Town & Country, VOGUE, The Tennessean, and more.
Since the hotel re-opening and restaurant opening in June 2020, the Graduate Nashville team also opened Poindexter, an all-day café + coffee shop, and animatronic karaoke bar Cross-Eyed Critters Watering Hole. Staying agile with multiple concepts, managing the flow of news for openings and beyond, and crafting tailor-made strategies helped set our team (and theirs) up for success.
Interested in learning more about our hospitality PR services? We’d love to be a part of your story. Drop us a line at grow@sprouthouseagency.com.
