2022年葡萄酒业科技采用情况报告（英）

TheStateofTechnologyAdoptionintheWineIndustry2022EditionV0222

|1每日免费获取报告1、每日微信群内分享7+最新重磅报告；2、每日分享当日华尔街日报、金融时报；3、每周分享经济学人4、行研报告均为公开版，权利归原作者所有，起点财经仅分发做内部学习。扫一扫二维码关注公号回复：研究报告加入“起点财经”微信群。。||PAGE12TableofContents2Winery3&Overview 4OverviewofIndustry5Trends 7Production&DTC&Retail 15WholesaleSales&Distribution 20&Analytics 25Summary&Key29References 30Appendix 31IntroductionTheworldhaschangedinsignificantwayssinceourlastStateofTechnologyreportforwineriesin2020—mostareasoftheU.S.areopenforbusinessandtravel,Americansaretakingtripsagain,andlifehappensoutsidethevirtualworldatleastsomeofthetime.Ontheotherhand,manychallengesremain.Thelastingeffectsoftheglobalpandemichavecausedasupplychaincrisisliketheworldhasneverseen.Inthewineindustryspecifically,distributorconsolidationcontinuestoputpressureonsmallerproducersforcedtooperatewithinthethree-tiersystem,andcompetitionwithotheralcoholmarketslikespiritsandbeer—nottomentionnewersegmentslikeready-to-drink(RTD)cocktailsandlow-andno-alcoholbeverages—haveforcedproducerstothinkcreativelyabouttheindustry’sfuture.Additionally,thecontinuedmanifestationsofclimatechangeforvineyards—fromrisingtemperaturestodroughtsandwildfires—meansgrowinggrapeshasneverbeentrickier.Inotherwords,ittakesalotforawinetogofromgrapetoglassthesedays,andwinerieshavebeensearchingforsolutionsthatmakeiteasiertomanagetheprocess.

Foryears,winebusinesseshaveslowlyinchedtowardfulltechnologyadoption,butthere’sstillalotofworktobedone,asthisyear’sreportwillDespitethechallenges,ourresearchuncoveredadramaticallyimprovedattitudeamongwineownersandexecutives.ThisalignswithSiliconValleyBank’smostrecentdata,whichshows2021wasagreatyearforwinesales,andsomewineriesevencalledittheirbestyearTheseindicatorssuggestmanyinthewineindustryhaveapositiveoutlook,butpositivitywon’tkeepyourbusinessafloat.Quickthinkingandinformeddecision-makingcanoftenbethedifferencebetweenafailingbusinessandasuccessfulone,andwe’vefoundthatacompany’sattitudetowardandadoptionoftechnologycanbeamajorfactor.Havingaccesstokeydatahelpswinebusinessesknowwhatthenextrightmoveisinthiscompetitiveenvironment.Inthisyear’sStateofTechnologyreport,wereviewtheresultsofourlatestanalysisofU.S.winebusinessesandtheirself-reportedadoptionoftechnologytodemonstratethebiggestareasofopportunityforwineriesin2022andduction&inventory

fromgrapetoglasstothebottomlinemore

ofwineriesusespreadsheetsforproduction&inventoryvineyard46%spreadsheets41%nosystem

production&drygoods40%spreadsheets13%nosystem7%homegrown

QA/QC50%ETSLaboratories23%ScottLaboratories21%nosystem15%entartis

casegoodsinventory45%spreadsheets11%nosystem5%QuickBooksDTC&nosystem44%nosystem44%

wineclub

63%POS63%21%VinoShipper18%WineDirect34%Square20%WineDirect14%Orderport17%WineDirect&5%80%ofwineriesQuickBooksaccountingsystemspreadsheetsbusinessmgmtsystemsales5%80%ofwineriesQuickBooksaccountingsystemspreadsheetsbusinessmgmtsystemsales&QuickBooksCRMspreadsheets12%14%32%42%53%42%53%45%QuickBooksDesktopQuickBooksOnlineQuickBooksDesktopQuickBooksOnlineBothBoth

