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About Us

Full-Service Creative & Marketing

From marketing proposals to product launches and everything between, our team of digital marketing creatives can handle every aspect of your marketing. Read more about the benefits of working with a full-service agency.

Distilling & Drink Knowledge

Karen Locke, founder of High-Proof Creative has written about distilling, and food and drink since 2011. While she has written for publications like GQ, Bon Appétit, and Sip Northwest, her day-to-day has always been spent in creative and marketing agencies in Portland.

Custom Services & Consulting

Ongoing services can ensure the money you invest in a project has returns, but we’re also available for one-time projects as needed. Looking for a service not listed here? Contact us today! We’re the alcohol marketing agency you’ve been looking for!

Meet the High-Proof Creative Team

Karen Locke
Founder, Creative Strategy

Karen is founder of High-Proof Creative, and believes the darker the bar the better. Karen wrote a book about touring Portland’s distilleries.

Cari
Content Strategist

Cari Sánchez-Potter has over sixteen years of marketing, event production, PR, project management and fundraising experience with food and bev, tourism and arts organiza

Olivia T.
Designer

Olivia has a BFA in Illustration from the University of Arizona.When she’s not working with craft beverage clients, you can find her playing video...

Clare G. S.
Content Strategist

As a marketer with a strong writing background, Clare Goggin Sivits has worked in the beer, spirits, and wine industries for nearly a decade.

Sophie L.
Designer

When not creating logos and craft spirits labels, you can find her tasting and rating chicken tenders, crushing 900-page books in a weekend, or...

Cassandra J.
Designer

Cassandra has been designing for more than a decade. She has created for several craft beverage companies from coffee and craft cider to spirits....

Andie R.
Designer & Illustrator

Andie has been designing and art directing for the craft beverage & cannabis industry since 2014. Her interests include cooking, roasting her own coffee,...

Want to join our creative team?

Send us your portfolio now and get the opportunity to work with the best.

Awards, Press & Testimonials

Small-Batch Maps

Discover Our Latest Website Feature

Help Consumers Find Your Products

Created by High-Proof Creative, and Jacob Eastman, Small Batch Maps is a web-based feature for displaying your distillery’s product to potential customers. Your distillery, tasting rooms, and even bars that carry your product can be added to the map.

city with map points

High-Proof Creative News

Creative portfolio ready made templates are ready on one-click.

woman standing in a bar
Founder of High-Proof Creative

About Karen Locke

Karen is author of “High-Proof PDX: A Spirited Guide to Portland’s Craft Distilling Scene” and has been a food and drink writer for nearly 10 years. Karen has been published by GQ magazine, Bon Appétit, Thrillist, Sip Northwest, and more. She has 15 years of marketing agency experience in Portland as a content strategist and project manager, holding senior level positions at companies Staffing Robot and Advanced, Inc. Additional experience includes positions at NIKE, Inc., Left Brain DGA, and Direct Marketing Solutions. She spent time as a bartender, and has even taken whiskey-making classes. Karen joined the Women’s Distillery Guild as a board member in 2018.

Our Timeline

  • 2018 - High-Proof Creative was founded by Karen Locke, longtime drink writer and marketer
  • 2019 - High-Proof Creative builds and launches Small-Batch Maps
  • 2020 - Women in Distilling is founded by High-Proof Creative
  • 2019 - Awarded Best Branding/Design Expert 2019 by readers of Spirited magazine
  • 2019 - Best Website - Gin Farallon from the John Barleycorn Awards
  • 2020 - 1st Place for photography with Polara Studio - Awarded by Vega Awards
  • 2020 - FIRST PLACE - Platinum from Hermes Creative Awards for Interactive Media | Social Media | 136. Instagram
  • 2020 - GOLD from Hermes Creative Awards for Print Media | Design | 52. Packaging/Label - Design by Chad Witzel
  • 2021 - Small-Batch Maps wins Double Platinum from ASCOT Awards by Fred Minnick