2023, Midway: Three Developments that Tell What’s Next for Wine + Data
This weekend we’re turning the calendar page, and getting curious about the second half of 2023.
Here are three developments we’ve been monitoring here at Enolytics whose implications may well steer this community’s, and our industry’s, direction in near- and mid-term.
International Brands’ Appetite for US Wine Data
It’s true that international brands’ ability to sell wine Direct To Consumer (DTC) in the US is limited from a regulatory perspective. But that hardly keeps them from trying, and in some cases succeeding, to crack the nut of the higher-profit-margin of DTC. In the meantime, non-US brands are looking to take advantage of our analysis around their data from the three-tier system, which is available just as readily to businesses headquartered in Bordeaux as it is to businesses headquartered in Napa.
Increased Profile of Data Analysts
You may have seen this article by Nate Westfall, on “The Indispensable Role of Data Analytics in the Wine Industry,” in all of the wine news aggregators this week. I’m biased, obviously, but these sentences ring deeply true: ”Ultimately, the integration of data analytics into the wine industry marks a paradigm shift in how wineries operate and thrive. It’s the catalyst that empowers wineries to optimize their offerings, connect with their audience on a deeper level, and strategically position themselves for sustainable success in an ever-evolving global market.”
What distinguishes Westfall’s commentary is that his is not a lone voice. I’m assessing that by the number of requests we’ve seen lately for new users to access our software, usually from within the accounts of already-existing clients. These new users are also newer hires by the wineries, who are investing in roles that will maximize the increased revenue that is well within reach.
The Future Tense of Premiumization
Chatter about the premiumization of wine, by now, is not new. What’s interesting to me is not to look back at what happened to drive premiumization or even to examine what’s currently trending about it. What’s most interesting to me, and what I’m being asked to address at international conferences this fall, is what I call the future tense of premiumization. “Tell us your moonshot,” I’m advised by conference organizers. “Don’t leave the stage without telling us your look into the future.”
I understand the assignment. I’m looking forward to sharing more with you in the coming months.
On that topic, actually, and many others as we move through the rest of 2023 together.
I am open and alert to your comments and questions. I am also grateful for your ongoing encouragement.
Cathy
PS We’re hanging out the “Gone Fishing” sign after Monday and taking next week off from Enolytics 101. I’ll see you back here on Friday, July 14. Have a safe and enjoyable holiday!