NEW ZEALAND AND FRANCE SET THEIR SITES

Prepare for a wine blitzing! Both New Zealand and France are planning major marketing pushes in the US to promote their countries’ wines. The New Zealand government will spend NZ$1.2 million (US$816,OOO) to help the country’s top wineries grow their presence in the US. The funding, to be spread over two years, will focus on New Zealand’s top wines. The marketing initiative brings together 58 wines from 21 of the country’s most notable wineries. New Zealand wine exports have risen to $1 billion annually, from $1OO million ten years ago. The industry’s goal is to reach $2 billion in exports by 2O2O. Alongside the US funding, the government will help to develop a wine strategy for the emerging Chinese market. Additionally, there will be major wine promotions both at home and abroad around the Rugby World Cup, which takes place in New Zealand next year. New Zealand has faced wine oversupply problems in the past 18 months, which has led to bulk wine being sold off at rock bottom prices and fears that the country might lose its premium positioning in key markets.
Meanwhile, Wines of France is preparing to launch a campaign to promote French wines in the US. Under the tagline: “We stand for quality, the right wine anytime”, Wines of France has recruited Master of Wine Sheri Sauter Morano to spearhead its US-wide marketing campaign, which will include national and regional promotions on French wine, an e-learning program via the wines-france.us website, sampling, and seminars for distributors. Wines of France will focus on the seven markets that account for more than half of total US imported wine consumption: Massachusetts, New York, California, Washington, DC metro, Texas, Illinois, and Florida.