47% nosystem$&OverviewEkossentanonlinesurveytoover12,000winemakersandoperatorsfromU.S.wineriesduringthefirsttwoweeksofDecember2021.Ofthetotalnumberofrespondents,371tookthesurvey.Thesizeofthebusinesseswasmeasuredbyannualproductionvolume(seechart),whichrangedfrom50to4,000,000casesperMostrespondentswereownersorgeneralmanagers,withadditionalrolesncungpoducto,salemaretn,operato,andnancadstrati.AsthissurveywasfocusedonU.S.wineries,mostrespondentswerebasedinCalifornia,Oregon,orWashingtonstate,thoughup-and-comingwinestateslikeNewYork,Texas,andVirginiaalsohadasignificantrepresentationinoursample.Theoverwhelmingmajority

(76%)ofwineriesweheardfromproduceonlywine,butsomesellfoodinarestaurantorproduceadditionalproductslikebeer,cider,mead,oroliveoil.Inadditiontothesurvey,Ekosconductedphoneinterviewswithfivewineriestogainadditionalcontextandunderstandingabouttheirbusinessoperations.ThosewinerieswespoketofellinthesmallandmediumproductionrangesandwerelocatedinCalifornia,Washington,Oregon,Virginia,andConnecticut.SeetheAppendixforrespondentoverviewcharts.Allstatisticsinthisreportcomefromourownresearchunlessotherwisenotedandcited.OverviewInthisyear’ssurvey,weaskedwineriesthesamequestionweaskedin2020aboutsalesexpectations—luckily,thiswegotadifferentresponse.Unsurprisingly,lessthanhalfofwineriesweheardfromin2020expectedsalestoincreaseovertheupcomingmonths.WiththeuncertaintyofCOVIDstillhanginginthenooneknewwhatwouldcomenext.Butattheendofbusinesseswerefeelingmuchmoreoptimistic.79%expectedsalestoincrease,andonly2%expectedthemtodecrease—downdramaticallyfromthe27%thatexpecteddecreasedsalesin2020.

Aswementionedintheintroduction,theseoptimisticattitudesjivewithactualindustryperformanceoverthelastwinesalesincreasedmorethan10%in2021comparedtoanddirect-to-consumershipmentsimprovedyear-over-year.2WhenSiliconBank(SVB)askedtheirsurveyrespondentstoreflectonhowtheirbusinessesperformedinnearly30%ofwineriessaid2021wastheirbestyearNeedlesstothatwasn’tapopularresponsetheyearbefore.IntheNext12Months,HowDoYouExpectYourSalestoChange?2020Increase

49%23%49%23%19%27%2%Industryin20212020.SameDecreasethingsarelookingright?ThetruthisthatthewineindustrywasfacingmajorheadwindslongbeforetheCOVID-19pandemicbegan,andthosehavenotdisappeared.Whenwespoketowinebusinessownersandmanagersabouttheirpredictionsforthenextfewyears,therewasamixtureofhopefulnessandworry.Thesewerethetoptrendsontheirminds:Supplychaincrisisandothereconomicconcerns:Wineriesareworriedabouttherisingcostofmakingwineduetopriceincreasesonmaterialsandshippingcomparedtotheirabilitytoeffectivelyraisewinepricesforcustomers.Plus,somewineriescan’tevengetthematerialstheyneedinregardlessofcost.Distributorconsolidation:Acommonpredictionamongrespondentswascontinuedconsolidationofbothwinesuppliersanddistributors.Distributorconsolidationmakesitmoredifficultforproducerstogetashareoftheirdistributors’time,effort,andshelfspace.Climatechange:fruitqualityandavailabilitytowaterscarcity,wineriesareconcernedaboutcontinuedchangesforgrowersandhowthatwillaffecttheamountandqualityofwineproduced.Changingconsumerdemographics:Wineriesareseeingmorewinedrinkersamongtheyoungergenerations(GenerationZandmillennials)andpredictingtheseconsumerswilllookforuniqueexperiencesratherthanthebestqualitywine.Thepushintodigital:Respondentssawbothdigitalmarketinganddigitalsaleschannelsbecomingmoreimportantinthecomingyears,largelydrivenbyayoungerdemographic.Growthandexpansion:Manywineriesareexpectingseriousgrowthoverthecomingyears,particularlyoutsideofthetraditionalwine-producingstatesofCalifornia,Washington,andOregon.Somerespondentsalsomentionednewproductshardseltzerorciderdrivingadditionalrevenuefortheirbusinesses.

