The Bon Vivants

What The Bon Vivants does

The Bon Vivants is a San Francisco-based cocktail, hospitality, marketing, and design firm founded in 2009 by Josh Harris. Its core business is a spirits marketing and trade advocacy agency that contracts and employs a national network of Bon Vivants Attachés — respected members of local cocktail markets — to deliver peer-to-peer brand ambassador programs, national competitions, brand collateral, and tailored launch events for quality spirits brands built on strong production stories. The agency's stated clients span spirits majors such as Diageo, Heaven Hill Brands, Remy Martin, Woodford Reserve, Gentleman Jack, and Don Julio, alongside non-spirits brand work for Google, Pinterest, Williams Sonoma, and Ken Fulk.

The firm operates a separate hospitality division, BVHospitality, which owns and operates three San Francisco cocktail bars: Trick Dog (3010 20th Street, opened 2013), Bon Voyage! (584 Valencia St., opened October 2018, disco/Palm Springs theme), and the recently opened Quik Dog. Trick Dog has been named to the World's 50 Best Bars list for six consecutive years (2014-2019), was a three-time James Beard Foundation Award finalist for Outstanding Bar Program, won two Tales of the Cocktail Spirited Awards for World's Best Cocktail Menu and one for Best American Bar Team, was named Cocktail Bar of the Year by Nightclub & Bar Media Group in 2017, and is the only Bay Area venue with a three-star San Francisco Chronicle review. BVHospitality also runs hospitality consulting projects for hotels and restaurants of varying sizes.

Revenue is generated through three professional services streams: trade advocacy agency engagements for spirits brands, hospitality consulting for hotels and restaurants, and food and beverage sales from the three owned cocktail bars. The company runs the annual Pig & Punch philanthropic event series across five U.S. cities (San Francisco, Los Angeles, Portland, Miami, New Orleans), which has raised $639,854.38 for KIPP chapters and youth development nonprofits, and funds The Bon Vivants Scholarship through ScholarMatch with a $150,000 minimum five-year commitment. The firm took its first disclosed external capital in a $600,000 round on 2024-06-21.

Name

The Bon Vivants

Legal name

The Bon Vivants

Website

https://bonvivants.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Bon Vivants is a San Francisco spirits marketing and trade advocacy agency founded in 2009 by Josh Harris, operating a national Attaché network for spirits brands and owning three cocktail bars (Trick Dog, Bon Voyage!, Quik Dog) through its BVHospitality division.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Spirits Marketing & Hospitality Services

NAICS

Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) (7224)

SIC

Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)

akta.pro primary industry

Spirits/Cocktail Bars Operated by Producers (THAFALAJ)

akta.pro secondary industry

Bar & Beverage Catering (Mobile Bar, Bartending) (HSACAGAF)

Keywords

• Spirits marketing agency
• Trade advocacy programs
• Cocktail bar operations
• Hospitality consulting
• Brand ambassador services

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Trade Advocacy Agency Services: Brand ambassador-driven trade advocacy programs and trade campaign creation for spirits brands, including national competitions, POS collateral, and brand launch events. The company contracts and employs Bon Vivants Attachés in cities across America for these services.
2. Hospitality Consulting: Consulting projects for hotels and restaurants, large and small, tailored to individual client needs.
3. Cocktail Bar Operations: Operating owned cocktail bars (Trick Dog, Bon Voyage!, Quik Dog) generating revenue through food and beverage sales.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Spirits marketing and trade advocacy agency that develops brand ambassador programs, trade marketing activations, and brand strategy work for spirits brands. The company also owns and operates cocktail bars through the BVHospitality umbrella and provides hospitality consulting services to hotels, restaurants, and beverage alcohol clients. Philanthropic programs such as Pig & Punch events and The Bon Vivants Scholarship extend the firm's industry engagement.

