Senior Brand Manager

About Still Austin Whiskey Co Still Austin is the first true grain-to-glass whiskey distillery to open in Austin since the end of Prohibition. Founded in 2015, we craft award-winning spirits using grains sourced from Texas farmers and a relentless commitment to quality, creativity, and community.

Today, we're one of the fastest-growing craft whiskey brands in the United States, expanding our national footprint while staying true to the values that got us here: honoring the craft, never cutting corners, and building authentic relationships with our customers, distributors, and partners.

Still Austin Quarter (SAQ) is our six-acre South Austin campus and hospitality destination, bringing together our distillery, production operations, exceptional food and cocktails, live events, and immersive whiskey experiences. It's a major expression of where Still Austin is headed: ambitious growth without losing what makes us distinctly Austin.

There has never been a more exciting time to join Still Austin. As we continue to grow, we're looking for people who are passionate about building something uniquely Austin, uniquely authentic, and built to last.

POSITION SUMMARY

The Senior Brand Manager is a key member of the Still Austin Marketing team responsible for developing and executing brand-building programs that drive awareness, trial, distribution, and growth across retail, national accounts, and the broader Still Austin portfolio.

This role will lead retail and national accounts marketing while providing strategic and executional support for emerging brands, innovation, and limited releases across the portfolio. The Senior Brand Manager will translate brand strategy and commercial priorities into compelling programs, tools, and activations that resonate with consumers and support our sales organization and distributor partners.

This is a senior individual contributor role designed for a marketer who is equally comfortable setting strategy and rolling up their sleeves to execute it. The Senior Brand Manager will serve as a primary brand owner, working independently and cross-functionally across a lean, entrepreneurial organization rather than managing a dedicated team.

This role is based in Austin, Texas and requires regular on-site presence at Still Austin's distillery and office, as well as periodic travel to support key customers, distributors, events, and market activity.

SUCCESS PROFILE

To be successful in this role, the Senior Brand Manager will:

Strategic + Hands-On Thinking: See the bigger picture while being willing and able to personally drive execution from concept through completion.

Ownership

Operate with a high degree of independence, accountability, and follow-through in a senior individual contributor environment.

Commercial Mindset

Understand how strong brand strategy connects to sales execution, customer needs, distribution, velocity, and growth.

Brand Stewardship

Protect and strengthen the Still Austin brand while identifying creative ways to bring it to life across customers, channels, and markets.

Cross-Functional Influence

Build productive relationships and earn credibility across Marketing, Sales, Finance, Operations, Hospitality, agencies, and distributor partners.

Resourcefulness

Thrive in a lean, growing organization where priorities evolve and not every challenge comes with an established playbook.

Executional Excellence

Bring strong organization, attention to detail, urgency, and project management discipline to complex initiatives.

Consumer & Category Curiosity

Maintain a strong pulse on consumers, culture, whiskey, retail, competitive activity, and emerging trends.

Clear Communication

Distill complex ideas into compelling plans, presentations, creative briefs, and recommendations.

Entrepreneurial Spirit

Enjoy building, testing, learning, and improving rather than relying solely on established systems or large-team infrastructure.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

This section expands on what the role is accountable for and how it contributes to team and business objectives.

Retail Marketing

• Own the retail marketing strategy and annual activation calendar across on- and off-premise channels in existing and emerging markets.
• Develop compelling retail programs, point-of-sale materials, displays, merchandising tools, and shelf presence initiatives that strengthen brand visibility and support sell-through.
• Plan and execute seasonal, promotional, innovation, and occasion-based retail programs in partnership with Sales, distributors, retailers, and agency partners.
• Translate brand strategy into market-ready tools that equip sales teams and distributor partners to successfully sell and activate Still Austin brands.
• Partner with Sales to identify opportunities within priority accounts and markets and develop programming that supports volume, distribution, and share goals.
• Evaluate program performance and use results, marketplace insights, and sales feedback to continually improve future activations.

