Ending the year on a high, our immersive retail activation with Whyte & Mackay and Cunard has been awarded ‘Best New Campaign’ at the prestigious DFNI Product Awards 2019.

Illustrative of our expertise in always matching the right retail brands with the right cruise line partners, the activation took place in April 2019 and was a world-first for the cruise industry.

Whyte & Mackay Highland Single Malt Whisky brand, The Dalmore, in a Trinity Partnership initiated by Harding, offered a unique and immersive guest-led service, also launching rare whiskies on board the world’s only ocean liner – Queen Mary 2.

Taking place during the Cunard Transatlantic Crossing from Southampton to New York, guests were treated to exclusive whisky experiences, including guided tastings of treasures from The Dalmore Principal Collection led by world-famous Master Distiller, Richard Paterson – the creative force behind The Dalmore for nearly five decades.

The incredible experience included an exclusive tasting of two new vintage single malt whisky expressions from The Dalmore Constellation Collection, the 50-year-old ‘Valour’ and 53-year-old ‘Dominion’. Both whiskies were available to purchase on board the ship through Harding.

Guests purchasing bottles of The Dalmore during the voyage were also gifted a limited-edition miniature decanter, engraved with dates commemorating The Dalmore launch to treasure once home.

The immersive 360-degree experience combined the bar, restaurant and retail space for the first time, joined together holistically by The Dalmore Master Distiller, Richard Paterson.

The exciting news comes in the same year that saw Harding bag the prestigious DFNI-Frontier EMEA Award for Cruise Retailer of the Year, further cementing our reputation as the global cruise retail leader, based on solid commercial performance and incredible partnerships.