Wine Business Solutions, LLC

A colleague of mine had a similar experience this week - a cargo ship from France with a container of wine was delayed in the San Francisco Bay for about one extra week, during an extreme heat wave. The container was delivered to the San Francisco warehouse yesterday, and the wine was noticeably warm, although the container had been insulated. My understanding is that the chassis shortage is one of the main causes, and the truckers are showing up predawn in hopes of pulling containers on a given day. I hope they can get the problems worked out soon! 

The Australia Wine Export market is booming, especially in Asia, but this article offers some insights on the US and European markets, as well.

http://www.winesandvines.com/template.cfm?section=news&content=147966

Different businesses see different outcomes with the West Coast Port situation...hopefully the new agreement will be ratified at the end of March.  One of my clients has a container due in to Oakland on the 29th...I am looking forward to seeing everything getting back on track!  Another client was thinking about bringing a container in through Houston, increasing the costs tremendously, and increasing the risks of temperature damage.  I understand some of the businesses that were hardest hit were California nut and citrus producers who lost full containers of product during the slow-downs.  I am hoping for the best with the progress at the ports, as the California economy is large and strong enough to support the importers, the farmers, and the Port workers.

A new book of special wines - of quality, interest, packaging and stories to share in new markets, and a new collection of "Specialty" Distributors who are looking for these new wines. 

http://beveragetradenetwork.com/en/btn-academy/how-to-get-your-craft-spirits-and-craft-beers-into-specialty-distributor-portfolios--377.htm

Contacts: Wade Gates, PMA, (415) 591-4080, pmanews@bm.com

Craig Merrilees, ILWU, (415) 775-0533, ext. 113 (o), (510) 774-5325 (c)


PMA and ILWU Continue Talks on a New Labor Agreement as the Existing Contract Expires

SAN FRANCISCO (July 1, 2014) – Negotiations for a new labor contract covering nearly 20,000

dockworkers at 29 West Coast ports will continue to move forward as the existing, six-year coast-wide

labor agreement expires today at 5 p.m. PST.

While there will be no contract extension, cargo will keep moving, and normal operations will continue

at the ports until an agreement can be reached between the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) and the

International Longshore & Warehouse Union (ILWU).

Both sides understand the strategic importance of the ports to the local, regional and US economies,

and are mindful of the need to finalize a new coast-wide contract as soon as possible to ensure

continuing confidence in the West Coast ports and avoid any disruption to the jobs and commerce they

support.

The coast-wide labor contract is between employers who operate port terminals and shipping lines

represented by the PMA and dockworkers represented by the ILWU. The parties have negotiated a West

Coast collective bargaining agreement since the 1930s.

# # #

http://beveragetradenetwork.com/en/article-base/overcoming-the-top-11-objections-from-beverage-retailers-in-your-sales-meeting--356.htm

Some good advice - my take-away: do your homework, be ready to support your product.  Do what you say you are going to do to!

http://winecurmudgeon.com/big-wine-tightened-its-grip-on-the-u-s-market-in-2013/

Blogger, "The Wine Curmudgeon" has written this interesting article about the market and the dominance of the big guys.  

When the giant wine companies control  92% of the wine in the US, it is no wonder that a boutique producer of 10,000 cases of wine in Provence, or Alto Adige, or La Mancha struggles in their efforts to find an importer to champion their brand or to compete in the US marketplace.


More and more small producers are finding that there are ways to find their way onto the tables of the many consumers who are searching for the very wines these artisan producers are making.  This article underscores the need for creative alternatives to the traditional "3-Tier System".

I.am happy to announce that Lauren Seth has joined the Wine Business Solutions, LLC team. Lauren earned her degree from California Polytechnic University in Communications and is heading up our new Wine Broker Support office. Lauren brings her enthusiasm, curiosity, and patience to provide professional and careful attention to our clients and their customers alike. Welcome Lauren!