Product overview

The Bon Vivants operates as a spirits marketing and trade advocacy agency with an affiliated hospitality division (BVHospitality) that owns multiple cocktail bar brands. The core agency business (The Bon Vivants, founded 2009) provides brand ambassador-driven trade advocacy programs for spirits brands. The hospitality arm includes Trick Dog (neighborhood cocktail bar), Bon Voyage! (disco-themed cocktail bar opened 2018), and Quik Dog (newest venture). Additional offerings include Pig & Punch philanthropic events and The Bon Vivants Scholarship in partnership with ScholarMatch. The company also provides hospitality consulting services for hotels and restaurants.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Trick Dog: Award-winning cocktail bar located at 3010 20th Street, SF, CA 94110. Open 7 days 3pm-2am. Named to World's 50 Best Bars list 2014-2019, James Beard Foundation Award Finalist, received three-star review from San Francisco Chronicle.
• Bon Voyage!
• Quik Dog
• Pig & Punch

Products and services

• Trade Advocacy Programs
• Hospitality Consulting
• Trick Dog
• Bon Voyage!
• Quik Dog
• BVHospitality

Quantifiable outcome

• $639,854.38 raised for KIPP chapters, charter schools, and youth development programs across 5 cities
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers29 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ScholarMatchcoreOthersThe Bon Vivants Scholarship is a partnership with ScholarMatch, a nonprofit that supports low-income students with costs beyond tuition. Bon Vivants committed a minimum of $150,000 over five years to fully support five students, one added each year, for the entirety of their college experience. Funds cover housing deposits, textbooks, personal or family emergencies, and activity fees. The partnership includes ongoing mentorship and connection with each student throughout their college career.
• KIPP (Knowledge Is Power Program)minorOthersPig & Punch events raise money for local KIPP chapters, charter schools, and youth development programs in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Portland, Miami, and New Orleans.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Others

• Imbibe Magazine: Trade media publication covering cocktails, spirits, and bar culture. Bon Vivants' Pig & Punch has been featured in Imbibe; serves as industry media/advertising channel rather than direct competitor.
• Tales of the Cocktail Foundation: Industry nonprofit that runs the annual Tales of the Cocktail convention and the Spirited Awards — an awards body where Bon Vivants' Trick Dog has won multiple times. Industry ecosystem participant rather than a direct competitor.

Direct peers

• Proof Strategies: Canadian communications and public relations agency focused on alcohol beverage clients. Direct competitor in the spirits/wine/beer trade communications space that Bon Vivants operates in.
• Sopexa: Paris-based global marketing and communications agency dedicated to wine, spirits, and food/beverage brands. Direct competitor on Bon Vivants' trade advocacy and spirits brand marketing services.
• Manifest: Boutique PR and marketing agency focused on spirits, wine, and lifestyle brands. Direct competitor for brand positioning, PR, and trade advocacy work with spirits clients.
• AvroKO: Hospitality design and consulting firm that designs cocktail bars and restaurant concepts for hotels and operators worldwide. Comparable to the BVHospitality consulting and bar-concept design practice.
• Death & Co: Award-winning cocktail bar group (NYC, LA, Denver, Washington DC) with an in-house book publishing arm and consulting services. Most direct US comparison for a multi-location, acclaimed cocktail bar operator with brand extension.
• Employees Only: Internationally recognized speakeasy-style cocktail bar that has expanded into multiple cities and operates a hospitality training/consulting arm. Comparable to Bon Vivants' combination of acclaimed bars with a broader brand.

Emerging players

• ReserveBar: Premium spirits e-commerce platform that works with brand ambassadors and premium brand partners on curated retail programs. Adjacent to Bon Vivants' advocacy work with premium spirits brands like Remy Martin and Woodford Reserve.

Broad incumbents

• MKTG: Global experiential marketing agency (Dentsu-owned) that runs brand ambassador programs for major alcohol and lifestyle brands. A larger, broader incumbent that competes for the same spirits trade advocacy budgets as Bon Vivants.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses3 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/pig_n_punch
• Xx.com/bonvivants_sf
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-bon-vivants

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Bon Vivants