TheWineIndustry’sFive-OutlookQuotesfromWineryOwners&Managersareseeinganincreaseinyoungergenerationofwinedrinkers.Ibelievethesefuturewineloverswilllookforfunandfriendlyexperiencesandenvironmentslearnaboutanddrinkwine.Theseconsumerswilldrivethedemandforwinerieswineaccessible,affordable,andlessintimidatingpurchaseand“Ithinkthesupplychainshortageofbottleswillbethebiggestfactoranddrivethepriceup.Ialsothinkthecostofinsurancetocompaniesinhighriskwildfirezoneswillstartclosingdoors.”“Peoplearediscoveringandenjoyingwineproducedoutsideofthelargeproducing(CA,OR).AZandTXwillgetbettertractionandrecognitiononanational“Distributorconsolidationmakesithardintroducenew&interestingproductsorevenkeepupwiththecurrentlevelsofdistribution.”“Thewineindustryhasalwaysbeenbasedonvineyardsandthatwillcontinue,butasclimatesintraditionalregionschange,newvarietieswillemergethatarebetterparticularweatherpatternsandnewregionswillemergethatwerepreviouslytoocoolforpremiumwineproduction.”askedwineriestoreflectontheiroveralltechnologyuseasabusinessandthemselvesagradefromAtoOnaverage,thewinerieswesurveyedgavethemselvesaB-grade—thesameresultwereceivedinAswedugdeeperintothedataandinterviewedwinerieswhotooktheitbecameclearthatwineriesarestillstrugglingtoadoptsoftwaretomanageoperations.Andevenwhentheythefront-of-houseandback-of-housesystemsareoftencompletelysiloedfromonemakingitdifficulttogetacompletepictureofhowthebusinessisTechAdoptionGrade

Whenwebreakdownthegradesbytheroleofthepersonthem,itturnsoutthatthoseinproductiongavethelowestscores.Thismakessensewiththerestofourdata—whilesomesortofsoftwaresolutionisfairlystandardinsales,andoperationsdepartments,spreadsheetsstilldominatethemanagementofthebefore-bottlingphase.Butimportanttokeepintherepercussionsofthissoftwaregapontherestofthebusiness—withoutaccuratelytrackingproductionprocesses,nearlyimpossibletoforecastdrygoodsneedsormakeinformedproductionplansfromyeartoyouhaveagoodideaofthecostthatgoesintoeachandsetting bottlepricesbeashotinthedark.n=284A(fulltechnologyBCDF(notechnology

14%6%2%

B-36%

Whenitcomestowinerylargerwineriesweretheleasttogradethemselvesanintechnologyuse.It’sworthconsideringthattheselargerbusinessesmayhaveadifferentperspectiveonwhat“fulltechnologyadoption”means(comparedtosmallerAsawinebusinessitsoperations—andthereforeitstechnologyneedsbecomemorecomplex.Moresaleschannels,expenses,andinvestmentsourcesmeanthatlargerorganizationsneedmoredata,andtheyneeditinrealIt’sclearthatlargewineriesinoursamplearedesperateforamoreconnecteddigitalecosystemthatempowersthemtomakedata-drivendecisions,buttherealityisthatfewwinerieshavethisecosysteminplace.TechnologyWineriesCan’tLiveWithoutn=Answers19%19%18%19%19%18%17%POSComputerQuickBooksCellPhone

