Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

Global online buying frenzy levelling out

Published: 11 August, 2020

The extraordinary upward curve in online wine and spirit sales appears to be flattening, suggests the latest data from Wine-Searcher.

China’s economic crisis to benefit wine longer-term

Published: 05 August, 2020

The double whammy of an already slowing economy compounded by coronavirus could accelerate consumer demand for reliable and legitimate wine brands in China.

Chinese market remains bullish despite suffering Australian exports

Published: 29 May, 2020

China’s relationship with wine during coronavirus had changed for the better, according to Wine Intelligence, allaying fears that lockdown had had a negative affect on the wine category.

Wine and whisky investment bounce back in China

Published: 15 April, 2020

Global trader BI Fine Wine & Spirits has reported that its volume sales of high-end wine and rare whisky to Asia jumped 25% in March as Chinese buyers returned to the market.

WSET fast-tracks investment for online delivery and digital learning

Published: 14 April, 2020

In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, The Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET) is fast-tracking investment plans to bring forward online delivery of all its qualifications.

Friday Read: Wine ecommerce - learning from China

Published: 06 March, 2020

China has become the world leader in wine ecommerce and there is much we could learn, writes Emilie Steckenborn, founder of the Bottled in China Podcast.

Chinese wine volumes predicted to fall 20% due to coronavirus

Published: 04 March, 2020

The Chinese wine market could contract by 20% or more and many businesses will fail as a result of coronavirus, two industry experts have said.

Friday Read: Hidden in the Shadows

Published: 28 February, 2020

The realisation first occurred in Ho Chi Minh City, after a charming waitress at 'The Garlik' restaurant produced a concise wine list. The restaurant was full of middle-class Vietnamese – and a handful of tourists – most of whom were drinking wine. I observed a similar scenario one week later, at Riedel's bar-cum-restaurant in central Bangkok. The sommelier was proselytising the virtues of white Burgundy – one of the many bottles contained in a wall-mounted enomatic machine - to a young Thai couple. I left the restaurant convinced that due to the media's powerful China obsession, the potential of these cultures to love wine was being grossly underreported.

Diageo slashes 2020 expectations in wake of global volatility linked to coronavirus

Published: 30 January, 2020

Spirits giant Diageo has cut its sales expectations in global markets for the coming year, with the likelihood that the recent viral outbreak in China could further impact sales in 2020.

Randall moves into Australia’s Riverland

Published: 14 January, 2020

The Randall Wine Group (RWG) has acquired its first vineyard in Australia’s Riverland, marking the latest target in a string of acquisitions aimed to fuel its sales in China.

Spirits drive UK exports to China

Published: 10 December, 2019

Sales of UK spirits to China are up 35.5% year-on-year in the first half of 2019, a new report from the Food and Drink Federation has revealed.

Pernod Ricard partnership to bring Baijiu to the international market

Published: 19 November, 2019

Baijiu, China’s most popular and deeply historic spirit, could be making its way to the UK thanks to a new partnership with French giant Pernod Ricard.

Haselgrove eyes growth in China and US

Published: 11 November, 2019

Award-winning McLaren Vale winery Haselgrove Wines is set to expand its international distribution with new hires for the Chinese and US markets.

China fuels Aussie wine export growth

Published: 30 October, 2019

Australia’s wine exports grew 7% by value in the 12 months to 30 September 2019 to AU$2.89bn, Wine Australia has revealed.

Growth slows at Pernod Ricard

Published: 18 October, 2019

Sales growth at global drinks giant Pernod Ricard has slowed, with first-quarter turnover of €2.483bn revealing underlying growth of just 1.3%, in line with expectations.

UK is the world’s third largest ecommerce market for alcohol – but can you name one and two?

Published: 17 October, 2019

The UK has been identified as one of the top countries in the world for sales of alcohol online, with a surprising outcome for the first and second spot.

China’s rules of engagement

Published: 11 September, 2019

With 32 million regular drinkers of imported wine between the ages of 18 and 54, and a potential 398 million untapped, China offers tantalising opportunities for exporters. Jo Gilbert dives in

Why TWE started over in China

Published: 05 September, 2019

Treasury Wine Estates (TWE), the Australian owner of leading brand Penfolds, has shed some light on why it decided to call time on its distributor in China – and why setting up on its own steam has been key to growth in the country.