Of all the sponsors of Olympus Fashion Week, no one gets quite the same bang for the buck as the alcohol brands. Marketing teams salivate over the prospect of handing out their product to the corralled hordes of trendsetting editors, socialites, and buyers. This year, two brands with something to prove came on board: Damrak gin and Gran Centenario tequila.

The Amsterdam-made Damrak brand hoped to convert a few vodka fans into gin drinkers. Damrak is lower in juniper than most gins and has overtones of orange, which makes it closer to a vodka than a traditional gin.

“It’s not your typical gin. Trail is key for us,” said brand manager Anne O’Brien. “When people think of gin, they think of their father’s gin.”

Even though it appeals to modern tastes, the Damrak recipe was developed in the 1700s and was brought back for the purpose of appealing to the American market. The distribution efforts have focused on San Francisco for the last two years, but now the brand managers are hitting New York and four additional markets (Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Miami, and Chicago). Olympus Fashion Week – which the brand co-sponsored with Sunkist – was a major part of the strategy.

Sunkist’s involvement was a new move for the citrus brand, but it melds well with the gin’s hint of orange flavor. “Our strongest market is moms with kids,” said Sunkist marketing vice-president Kellie DuBois. “We also want to be where the trendsetters are and to accentuate the marriage of alcohol and fresh-squeezed juice.”

For the minds behind Gran Centenario tequila, the hope in sponsoring New York Fashion Week was that consumers would come to associate the agave-based booze with more than just margaritas or shots. “Part of our job in marketing is educational,” said public relations director Bevin Gove. “Many of the cocktails we’re serving the tents use tequila as you would a vodka.”

Gran Centenario is an ultra-premium brand (which is the highest industry category) with three gradations: plata, reposado, and silver. Though the brand has been in America for two to three years, it has not been promoted extensively until now. This year, the brand managers have rolled out a marketing plan that hits for three markets in addition to New York: California (including LA’s fashion week), Texas (Dallas and Houston, specifically), and Miami.

Even with all the competition for vodka drinkers, the vodka brands are sitting pretty, especially Vox, which was also a sponsor of Olympus Fashion Week. “We really target the avant-garde consumer,” said senior brand manager Nicole Ertas.

The vodka – made from 100% wheat and distilled five times for an extra-smooth texture – was launched nationally in 2000 and sponsored ancillary Fashion Week events last year. This year, it signed on as a full sponsor and doled out free drinks at the tents along with Damrak and Gran Centenario.

The question, of course, is: Does it all work? While the effect of the pitch will show up in marketing reports, one thing’s for certain: “We’re going through a lot of cases,” said Damrak’s Ms. O’Brien.