22%Whenaskedwhattechnologytheywithout,wineriesgaveussomeprettyobviousanswers.Thetopfiveresponseswerespreadsheets,POS(point-of-salesystems),QuickBooks,andcellphone.Spreadsheetsweremostfrequentlymentionedbyextra-smallandsmallwineries5,000casesofproductionperwhichmakessensewiththetechnologyjourneywetypicallyseebeveragebusinessesWhencompaniestendtorelyoncobbled-togethermanualsolutionsspreadsheetsandevenhandwrittennotes.astheyscale,theydiscoverthesearenolongersufficientandupgradetoatleastsomeautomatedsystems.Forlargerwineries,softwaresolutionswerementionedmorefrequently—productionsoftware,CRM,inventorysoftware,andevenanalyticssolutionsMicrosoftBI.eventheselargercompaniesstillmentionedspreadsheetsasoneoftheirtoptechnologysolutionsandmanyreportedusingnosystematIt’sclearthatmanywineriesareofonlythemostbasictechnologysolutionsfortheirbusinesses(computers,cellphones,ratherthanlookingforadvancedsoftwaresolutionsthatcanthemmoreusefulinsights.Thiscontrastswithourresearchoncraftbreweriesandcideries,whichtendtogradethemselveshigherontechnologyadoptionandleveragesoftwaremoreofteninallareasofthebusiness.

Althoughwinebusinessesareusingtechnologyinsomeways,severalmajorgapsandinefficienciesstillexist:Spreadsheetsreignsupreme,introducingtheriskofhumanerrorandslowingdownanyimportantdecision-making(forexample,accuratelycalculatingtheCostofGoodsSoldormakingproductqualityornewpackagingdecisionsisalaboriousprocess).Analyticsarelimited.Withdisconnectedsystems,itisdifficultandcumbersometodigoutinsightfulinformation.Forexample,iftheinventoryandproductionmanagementsystemdoesn’tconnecttoPOSoraccountingsoftware,compilingimportantfinancialreportsandbusinessanalyticscanbecompletelymanual.Productqualityisatrisk.Whenyoukeeptrackofhistoricalproductionrecordsandlabdata,youcannotidentifywherethingswentwrongorwhereyoumadeanimprovement.Iftheserecordsarekeptinnotebooksratherthanlocatingtheinformationyouneedtakesfartoomuchtimetobepractical.3EfficiencyinWineryAsreflectedinthegradeswineriesgivethemselves,technologyadoptionisnotan“all-or-nothing”process.Therearevariouslevelsofsoftwareusedependingonabusiness’sdistributionmodel,andgoals.outlinedafewwaystoimproveefficiencyoftechuseinyourwinerydependingonwhereyouareIfexclusivelyusingwhiteboards,notebooks,andspreadsheets…Usethesectionsofthisreporttobrainstormwhereyourorganizationcouldfindthemostbenefitfromswitchingtoatechsolution.Oneofthebestplacestostartisinventorymanagement,astrackinginventoryefficientlyinspreadsheetsisnearlyimpossible.Ifyourgoalistofollowinginventorybestpracticesisnon-negotiable.Ifusingtechnologythat’sneverupdatedandlivesonyourcomputersratherthaninthecloud…It’stimetostepintothe21stcentury.Formanyyears,legacywinerymanagementsystemscouldonlybepurchasedandinstalledontoyour

