Wine Business and Engineering – Wine Network Consulting

WINE BUSINESS

Wine Network offers a range of services in wine industry strategic business planning and advice, financial modeling, technical due diligence and asset appraisal. Our consulting team has had many years of experience in a range of industry positions and working with many clients in Australia and beyond. It brings a unique insight to the factors which drive the wine business.

We have developed modelling techniques that illustrate the dynamics of vineyard establishment, operation and performance. These allow a financial assessment of prospective vineyard projects including investment required, cash flow and profitability forecasts. Similarly, the effects of management options can be modelled and their feasibility assessed.

At the other end of the value added chain, we can assess the effects of different price positioning strategies and analyse different market channel options. We can test the effects of changing scale and varying the distribution mix. Using our expertise and modelling tools, we can assist clients find their optimum marketing strategy.

In the production area, we have developed equipment schedules and construction budgets for a range of winery sizes. We have good general data on winemaking costs and can help predict the costs of production for a range of scenarios. Putting together all these components of the wine value chain, we can help participants get a better understanding of the industry and the place of their business in that industry.

In the areas of mergers and acquisitions, Wine Network Consulting brings a strong technical and practical understanding to the due diligence process. We can assess management systems and advise prospective investors on the quality of assets and fitness for purpose.

In recent times we have also assisted financial institutions in their appraisal of wine assets, including plant, equipment and inventory.

Wine businesses are notoriously hungry for working capital. One of their main assets is their inventory and increasingly they seek to use this as security for their funding requirements. We can provide an in-depth appraisal of the quality of inventory and the management resources to maintain it in good order. We will report on prevailing market conditions and the likely realisable value of the inventory in the event it needs to be liquidated.

For existing vineyard, winery and wine business operations we can conduct reviews and audits of workplaces, systems and procedures and make recommendations on business and operational improvement. The range of reviews we have undertaken include product quality; Occupational Health & Safety; Logistics; Standard Operating Procedures; Vineyard and Winery operations; sales and marketing; and environmental practices.

VINEYARD/WINERY MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS

Investment in vineyard and winery assets is almost always expensive, so it is critical to get it right the first time. The supply chain can be layered, complex and time-consuming so one of the first matters to consider is what type of assets will best suit the investment aims and other considerations, such as family location. The team at WNC can help investors work through the criteria to make the process more efficient in the short term and add the most value in the long run by spending time only on the most appropriate assets.

DUE DILIGENCE

There is a lot at stake with high cost, long-term investments such as wine assets so careful due diligence is critical. WNC can help assess the current status of opportunities in the wine business, plus highlight the risks and mitigation options. The best value investments are often those which need to be taken in new directions and WNC can develop costed business plans such as redeveloping wineries or vineyards, restructuring operations, or modernising routes to market.

INDEPENDENT ADVICE AND REPORTING

Our team is very experienced in the preparation of independent reports for many wine industry businesses and organisations. These include:

Legal dispute advice and expert evidence
Insurance claims and loss adjustment
Independent industry reports
Business valuations
Technical seminars and presentations

We have a long history of independent work in the wine industry including court appearances and many depositions on behalf of clients, that have assisted them in dispute solution. Wine Network Consulting’s Director and Principal Consultant, Gary Baldwin, spent four years at the Australian Wine Research Institute and is a prominent advisor to the industry.

MARKETING

It is Marketing that has the greatest potential to impact the profitability of a wine business. Best practice vineyard management and state-of-the-art winemaking may create great wine, but the rewards in brand reputation, sales, and profit margins will depend on how well the Marketing is planned and executed. A good marketing strategy is even more imperative in the current market surplus. Wine Network Consulting and its associates can offer a full range of wine-specific marketing advice, drawing on their hands-on experience in the domestic and international markets.

The specific marketing services available are:

Assessment of market opportunity;
Evaluation of product offer, fit to market opportunity, & strength of brand proposition;
Design of market research for brand awareness, brand positioning, wine packaging, new products;
Route to market alternatives;
Marketing plans;
Export marketing;
Brand and channel management strategies;
Marketing diagnostics or audits;
Wine tourism potential;
Cellardoor performance options.

All of these services are tailored to the challenges and specific circumstances of the client. Wine Network Consulting does not rely on standardised formulas or pre-packaged solutions.

RECRUITMENT

The Wine Network is just that – an extensive network of wine industry connections that matches the right person with the right job.

Collectively, the Wine Network Consulting team has many years experience across a broad range of industry sectors. We understand the technical demands of modern grape growing and winemaking. Individually, and as a group, we have worked with many wine businesses and have the confidence and acquaintance of a wide range of industry personnel. As a result, we are regularly approached by wine people to assist them in discreetly finding more suitable positions and wine businesses, more suitable staff.

When a client wants to find the most suitable person to fill a winemaking or vineyard management position we will often be asked to assist. Sometimes the best person is immediately at hand and we can quickly make the connection for our client. At other times, the demands of the vacant position necessitate a more aggressive search for the most suitable candidate.

We will assist employers in preparing a job specification and advise on a suitable remuneration package. We will recommend a recruiting strategy and will arrange the design and placement of job advertisements. If the client prefers, we will more proactively “head-hunt” prospective candidates. This could be discreet, the client remaining anonymous or, if preferred, the client’s identity could be obvious from the outset.

We will receive applications; assess them; do preliminary interviews; check references and prepare a shortlist with recommendations for the client. As required, we will arrange itineraries for short-listed candidates to travel to interviews with the client and will participate in these. Less commonly, we will negotiate the remuneration package with the candidate on the client’s behalf.

This service is provided on the basis of a success fee that is generally an agreed proportion of the negotiated salary package. We advertise positions when they are available, but file Jobseeker details for up to 6 months from receipt. Letters of interest should outline specific skills and job requirements and must be accompanied by an up-to-date curriculum vitae.