Virginia Wine Board Marketing Presentation Omni Hotel Charlottesville, VA November 7, 2016
Objectives For 2016 2017 (Note these have changed) 1. Build national & regional brand awareness for Virginia wines. 2. Increase Virginia wines on restaurant wine lists & store shelves within VA and within new markets along the East Coast including Washington DC, and the Southeast. 3. Drive visitors to Virginia wineries
Strategic Focus For 2016 Branding Project for VA Wine Industry Enhance trade support for October Virginia Wine Month and Virginia wines in general Continue to build national awareness of VA wines through several programs (Gov. Cup, Wine Summit, PR initiatives Expand VA wines sales along East Coast (trade support programs in DC and Southeast) Update 2011 Economic Development Survey data
Virginia Wine Industry Progress Virginia wine sales up 5.2% in VA for FY2016 Wine sales at VA wineries up 7.3% Sales at ABC stores up 9.9% Surveying wineries for out-of-state wine sales VA Distrib. sales down <1% (.3%) For FY 2016 VA Wine Mktshare was 4.85% If 15% of all wine sales are premium, than VA wine represents 32.3% of premium wine sales in VA VA winery visitation grew 43.7% from 2011 to 2016 based on data from VA tourism at 2.3 million up from 1.6 mil visitors annually.
2016 General Activity Handled over 60 media requests. Coordinated over 50 events to promote Virginia wines Expanded Virginia wine presence regionally and internationally VA Wine Summit (Middleburg, VA) Charleston Wine + Food Festival Epicurience (Loudoun County, VA) Media & trade tastings (London) Euphoria Southern Foodways Alliance Symposium (Oxford, MS) BevCon (Charleston, SC)
2016 October Virginia Wine Month Focus: Goal is to support expanded Virginia wine sales through trade promotions. Marketing: Expanding POS for trade including ABC stores Expanded October VA Wine Month website Encourage VA wineries to promote long term planning for Oct. VA Wine Month promotions. Initiate 3 media Wine Cab tours during the month. Guest Instagram takeovers for @Vawine by industry leaders during October. Initiated It s Just Lunch trade tastings. These are will be small and informal.
2017 Virginia Wine Summit Currently exploring venue locations Have signed a contract with the Boar s Head Inn in Charlottesville Save the date: May 16, 2017 Looking to change the structure Eliminate keynote speaker Make lunch more casual Streamline sessions Evaluate ways to cut costs
2016-2017 Virginia Winery Guide 2017 Printing: 300,000 (gradual reduction) 2016 Inventory 350 Guide Cases 100 Guide Cases 100 Rack Cards Total Cases at Current Case Remaining Printed Start Count Inventory 339,850 971 156 54,600 guides 6,600 66 12 1,200 150,000 1500 735 73,400 2017 Winery Guide outreach is completed 2017 Winery Guide goes to print soon
2016 Virginia Commercial Grape Report Transfer of Project: VCU has taken this project over for Wine Board. Look out for their mailings and please respond.
Governor s Cup Case Top 12 ranked wines were included in the 2016 Governor s Cup Case. $30,000 went toward promoting the 2016 Virginia Governor s Cup wines through public relations. At least 8 national and regional articles have been written to date. For 2017, the VA Wine Board will continue to ship Virginia Governor s Cup cases to top national media. Also, we use the medal list to identify wineries and wines for various promotional opportunities.
2017 Governor s Cup Marketing Planning is underway for 2017 Gov. Cup Gala Gov. Cup Case marketing is ongoing Articles are still being written about what is happening with Virginia wines based on this program
2016 Branding Events Aug. 21-23 BevCon, Charleston, SC Sept. 22-25 Euphoria, Greenville, SC Oct. 13 16 Southern Foodways Symposium, Oxford, MS Oct. 15 Epicurience, Loudoun, VA Nov. 17-20 Fire, Flour & Fork, Richmond, VA
Recent Articles Public Relations Update Ø Wine Spectator, A Snapshot of VA Wines, Jan. 2016 Ø Food & Wine, Virginia Wines and their Classic Region Counterparts, May. 2016, Ø Wine Enthusiast, VA Revolutionaries, June, 2016 Ø New York Magazine, Drink & Dine in VA, July, 2016 Ø USA TODAY 10Best, Vote VA Wine Summit, July. 2016 Ø BuzzFeed, Wine Lovers, We ve Found New Paradise, Sept. 2016 Ø UPROXX, America s Hot New Wine Region, Oct. 2016,
Wine Board Marketing Office New Digs Moving in mid-january New Address: 600 East Main Street Richmond, VA 23219
In Summary Strategic Focus For 2016-2017: Branding Project for VA Wine Industry Enhance trade support for October Virginia Wine Month Continue to build national awareness of VA wines through several programs (Gov. Cup, Wine Summit, PR initiatives Expand VA wines sales along East Coast (trade support programs in DC and Southeast) Update 2011 Economic Development Survey data
Thank you!