hardware,andgettingupgradesoradditionallicenseswasprohibitivelyexpensive.Thesedays,youcanfindcloud-basedsolutionsthatallowyourteamtoaccesssoftwarefromanywhere(thevineyard,thethetastingroom,orevenyourhome)sothatworkcanbedoneinplacesbesidesthebackoffice.Ifhappywithyoursystemsbutwanttogetmoreoutofthem…Integrate,integrate,integrate.Whenthesoftwaresystemsyouuseconnectedtooneanother,ensuringdataintegrityamongallsystemsisamanualprocess.Withintegrations,thesemanualcheckscanoftenbecompletelyeliminated,withthesoftwaresimplyalertingyouwhenadiscrepancy.Withthetimeyou’llsave,youcandiveintotheactualnumberstogleaninsightsonproductionandsalesthatmakearealdifferenceinyourbottom&VineyardManagementWhenitcomestovineyardmanagement,spreadsheetsandmanualmethodsdominatedovertheuseofsoftware.80%ofwinerieswesurveyedreportedusingsoftware”orspreadsheetstomanagetheirvineyardoperations.Thissuggeststhatthemajorityofvineyardsaretrackinginformationaboutvineyardblocksandwinelotsinnotebooksorinscattered,disconnectedspreadsheets.Inaworldfilledwithmoderntechnology,surprisingthatvineyardsarestilltrackingvineyarddatasoOursurveyfoundthatsmallerwineriesweremorethanlargerwineriestorelyonspreadsheetsormanualmethods.wefoundthateventhosewineriesusingsoftwaretotrackvineyarddatawereoftenusingthemincombinationwithspreadsheets.

VineyardManagementSoftwareSpreadsheetsNoSoftware40AgCodeSpreadsheetsNoSoftware40AgCode5.7%Innovint5.7%AMS5.1%Other4.7%

46.0%.9%InventoryManagementProduction&DryGoodsInventorymanagementisvitalforalcoholproducers,yetwestillseemanywineriestryingtokeeptrackofitwithoutsoftware.seemoresoftwareuseinthiscategorythaninvineyardmanagement,butspreadsheetsandmanualmethodsarestillusedbythemajorityofwinerieswesurveyed.Intotal,ofwineriesreportedusingadedicatedsoftwaresolutiontotrackproductionanddrygoods,whileacombined53%useeitherspreadsheetsormanualmethods.Production&DryGoods13.5%8.2%7.4%13.5%8.2%7.4%5.3%4.1%2.5%2.0%1.2%7.4%

CaseGoodsn=250SpreadsheetsNosoftwareQuickBooksAMSVintraceOrderportWMDBWineDirectOrionFulfillmentSquare

44.8%SpreadsheetsNosoftwareHomegrownSystemVintraceWMDBAMSOrionQuickBooksOrderportVinNOWOther

OtherCaseGoodssawsimilarnumbersforthemanagementofcasegoodsinventory.Therewasanearlyevensplitbetweenthosethatusespreadsheets(45%)andthosethatusesoftwarewithreportingtheyuseeitherofthese.Puttingtheexactnumbersaside,it’sclearthatmanywineriesarerelyingonpaperrecordsandspreadsheetstokeeptrackofthemostimportantinformationintheirbusiness.Whataretheimplicationsofthat?Ifyouhavetherightsystemsinplace,vitalinformation—harvestintakeandfermentationdata—canbelostforeverwhenakeyteammemberleavesthe11.2%11.2%4.8%4.8%3.2%2.8%2.8%2.0%1.2%1.2%1.2%11.6%productionusesaandofgetsrecordedbeablebeusedagain.HereIamtryingplanforAprilandIgowinerypicturesinordergetdata,insteadofhavingacentralsystemwhereitallgets-FounderofCAwineryproducingcasesperyear“Imanageeverythinginspreadsheets.IfIhadaweb-basedsystemwhereIcaninputeverything,haveittiedtooursalessystemthatwoulddoallthecalculationsitwouldsavemealotoftime.Therearealotofstepswhereerrorcanplacewhenyoudoinspreadsheets-whichmeansIamoftenoffon-GMatwineryproducing10,000casesperyearorganization.Ifyourwinemakerusesnotebookstotrackcellardataovertheyearsandsuddenlyresignsorislethowcanyouensurethathistoricaldataremainswith“Imanageeverythinginspreadsheets.IfIhadaweb-basedsystemwhereIcaninputeverything,haveittiedtooursalessystemthatwoulddoallthecalculationsitwouldsavemealotoftime.Therearealotofstepswhereerrorcanplacewhenyoudoinspreadsheets-whichmeansIamoftenoffon-GMatwineryproducing10,000casesperyearWhenitcomestocasegoodsinventory,alackofaccuracyinthisareacanmakeorbreakyoursalesdepartment.It’shardtoknowwhatcanbeallocatedtodifferentsaleschannels—tastingroom,distribution,etc.—ifyouhaveup-to-dateinventorynumbersatanygivenmoment.alwaysrecommendwineriesuseinventoryandproductionmanagementsoftwareratherthanpaperlogsorspreadsheets.Softwareiseasierformultipleteammemberstoupdateastheyworkindifferentareasofthewinery.Havingonecentral,connectedsystemmeansthatdrygoodsinventoryneedscanbepredictedbasedonplannedproductionandbottling.Casegoodsinventoryisdepletedinthesystemasit’sallocatedorsold,preventingover-orunder-sellingofinventory.

