In 2025, two iconic Ohio-based brands, Graeter’s Ice Cream, America’s oldest family-owned and operated craft ice cream maker, and Skyline Chili, the 75-year-old Cincinnati-style chili restaurant famous for its Cheese Coneys and Ways, were unveiling their much-anticipated collaboration: Graeter’s Skyline Spice Ice Cream. The limited-edition ice cream features crunchy oyster crackers and Skyline’s secret spice combined with the decadent French pot ice cream that has made Graeter’s iconic for more than 155 years. While this was a perplexing pairing, Skyline Spice Ice Cream became a sensation that swept the nation and the product quickly sold out.
The goal of the campaign was to generate national awareness beyond Graeter’s regional footprint and position the collaboration as a cultural moment rather than a novelty flavor.
A compelling narrative + engaging media strategy built around a “blink and you’ll miss it” release, OHC helped Graeter’s create urgency from day one. OHC harnessed the internet’s collective curiosity and tapped into UGC + FOMO and real time newsjacking to keep the story at the center of the cultural conversation.
The campaign generated more than 330 national media placements and over 11 billion impressions leading to a complete sell out of the product in nine days. Social media engagement increased 257%, impressions rose 378% compared to typical Graeter’s activity, and the brand gained more than 1,000 new followers on each social platform. Highlights of coverage include articles from Barstool Sports, People, and Eater, and was mentioned and reviewed on the New Heights podcast with Travis and Jason Kelce and Access Daily with Mario Lopez and Kit Hoover.
The campaign was recognized with several awards, including ECCO Network’s International Campaign of the Year Award and the Ragan/PR Daily’s Award of Distinction for Business to Consumer Campaign. Other awards include the Publicity Club of Chicago’s Golden Trumpet award for Media Relations – Business to Consumer and the Marketing – Food & Beverage categories and was a finalist for the Platinum Award.