Getting down to business at London 2013

London 2013 takes place at the Royal Albert Hall on September 24 and offers a completely new way of buying and sourcing wine. Here's how it all works...

Naked Wines looks to further growth

With operations in the UK, US and Australia, Naked Wines' Rowan Gormley and Eamon Fitzgerald look at further growth with Richard Siddle

Barwell & Jones: Keeping things pure and simple

With the traditional agency model under threat, Barwell & Jones is expanding its wine-only portfolio, as Laura Heywood reports

Q&A: Jamie Walker, commercial director, EWG

Laura Heywood meets the distributor's commercial director to hear about the company's plans for the future

Spirits distributor Marblehead announces new appointments

Spirits distributor Marblehead has promoted Emma Wykes to the newly created role of commercial director.

Speed dating with the suppliers

Hoping to court some new indie customers is Liberty Wines with a quick-fire Q&A round.

New hire at Percy Fox as Diageo looks to build on-trade wine sales

Diageo has appointed Matt Bream as category development manager of its Percy Fox & Co wine business.

Diageo has appointed Matt Bream as category development manager of its Percy Fox & Co wine business.

Bream will work to identify opportunities and barriers that shoppers face when purchasing wine in all channels with an aim of adding value into the category.

He joins from Greene King, where he completed his 13-year stint with a role in category marketing, and will report into Percy Fox head of customer marketing Jonathan Owen.

"We are delighted to welcome Matt on board. He has a wealth of experience in the alcohol industry and specifically within the on-trade market, which will be fundamental to drive our plans for the category.

"Volume growth within the wine category remains static with most value growth the result of price inflation.

"We have spent the last 12-18 months re-assessing the market and the challenges that it faces. With Matt's help we aim to use shopper and market research to drive category growth into all channels, by working directly with our customers on a number of bespoke initiatives," Owen said.

Q&A: Andrew Bewes, managing director of Hallgarten Druitt

Richard Siddle talks to the Hallgarten chief about its recent senior management shake-up and what it means for the future of the business

Speed dating with the suppliers

Can PLB convince you it's got what it takes to be your ideal match? Simon Brook, head of PLB's specialist division, explains why he's committed to the independent sector.

Sales up as PLB sets sight on indies and on-trade

Wine importer PLB Group has reported a double-digit rise in sales after increasing its distribution and selling a greater range of products to existing customers.

Wine importer PLB Group has reported a double-digit rise in sales after increasing its distribution and selling a greater range of products to existing customers.

Sales were up from £121.9m to £141.7m in the year to 31 August 2012, according to results filed at Companies House. Pre-tax profits fell by 20.8% from £605,672 to £479,751 after administrative expenses rose from £7.5 million to £8.1 million.

"The growth has been achieved despite a relatively flag market and has been due to increasing the distribution of its products and building on the range and sales of products to existing customers," finance director Simon Fredericks said.

Attracting and retaining major branded wine suppilers would continue to be a focus for the company as it looks to develop sales in the convenience and on trade sectors, he added.

Last week PLB announced five appointments to its specialist division, which is focused on the independent and UK on-trades sectors.

What can suppliers learn from the demise of Thierry's?

Thierry's was one of several wine businesses to fall foul of the tough economic climate last year. Elinor Zuke takes a look at what went wrong for the wine agency and how suppliers can learn from its collapse

Maxxium boosts on-trade training team

Maxxium UK has appointed two trainers to its spirits and cocktails training scheme - Mixxit.

Speed dating with the suppliers

Ehrmanns is committed to serving the needs of the independent sector and could be just the supplier you're looking for. Find out in this quickfire Q&A round with Mark Motley, director of Ehrmanns Independent Selection.

Ooberstock secures £600k funding to grow business

Online Amazon-style wholesaler Ooberstock has secured £600,000 in a second round of fundraising to take the business to the next level of growth.

Bancroft Wines lines up newcomers for annual tasting

Bancroft Wines is claiming to hold its "most comprehensive portfolio tasting ever" on February 5 in London.

Christmas sales bonanza for Virgin Wines

Virgin Wines has sold more wine this week than ever before - shipping over 31,500 cases to households around the UK.

Kingsland Wine closes Stratford's headquarters

FE Barber, which trades as Kingsland Wine & Spirits and Legacy Wines, is to close Stratford's Wine Agencies Cookham office following its purchase of the firm back in September.

Coe Vintners keen to boost wine reputation

Coe Vintners is aiming to become as well known for wine as it is for spirits, according to the group's commercial director Nick Gillett.

Speed dating with the suppliers

Hoping to woo some new indie customers is Patriarche Wine Agencies with a quick-fire Q&A round.

First Drinks ramps up on-trade investment

First Drinks is strengthening its on-trade presence with a major investment to boost staff as well as develop a new merchandising strategy.