National Accounts Marketing

• Lead marketing strategy and execution for national and key accounts across on- and off-premise channels.
• Build account-specific programs, promotional plans, menu initiatives, retail activations, and customer presentations in partnership with the National Accounts team.
• Develop customized selling stories and marketing materials that connect Still Austin brand strategy to customer priorities and consumer opportunities.
• Manage co-op marketing investments and account-specific programming, ensuring initiatives are executed effectively, on time, and within budget.
• Track and assess program effectiveness, return on investment, and account-level performance to inform future investment decisions.
• Identify scalable national account programs and best practices that can be leveraged across customers and markets.

Brand & Portfolio Management

• Serve as a strategic and executional brand lead for assigned brands, initiatives, and innovation within the Still Austin portfolio.
• Develop annual and project-based marketing plans that connect brand positioning, consumer insights, commercial objectives, and activation priorities.
• Support go-to-market planning and execution for new products, limited releases, seasonal initiatives, and portfolio expansion.
• Provide creative direction and brand stewardship across marketing materials, ensuring consistency in messaging, voice, visual identity, and consumer experience.
• Maintain a strong understanding of the competitive landscape, whiskey category, consumer trends, and emerging opportunities that could influence brand strategy.
• Bring forward recommendations for strengthening brand relevance, differentiation, and commercial performance.

Cross-Functional & Agency Partnership

• Partner closely with Sales, Creative, Operations, Hospitality, Finance, and other internal stakeholders to ensure marketing priorities align with broader business and commercial objectives.
• Serve as a key connector between Marketing and Sales, translating brand strategy into tools and programs that can be effectively executed in market.
• Lead projects with external agencies, vendors, freelancers, and production partners as needed, setting clear expectations for scope, quality, timelines, and deliverables.
• Manage multiple concurrent projects, priorities, brands, and stakeholders while maintaining strong attention to detail and follow-through.
• Communicate plans, program results, insights, and recommendations clearly to the VP of Marketing and other senior leaders.

Budget & Performance Management

• Manage assigned marketing budgets and program investments, ensuring spending aligns with approved plans and business priorities.
• Track expenditures, commitments, and program performance in partnership with Marketing and Finance.
• Measure program effectiveness using available sales, distribution, activation, and customer data.
• Recommend adjustments to programs and investments based on performance, commercial priorities, and emerging opportunities.

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE

Required

• 5-7+ years of progressive brand, retail, shopper, or trade marketing experience within the spirits industry.
• Deep understanding of the spirits category, including how brands are built and activated across on- and off-premise channels.
• Demonstrated experience developing and executing marketing programs with retail, distributor, and/or national account partners.
• Working knowledge of the three-tier distribution system and experience partnering with distributors to execute in-market programs.
• Proven ability to independently own projects and programs from strategy through execution.
• Strong understanding of brand-building fundamentals and the ability to translate brand strategy into consumer- and customer-facing activation.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities, deadlines, partners, and workstreams simultaneously.
• Excellent written, verbal, and presentation skills, including the ability to communicate effectively with Sales teams and senior leadership.
• Experience managing marketing budgets, vendor relationships, and external partners.
• Comfort analyzing program results and using performance data to make recommendations and improve future programs.
• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Business, Communications, or a related field, or equivalent professional experience.
• Must be based in or willing to relocate to Austin, Texas.

Preferred

• Direct experience marketing American whiskey, bourbon, rye, or other brown spirits.
• Experience supporting multiple brands, innovation pipelines, or emerging brands within a portfolio.
• Experience with both on- and off-premise customer marketing.
• Familiarity with national retail and national on-premise account programming.
• Passion for whiskey, craft spirits, and the culture surrounding the category.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

This role requires the ability to:

• Sit, stand, and work at a computer for extended periods throughout the workday.
• Occasionally lift, carry, move, and transport marketing materials, product samples, promotional items, and displays weighing up to 35 pounds.
• Travel by automobile and commercial airline to support sales meetings, distributor meetings, customer visits, trade shows, market work, and company events.
• Move throughout office, warehouse, retail, hospitality, production, and event environments as needed.
• Occasionally work evenings and weekends to support customer events, trade shows, product launches, activations, and company initiatives.
• Use standard office and presentation equipment, including computers, phones, printers, and audiovisual technology.