WhyCaseGoodsinQuickBooksOfalltheinventorysoftwarementionedformanagingcasegoods,QuickBookswasthemostseemanyproducersmanagingtheirinventoryinQuickBooksbeforetheytransitiontotrueinventorysoftware,andtherearemanyreasonswhybusinesseseventuallymaketheswitch.QuickBooksisn’tmadeforinventorymanagement.Despitewhatyourpenny-pinchingindustryfriendsmightQuickBooksisnotaninventorymanagementsystem.It’sanaccountingsystem(andagoodItwasn’tbuilttomanageinventory,soitscapabilitiesinthatarenaarelimited.TheproblemsgetworseasyouAsyouscale,yourwinery’sdatastorageneedsforinventoryinformationandQuickBookswasonlymeanttohandlealimitedamountofthatdata.asyourbusinessbecomesmorecomplicated,thelackofrobustinventorymanagementfeatureshurtmuchandyoumayleanonspreadsheetstointhegaps.UsingmultipleprogramstomanageinventorymeansmoredataentryandmorechancesforLimitedreportingcapabilitiesmakeithardtogetinsightsAgain,andwecannotsaythisenough,QuickBooksisnotbuiltforinventorymanagement—whichmeansyouhavefewoptionswhenitcomestocustomizingreportsandfindingtheinformationyouneed.ifusingspreadsheetsforsomeofyourdata,thereportsinQuickBookswillneverbecomplete.WinerySuccessStorySheltonVineyardswasfoundedin1999byCharlieandEdShelton,twobrotherslookingtocreateastaplewithinthemodernwineindustry.AsoneofthefirstwineriesinNorthCarolina,thevineyardhasmadeanameforitselfinNorthCarolina’sYadkinValleyandcurrentlyproducesabout20,000casesofwinepertrackinventory,production,day-to-daylabanalysis,harvestdata,andotheraspectsofthewineproductionprocess,theSheltonVineyardsteamreliedheavilyonmanualspreadsheets.Thismadeittime-consumingtoconnectthecoststoinventory,andtheteamneededasolutionthatwouldseamlesslytieeverythingtogethertotaketheirbusinesstothenextlevel.SinceadoptingEkosasitsinventorymanagementsoftware,SheltonVineyardshascreatedamorestreamlinedprocessformanaginginventory,trackingproduction,andunderstandingtheassociatedcosting.Insteadofrelyingonspreadsheetsrequiringmanualupdatesorseveraltoolstotrackeverythingseparately,eachmemberoftheteamhasvisibilityintowhat’sgoingonatanygiventime.AnotherwayEkoshashelpedtoimprovevisibilityisthroughitsabilitytomanagepurchaseordersandinventoryreceipts.Whenevertheteammakesapurchaseandaddsittothesystem,allthenecessarypartiesarenotifiedviaanemailnotificationratherthanrelyingonapaperorderthatwaspreviouslypassedaroundfromdepartmenttodepartment.UsingSheltonVineyardshasbeenabletocontrolitsinventoryatthemostgranularlevel,helpingtheteamtakeamorestrategicapproachtodeterminethecostperbottle.gladwejumpedinwhenwethatwayIgotagoodhandleonsaidEthanBrown,alreadystartingtoaccumulatedataforcostsovertimeandgoingtocontinuetolookat“Ekoshasustrackofin,goeswine,subtractsfromeverythingneed—EthanBrown,|13||PAGE31QA/QCSystemsWhenweaskedwinerieswhatsystemsandlabstheyusetogatherwinequalitydata,wefoundthatmostbusinesseswereusingmorethanone.ETSLaboratorieswasthemostlikelytobeusedexclusively,buteventhenonly20%usedETSalone.Manyotherswereusingacombinationofdifferentsourcestotestthequalityoftheirwinesonaregularbasis.Inourwhoistestingyourwineislessimportantthanwhatyoudowiththatdata.Winerieswespoketomentionedthedesiretogobackone,three,orevensevenyearsinthepasttolookatthequalityofdifferentwines

