BY KYLE SWARTZ

OHLQ’ s winning entries covered a wide range of initiatives, from consumer education and luxury spirits merchandising to experiential programming, limited whiskey releases and agency partner engagement. The individual programs share a common idea: Start with the consumer, listen to partners, test new ideas and use

data to determine what works.

“ I think what ties all of them together is our focus on one philosophy about listening to the consumer, and working on solutions that address real problems, whether it ' s for the consumer, our agents, our permit holders or the suppliers,” says OHLQ Superintendent Jackie DeGenova.“ We want to work on innovation and collaboration that ' s going to help solve the problems in the real world.”

That approach is particularly significant within Ohio’ s public-private partnership, which relies on a statewide network of independently operated agency stores. OHLQ must coordinate statewide initiatives across a diverse group of retailers, while maintaining consistency, fairness and compliance. The agency network is also a key source of information for the organization.“ That network [ of stores ] is extremely important to us, because they are the everyday touch base with our customers,” says Lorraine Terry, VP, JobsOhio Beverage System, a nonprofit corporation that manages wholesale purchasing and distribution of spirits in Ohio, in partnership with the OHLQ.“ So we really rely on those liquor store owners to provide feedback to us, to let us know when there is something that can be done better, and when there is something that we ' re doing.”

Collaboration is therefore built into the decision-making process, rather than treated as a separate step after a program has been developed.

“ We really put it at the center of all of our decision making,” Terry says.“ You know: ' What will work for each of those partners and, and how does it work for each partner?'”

STARTING WITH THE CONSUMER Consumer research is central to how OHLQ develops its merchandising, marketing and engagement programs.

Rather than starting with a product or an internal initiative, the organization begins by identifying what consumers prefer and where they encounter challenges.

“ The goal is always to bring the consumer what they want and do that in a more efficient manner, and adding in those experiences for them,” says DeGenova.“ We start with the consumer rather than an initiative or some product. We do a lot of consumer research.”

That research is used to identify consumer friction points and determine how OHLQ can address them.

“ We really listen to what the consumer is asking or telling us, what their friction points are, and we try to redress those, from top down,” Terry says.“ And we are continuously trying to improve that, reevaluating and doing a lot of consumer research to influence that.”

OHLQ also makes data available to suppliers, brokers and agency partners through its business-to-business platform. That gives industry participants another tool for understanding consumer behavior and making decisions.

Suppliers and brokers can access information about their own products, as well as competitors’ products.

The data is updated daily, helping OHLQ and its partners make decisions based on current information.

“ We really do lean on data driven decisions with that,” says DeGenova.“ The customer outcome is at the heart of the final decision.”

EDUCATION MEETS CHANGING CONSUMERS Consumer education has become an increasingly important part of OHLQ’ s strategy as shoppers encounter more products, categories and styles.

The organization’ s Whiskey for Every Taste program illustrated this approach. Rather than relying solely on traditional whiskey classifications, OHLQ focused on helping consumers understand flavor profiles, production methods and traditions.

“ Consumers said that there ' s so many new products out there and different categories, different classifications,” DeGenova explains.“ There ' s a little bit of confusion or hesitancy, maybe, on the part of the consumer.”

The response was to use education to make the category more approachable.

“ We listened to the consumer and helped to educate them about different whiskey flavors and how it ' s made, and about the traditions, all of those things that really pique the interest of the consumer,” DeGenova says. That education strategy also reflects changing consumption patterns.“ When the data shows that consumers are drinking less, and drinking in different ways, our education seeks to meet those customers where they are,” Terry says.

The organization pointed to younger consumers, especially Generation Z, as an example. Rather than simply viewing these people through the lens of traditional drinking occasions, OHLQ is looking at how they incorporate alcohol into social experiences.

“ What we know to be true is that Gen Z is drinking; they ' re drinking in a different way,” Terry says.“ They are doing it through experiences. They want to have a moment with that cocktail and be with their friends and their family.”

That has led OHLQ to focus on helping consumers understand how products can be used. For instance, answering questions like,“‘ How can I take this bottle and turn it into a cocktail that I can share?’” DeGenova says.“‘ How can I batch a cocktail and take it with me to drink with friends and family?’”

The ultimate goal is to make consumers more comfortable exploring through categories.

“ A confident consumer is going to lean into it a bit more, be creative, explore different recipes or different things,” Terry explains.

TEST, LEARN AND SCALE OHLQ’ s willingness to test new ideas before expanding them statewide is another consistent feature of its operating philosophy.

Programs such as The Art of Tequila, which tested new educational merchandising techniques, including in-aisle and out-of-aisle displays, editorial content and cross-merchandising with complementary products. Rather than assuming which tactics would resonate most with shoppers, OHLQ measured customer engagement and purchasing behavior to determine which educational tools most effectively supported informed purchasing decisions.

“ We are very data driven. So rather than just assuming what will work, we let the data lead us,” says Terry.“ We look for those quantitative results, but also qualitative insights.”

The test-and-learn approach is not limited to consumer programs. OHLQ applies the same thinking to operational and technological changes.

