Is Mother’s Day a missed opportunity for whisky?
Despite being one of the year’s biggest gifting opportunities, Mother’s Day is still under-served by whisky brands and retailers. Johanna Derry Hall asks brands, marketeers, buyers and journalists why mums miss out.
“I remember a few years ago being on Moonpig.com to find a Mother’s Day card for my mum,” says Poppy McKenzie Smith, communications manager at single malt distillery Lindores Abbey, which was co-founded by her mother. “[I was] filtering by ‘whisky’ and nothing came up, but there were hundreds for gin.”
When it comes to alcohol, gender stereotypes abound: where women are often associated with loving gin, vodka and sweet, spiced rum, whisky is often reserved for men, a contrast never clearer than in the run-up to Mother’s Day.
A quick scroll through the gift guides of the major supermarkets and most of the main broadsheet newspapers in 2025 is enough to demonstrate that the gifting emphasis for mums is still very firmly on gin and fizz. This despite women accounting for more than 35% of whisky drinkers in the UK and the US (according to a 2020 report by Distill Ventures). Why? There’s no doubt the power of suggestion plays a role and the stereotypes are strong.
“While whisky appreciation among women is growing globally, Mother’s Day activations remain limited across most brands, likely due to traditional gifting preferences,” says Claire Mercer, digital brand manager for Glenturret Distillery.
Dawn Davies, buying director for Speciality Drinks agrees: “My feeling is that the people who are buying the gifts are not necessarily women and so they revert to stereotypes, buying the gifts that are suggested to them time and time again.”
SPOON-FEEDING the stereotype
Although more women are choosing to enjoy whisky, brands are still largely resistant to even promoting their products as possible gifting options on their social media. The OurWhisky Foundation’s Women & Whisky: Female Representation in Social Media Marketing report showed just 29 of the world’s largest 150 whisky brands posted about Mother’s Day in 2020 – an increase of 263% on 2016 when just eight brands marked the occasion.
As the annual The Modern Face of Whisky image library by the OurWhisky Foundation demonstrates, representation is important. If consumers can’t see themselves – or their mothers – with a dram in hand, perhaps they’ll be less inclined to seek one out and enjoy it.
“A lot of media publications are resistant to blurring the lines between traditionally male or female products and calendar moments,” says one PR who wished to remain anonymous. “But if the media don’t write about whisky for Mother’s Day then what’s the incentive for brands to push it?”
Change the narrative: Image libraries like The Modern Face of Whisky can make it easier for brands to represent women and mums enjoying whisky. (credit: OurWhisky Foundation/Christina Kernohan)
But The Scotsman’s food and drink editor Rosalind Erskine, refuses to have the blame laid at journalists’ doors. “I’m definitely open to doing a gift guide on whisky for Mother's Day and I plan to,” she says. “Over years, whisky’s not been seen as a women's drink, so it’s not been marketed as such. Things are changing now, but if I were to show you how many of my [PR] emails suggest whisky for Mother's Day, it's negligible. It means that when I compile a guide I’ll just include my own choices.”
One of the obstacles to brands promoting whisky as a Mother’s Day gift, believes Davies, is the return on investment. “The size of the prize is so small,” she says. “For a brand there has to either be something to really drive it or they need to do it for a conversation piece.”
However, something as simple as a social media post or issuing a press release to journalists writing gift guide roundups are easy, cost-free ways to continue pushing the message that yes, women – including mums – enjoy receiving whisky too.
Taking a chance
“Every year, we see more people buying whisky as a gift for their mums,” says McKenzie Smith. “In honesty, it isn’t up there with Father’s Day yet, but we think persistence is key. The more people see brands considering women in their communications, the more likely they are to apply the messages to their own gifting. We get loads of positive feedback from customers who love the idea of treating their mum to a proper dram.”
Mercer agrees: “Mother's Day presents a unique opportunity for us to connect with consumers seeking distinctive and luxurious gifts for the occasion. We acknowledge and welcome the increasing number of women embracing whisky. Our marketing strategies are evolving to reflect this demographic shift, ensuring inclusivity and resonance with all whisky enthusiasts.”
And demand is already growing. Glencairn Crystal, makers of the iconic whisky glass, report that their most popular gift for Mother’s Day is now a set of two mouth-blown and hand-cut Glencairn Glasses for whisky. “Our Glencairn Glass has been the official glass for whisky within the whisky industry for many years now and we sell millions of these glasses each year across the world,” says Kirsty Nicholson, Glencairn Crystal’s design and marketing manager at Glencairn Crystal. “It’s been exciting to see sales across our whisky glassware exceed our gin and wine ranges for the first time in terms of Mother’s Day gifting.”
More than the liquid: Glencairn’s Mama glasses are popular Mother’s Day gifts.
This also highlights the fact that there’s more to whisky than simply the liquid. It’s an experience – one that could be shared with your mum. For Claire Vaughan, co-founder of the White Peak Distillery in Derbyshire, experiences are a way of introducing people to the brand. “Our Mother’s Day campaign is focusing on creating memories and shared experiences with that special person.”
Sharing is caring
They’re not alone in taking this approach. Glenturret, for example, has distillery tours and dining options, alongside whiskies and gift sets, as part of their Mother’s Day gift guide. Similarly, Johnnie Walker Princes Street in Edinburgh is also promoting a tour, welcome drink and two course meal for Mother’s Day.
“Mother’s Day is as good an opportunity as any to showcase the depth and breadth of Scotch whisky,” explains Anastasia Neagu, experience manager at Johnnie Walker Princes Street. “We designed our Mother’s Day experience to be a shared one and it’s perfect for those looking for something beyond traditional gifts.”
“We all know that whisky is a lot more than spirit in a glass,” says Georgie Bell, co-founder of The Heart Cut. “It's a connection point.” And, according to both Diageo’s 2025 report Distilled Foresight and Bacardi’s 2025 cocktail trends report prepared by The Future Laboratory, connection is key. The former calls the trend ‘Collective Belonging’ saying, “finding ‘your people’ has never been more important,” while the latter states that as drinks brands find new audiences, “the industry has a unique opportunity to occupy a more meaningful and perennial position in consumers’ lives.”
The Heart Cut makes the most of social media to spread a light-hearted but important message.
For Bell, promoting whisky as a gift for mums on Mother’s Day is the same as promoting whisky as a gift for dads for Father’s Day. It's a marketing strategy that makes perfect sense. “If we think about Father's Day, and all those Father's Day pictures of a son sitting with his father – it's usually a son – drinking a whisky together, it's about that moment together. It's exactly the same with mothers.”
“Whisky is for everyone,” agrees McKenzie Smith. “It’s something we’ve embraced from day one. The whisky world is changing. The brands that recognise that are the ones that will thrive.”
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