eWinery and WineCircle partner to help wineries build wine sales

Wine sales and wine distribution opportunities identified across all channels to facilitate growth

NAPA, CA (PRWEB) 05/20/09 — eWinery Solutions and WineCircle Consulting announced a new partnership to help wineries build wine sales and wine distribution. Wineries can now take advantage of WineCircle Consulting’s success building wine sales in conjunction with eWinery Solutions’ web services and direct-to-consumer marketing tools. This unique partnership offers wineries new, cost-effective strategies and tactics to grow direct sales and channel sales.

Led by Peter Grossman, former Senior Vice President and General Merchandise Manager at Beverages and More! (Bevmo!), WineCircle Consulting provides analytics, product plans, team assessments, and channel sales support for wineries seeking to sell more wine, further extend their brand(s) into retail distribution, and achieve sustainable sales growth.

“Many wineries offer high quality wines but cannot get to first base with retail and wholesale buyers,” explained Grossman. “WineCircle is uniquely positioned to help wineries work within the system and leverage their resources.” WineCircle works closely with clients to identify opportunities and deliver the right product offerings to retail and wholesale buyers.

According to Grossman, even in a down economy, retail buyers are always looking for the right products to replace slow sellers in their stores, and wholesale buyers are looking for products that will be supported at retail. “WineCircle helps wineries understand product mix and pricing strategies that meet these buyers’ criteria.”

eWinery Solutions offers innovative Web Content Management, CRM, eCommerce, Wine Club, and Internet Marketing solutions to wineries and third party marketers. eWinery Solutions attributes their success to hard work, essential insight into the global wine industry, creative web development and marketing techniques, and an adherence to the core values of innovation, passion, excellence, and mutual effort.

“Our focus combines expert wine industry knowledge with leading technology and service providers to help clients meet their business goals,” said eWinery COO, Ron Sharman. “WineCircle Consulting has the experience and expertise to help our clients achieve their channel sales objectives.”

About WineCircle Consulting
WineCircle Consulting is a marketing consultancy that improves wine sales for its clients as it develops product, pricing, distribution, personnel, and outsourcing strategies that achieve sustainable sales growth. The WineCircle Consulting team includes retail sales expert Peter Grossman, channel sales specialist Mike Sullivan, a wide-ranging Advisory Board and a network of marketing, sales, operations, financial and business planning professionals that can be deployed depending on the scope of the project and the needs of the client. For more information, please visit www.winecircleconsulting.com

About eWinery Solutions
eWinery Solutions provides a comprehensive consumer-direct solution for the wine industry. The company’s state-of-the-art ecommerce platform provides all of the tools necessary to help wine retailers sell more wine online. Website content, products and member information can be easily managed from any computer, anywhere, at any time through an easy-to-use online editor. For more information, please visit www.eWinerySolutions.com

eWinery Solutions Contact:
Ron Sharman
Chief Operating Officer
Tel: 707-227-1609
Email: rscharman@ewinerysolutions.com

WineCircle Consulting Contact:
Mike Sullivan
Executive Vice President
Tel: 925-348-9300
Email: msullivan@winecircle.com

In France, Bordeaux wineries respond to economic downturn

One French winery has called the 2008 Bordeaux vintage the “crash of the century instead of the vintage of the century,” according to Michael Apstein’s San Francisco Chronicle article of May 10, 2009. The article goes on to describe how French wine producers in Bordeaux have had to adapt to current market conditions for wine. Many of them have begun setting prices in advance of Robert Parker’s reviews and in some cases cutting prices to half of 2007 prices.

The biggest brands in Bordeaux like Haut-Brion, Lafite Rothchild, Latour, Margaux, and Mouton –Rothschild have cut their 2008 prices dramatically. Ironically, many people think that the 2008 vintage will produce better wine than the 2007 vintage. As a result, retailers and brokers who purchased earlier vintages, including futures not yet delivered, will probably have to reduce their prices on vintages from 2007 and earlier to sell this wine.

These developments could be a blessing or a curse for California wineries. Cheaper French Bordeaux will put California wines under additional price pressure, particularly at the high end, where the French price moves have been most dramatic. The cost to brokers, retailers, and distributors who are long in French Bordeaux will increase frustration around Bordeaux futures and potentially reduce futures purchases. This will create an opportunity for other wine growing regions to sell their products. Brokers, retailers, and distributors can be expected to shop more carefully for wines, looking for great value and attempting to minimize their inventory risks.

The smart wineries, both in California and elsewhere, will respond to this situation with a clearly thought out, logical plan that addresses both their challenges and their opportunities. They will modify the appropriate parts of their sales and marketing strategies, including potentially their brands, their price points, and their “go to market” approach. They will simultaneously address the price compression in the category and the increased willingness of the channel and the consumer to substitute other wines for wines grown in Bordeaux. They will find ways to minimize the risks that buyers perceive in their products. The wineries that do not respond in some way risk further deterioration of their business.

WineCircle Consulting Helps Wineries Break Into Retail Distribution

Walnut Creek, CA (PRWEB) May 5, 2009 — WineCircle, Inc. announced a new program for wineries planning to grow their business. WineCircle Consulting is led by Peter Grossman, former Senior Vice President and General Merchandise Manager at Beverages and More! (Bevmo!). WineCircle Consulting provides analytics, coaching, product plans, and channel sales support for wineries seeking to move cases and extend their brand(s) into retail distribution.

Many wineries offer high quality wines but cannot get to first base with retail and wholesale buyers Having trained and managed buyers and merchandise managers at Bevmo!, and other retail chains, Grossman brings extensive “behind the scenes” management experience and expertise in new product introductions to help WineCircle Consulting clients create actionable plans to sell more cases of wine.

“Many wineries offer high quality wines but cannot get to first base with retail and wholesale buyers,” explained Grossman. “WineCircle is uniquely positioned to help wineries work within the system and leverage their resources to identify voids and opportunities and deliver convincing presentations to retail and wholesale buyers to fill the voids and opportunities with products from their clients.”

According to Grossman, retail buyers are always looking for the right products to replace slow sellers in their stores, and wholesale buyers are looking for products that will be supported at retail. WineCircle helps wineries understand product mix and pricing strategies that meet these buyers’ criteria.

Grossman’s expertise as a consultant includes experience as a senior level executive with deep technical expertise in the wine industry and in product assortment and pricing strategies, inventory management, supply chain, marketing, team building and operations. The WineCircle Consulting team includes channel sales specialist and WineCircle Founder, Mike Sullivan, an eclectic Advisory Board and a network of marketing, sales, operations, financial and business planning professionals which will be deployed depending on the scope of the project and the needs of the client.

WineCircle is committed to delivering results by selling more cases of its clients’ wine while increasing gross profit margins on its clients’ direct to consumer sales. Grossman said, “WineCircle shows growing wineries how to get a foothold in the distribution channel and helps bigger wineries to grow their brand and profits”.

Visit WineCircle Consutling at www.winecircleconsulting.com, e-mail info@winecircleconsulting.com, or call 925-348-9300.