“ We are deep rooted in the test and learn across all of the things that we do to run this operation,” says Terry.

GIVING LUXURY A STORY The Ohio Luxury Collection showed how OHLQ can use merchandising and education to change the way consumers discover higher-end products.

The program combined print, digital, in-store merchandising and fulfillment. Rather than simply presenting luxury products as expensive bottles, the program provided consumers with information about the products, including their history, distilleries and producers.

“ It really elevated. It ' s not just a bottle sitting on a shelf,” says DeGenova.“ We ' ve just now turned that bottle into a story, and we ' ve given it a life of its own.”

The program also demonstrated the value of physical merchandising in an increasingly digital retail environment. Consumers who were already shopping in stores could encounter products through the display marketing that they might not have sought out online.

“ What we learned was that consumers love a good story,” DeGenova says.“ They want new information put right in front of them at that point of sale.” OHLQ did not need to bring in an entirely new assortment to create the program.“ It was what we already had in inventory,” Terry says.“ We were just bringing it before the consumer.”

The combination of digital content, physical merchandising and in-store discovery helped consumers become more informed while also creating an opportunity to position luxury products as attractive gifts.

MAKING SINGLE BARREL SATURDAY WORK AT SCALE Single Barrel Saturday illustrates the operational demands of running statewide programs through a network of independently operated stores. The annual OHLQ initiative— which releases a large number of single barrel picks simultaneously throughout the state— requires coordination across hundreds of stores, thousands of bottles and significant consumer demand while maintaining a consistent experience.

“ Consistency and compliance are really our challenges there,” Terry says.“ We need to make sure that every participating agency understands the same expectations that we have.”

Execution requires more than distributing products. OHLQ must make sure products arrive, agency partners understand the process and employees are trained.“ It ' s ensuring that they have a smooth operation that day in the store,” Terry says. For Single Barrel Saturday, OHLQ offered 16 training sessions, with 323 agency stores participating.

The OHLQ field operations team provides another important connection to retailers. These are 40 to 50 employees who are in the field that are with agencies every day. Those staff help bring information back to OHLQ from the stores, providing another feedback mechanism beyond formal communications.

OHLQ also surveys agency partners after events and initiatives to find out what worked, what did not and what could be improved.

“ It ' s a constant two-way conversation between ourselves in our in our agency partners,” DeGenova says.

OHLQ’ s reliance on data extends to decisions about which programs and products should return, including the single barrels. During the Covid-era height of the store pick craze, single barrels would sell out immediately. But as the bourbon market has changed and consumers have more products to choose from, the benchmark for success has evolved.

“ Success [ for single barrels ] now looks like 90 % sell through in the first 30 days,” DeGenova says.

That information helps OHLQ determine whether consumers want to see certain releases again.

“ For us to know that Ohioans liked it, they kept buying it. They want more of it,” DeGenova says.“ We say yes again to another single barrel the next year.”

RETAIL AS AN EXPERIENCE Experiential programming has become another way OHLQ uses its agency network to engage consumers.

Events featuring whiskey writer and author Fred Minnick, along with Buffalo Trace raffles, transformed participating stores into destinations where consumers could discover products, meet industry figures and engage with spirits beyond a traditional retail transaction. The Minnick events also allowed OHLQ to curate selections around his recommendations.

“ That event was super fun. It allowed us to offer discovery, but more importantly, I personally was so proud of our team because it really showed just how nimble and capable, they are” says Terry.

The programs required coordination across OHLQ’ s massive organization.“ Central office, field operations, communications: All of our team was firing on all cylinders to make those events,” Terry says.

CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT Looking ahead, OHLQ plans to continue building on the same principles that shaped its award-winning programs.

The organization is developing a five-year plan through 2030 that will connect technology, data, education and agency partnerships rather than treating them as separate initiatives.

“ We are going to continue on our path of continuous improvement,” DeGenova says.“ That is a big phrase for us that ' s important, connecting technology, data, consumer education, partnerships, all the things that we talked about.”

The goal is to bring those pieces together to create a system that is easier to navigate while maintaining fairness and consistency.

“ We look at how all of those can be wrapped together,” DeGenova says.“ It ' s one focus, whether it ' s opening the mobile app, all of our consumer research, plus our agency partnerships, it ' s those different ways and combined together to make the control system easier to navigate, and fair and consistent.”

OHLQ also sees value in learning from other control states and sharing its own experiences.

“ For Ohio, it ' s always our hope that we are doing things that other control states look at us and say, we could do that. We can try that,” DeGenova say.“ And raising all boats that way.”

That philosophy ties together the initiatives recognized by the 2026 StateWays Best Practices Awards. Whether the focus is consumer education, luxury spirits, experiential retail, agency engagement or technology, OHLQ’ s approach is consistent: listen, test, measure and improve.

The result is an operating model that seeks to combine innovation with the core responsibilities of a control-state system.

“ We are putting responsibility at the forefront of everything we do,” DeGenova says.“ We’ re always seeking to be a role model and to learn and to teach.”