overtime.Ifyoustorethisinformationinacentralsystem(forexample,thesamesystemyouusetomanageproductionandinventory),howwillyoutrackthosenumbersAretheyburiedinyouremailorsavedinalong-forgottenfolderonyourcomputerdesktop?Theabilitytolookbackwardatqualitydataandcomparetopastsalesnumberscanhelpyouidentifyproblemsthatmayotherwisebeoverlooked.Particularlyifyourwineryusesmultiplelabsovertheyears,trackingdowntheresultsforeachvintageorblendmaybesotime-consumingthatit’snotevenworthit.23%21%15%9%7%QCstes&23%21%15%9%7%n=234ETSLaboratories 50%ScottLabsNoneEnartisVinquiryAntonPaarTankNetFOSS7%In-houselab7%Wineadds3%BakerLabs2%CoreLabs1%&DatafromBankshowsthatthepercentageofsalescomingfromchannelstastingrooms,orders,andwineclubsremainedsteadycomparedtoandthevalueofshipmentsspecificallyexceededeverymonthlybenchmark.Whilesomeexpectedtoslowdownaslockdownscametoanendintheitturnsoutthattheconsumerappetiteforhavingwineshippedtotheirdoorhasremainedevenaftertastingroomsreopened.Ecommercewinesalesprovedevenmorethanpredictedinindicatingthatthedemandforecommerce

optionsgoinganywhere.Duringthepeakofconsumersshoppedoutofnecessity.alearnedwhatdoesthatmeanforIfyouwanttomeetwinewheretheyare(andwhyyouneedtobesellingyourwineinsomecapacity.Thishelpincreaseyourreachoutsideofthetastingmatchconsumerdemand,andprotectyourbusiness.Ifthepandemichastaughtusanything,thatyoucanneverbetoopreparedforasuddenchangeintheglobalInvestinginavarietyofsaleschannels,ratherthanputtingallyoureggsinonebasket,canhelppreventthechaosmanywineriesfeltinEcommercen=225VinoShipperWineDirectNoecommercesystemSquareOrderportCommerce7

9.3%6.7%

21.3%19.6%

HowWineriesCanThriveWithOnlineSalesCreatingathriving,digital-firstprogrambutitrocketsciencehowtogetstartedorampupyourefforts.VinespringShopifyXudleHomegrownsystemVinSuiteWixVinNOWActive8WooCommerceAMSeCellarBloomGrapegearsKreckSquarespaceOther

4.0%3.6%2.7%2.2%1.8%1.8%1.3%1.3%1.3%7.1%Choosetherightecommerceandwineclubsoftware.Obviously,youneedanonlinestoretosellyourwineonline.ButifyourwineclubisstillstuckintheStoneAge,youneedamodernprogramthatcanhandlethat,too.Prioritizesoftwarethatwillhelpyougiveyourcustomersapersonalized,effortlessshoppingexperience.shouldalsochooseasolutionthatconnectstoothertoosus,eretorpouconmanagement,accounting,andcompliancesystems.Dedicateatleastonestaffmembertodigitalendeavors.SVBestimatesthatnearly50%ofwinerieshaveanyonelookingatconsumerdata.makesmartdecisionsaboutwhototargetandyouneedtoknowyourcustomersbetter.Diggingintothedataandextractingvaluableinsightstakessoinvestinyourgrowthbyfindinganexperiencedprofessionaltofocusonthistask.Decideonyourmarketingstrategiesanddocumentyourplan.WritingoutyourplanisaWhenitcomestowhatsystemswineriesareusingtoselltheirproductsthevendorsthatcameupmostfrequentlywerenosurprise.Butjustmentionedinothersectionsofthisreport,lessimportanttoknowwhichecommerceplatformwineriesareusingthantoknowhowusingexpectcustomerstosimplystumbleuponyourstore,thoughthatwouldbeneedacomprehensivemarketingandsalesstrategythattakesintoaccounteveryaspectofyourbusinessandhelpsdirectnewandexistingcustomerstopurchaseyourwine

