Major advertisers in Chicago and Detroit are popular people. These high-level ad agency and corporate executives get a constant stream of dinner and event invitations from the media. With Prevention, Men’s Health, and a host of healthy active living magazines, Rodale offers some very attractive media to these folks. The challenge is just to keep their names and faces in high profile.

Rodale chose Valentine’s Day as the climax for this ongoing effort. They booked the most acclaimed restaurants — one in Chicago and one in Detroit — for the evening, and worked with the owner/chef of each to create five star menus. For the invitation package, menu design, and gift presentation, they came to Slocum Blatt.

The first year was a monumental success, attended by the crème de la crème of advertisers. For the next year, they encored the event, and challenged us to take the already-high design up another notch. We did. Now in its fourth year, Rodale’s Valentine’s Day dining events have reached almost legendary status.