Illinois Crafted Hospitality Group
Branding + Marketing + Social Media
Overview
The Illinois Crafted Hospitality Group, based in Northern Illinois, is a vibrant collective specializing in local artisanal restaurant concepts. This diverse group, now encompassing over 10 unique brands, includes standout entities such as Obscurity Brewing & Craft Mead, Soul Loco Coffee Roasters, Pizza Beer Whiskey, Lodi Tap House, Corner Grind Cafe, and Bluegill Boathouse, among others. I began my journey as a Summer Marketing Intern and evolved into the role of Creative Marketing Manager. In this capacity, I skillfully managed and developed digital marketing and creative assets for each brand within the hospitality group's extensive portfolio, plus creating and maintaining their website. My role involved a blend of creative strategy, asset creation, and digital expertise. This page highlights a selection of my contributions across various subsidiary companies.
ILLINOIS HOSPITALITY GROUP PORTFOLIO
Lodi Tap House
Lodi Tap House is the original restaurant in the Illinois Crafted portfolio. Now with two locations one in Maple Park, IL, and one in North Utica, IL. It was Chicago's Best Burger in 2018 by WGN Chicago. My role included social media content creation, photography, website creation and maintenance, online menu updates, print advertisement, and in-house merchandising.
During my first year overseeing Lodi Tap House's social media, I increased our online presence, achieving over a 1,000% increase in reach on Instagram and a 1,500% increase on Facebook. This was driven by a strategic blend of organic content and select paid advertisements. Additionally, I successfully elevated our page visits on both platforms by over 500%, significantly enhancing our digital footprint and engagement with our audience.
Soul Loco Coffee
Soul Loco Coffee is a small premium coffee shop specializing in canned Nitro Cold Brew coffee which can be found in 7-Eleven's across Illinois. My role focused on social media management, content creation, website maintenance, in-store merchandising, and promotional graphics.
During my first year managing Soul Loco's social media, I helped organically increase Instagram reach by 4,700% and Facebook by 54%. I also helped increase page visits by 318% on Facebook and 562% on Instagram.
Art & Alma's Supper Club
Art & Alma's Supper Club was recently acquired by Illinois Crafted in December 2023. I updated their logo to merge its classic charm with an Illinois Crafted touch and swiftly established a fresh website. Additionally, I curated engaging social media announcements for the reopening and conducted professional photography, enriching their digital presence, menus, and social media visuals.
Illinois Crafted Hot Sauce Label