vitalfirststepincreatingamarketingstrategy,yetsofewbusinessestakethetimetodoit.Makeaspecificplanforbothexistingandnewcustomers.Andsinceacquiringnewcustomerstakesmoreeffort,andusethedatainyourCRMorecommerceplatformtohelpyoudecidewhatsegmentstogoafter.Forexistingcustomers,useyoursubscriptionorclubprogramtonurturethoserelationshipsandkeepcustomerscomingback.“I“Iknewweneededusesimplifyandcreateefficienciesusreachmorepeople&offerqualitycustomerservice.withourandIamasoIlookforsystemswillmeright&-Co-owneratWAwineryproducing4,000casesperyearForwineriesthathavethem,wineclubscanbeamajorsalesOverthelasttwoyears,wineclubhasbeenthesecondlargestsaleschannelafterthetastingroomasapercentageofoverallsalesaccordingtoSVB.Thatmeansit’svitaltofindwaystogrowyourclubinboththeshortandlongterm.BabyBoomershavehistoricallybeenthedominantagegroupparticipatinginwineclubs,butthatbalancehasbeguntoshift.In2020andSVBfoundthatBabyBoomersandthenextyoungestgeneration(GenXers)arenowneck-and-neckforthetopagegroupparticipatinginwineclubs.Inyearspast,BabyBoomerswereaheadbyalargemargin.Additionally,millennialsincreasedtheirparticipationtoadegreesimilartothepercentagebywhichBoomerparticipationdecreased.WhilemillennialsstillhaveawaystogobeforetheirwineclubadoptionrivalsBoomers,signsofthechangearehardtoignoreWiththatsaid,alreadytalkedabouttheimportanceofmeetingconsumerswheretheyare(inotherwords,WineClubSoftware14%13%n=12414%13%VinoShipper11%Commerce7VinoShipper11%Commerce78%MailChimp6%VinNOW6%Vinespring6%XudleVinSuite5%4%AMS2%Gsuite2%Square2%Active82%Bloom2%eCellar2%Grapegears2%Other11%

18%

andtherearestillwineriesmanagingtheirwineclubswithouttheuseofdedicatedwineclubsoftware.ofwinerieswesurveyedsaidtheywereusingspreadsheetstomanagetheirwineclubs.Needlesstothisisbothbadforthebusinessandpooruserexperienceforclubmembers.Manyconsumersnowexpectamodern,digitalwineclubthatgivesthemmorecontrolovertheirshipments—ifusingspreadsheets,probablynotdeliveringthatexperience.Furthermore,COVIDhashighlightedtheneedtofindnewwaystogetwineclubsign-ups.Whentastingroomvisitsaredisrupted,doyouhaveanotherwaytoattractnewmembers?Ifyoutransitiontoadigitalwineclubsystem,youcanusedigitalmarketingtodirectpeopletosignupwithoutthemevervisitingyourtastingroomorhavingtocallyou.Fortraditionalists,thismightseemacoldwayofdoingbusiness.Butformillennialsandotheryoungerdrinkers,it’sthekindofcontrolthey’vecometoexpectoverthepurchasingprocess.ShippingComplianceForwineriesthatrelyonasamajorsourceofthestruggletoincomplianceinthestatestheytoisreal.spokewithonewinerythathastosubmitseparatetaxdocumentsfor37state