Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

International Sherry Week and Copa Jerez align for autumn celebration

Published: 20 April, 2021

International Sherry Week will this year coincide with the biannual food and wine focused Copa Jerez competition during November.

Spirits vs Wine: Rolling with the times

Published: 12 April, 2021

Definitive figures from Kantar show just how much shopping habits changed in 2020, with spirits overtaking wine in baskets for the first time and online reaching hitherto unmatched heights, as Jo Gilbert discovers.

Spirits overtake wine in shopping baskets

Published: 01 April, 2021

Spirits reached a major milestone in 2020, overtaking wine to become the largest category in terms of penetration in the off-trade for the first time in at least five years.

Hallgarten evolves online ordering with new app

Published: 25 March, 2021

Hallgarten & Novum Wines has evolved its online ordering with the launch of a new customer ordering app.

Online BWS sales hold strong

Published: 10 March, 2021

Online beer, wines and spirits (BWS) sales held strong in February, rising by 64.7% year-on-year, according to IMRG Capgemini Online Retail Index.

Hedonism moves online with subscription service

Published: 01 March, 2021

Hedonism, the fine wines and spirit boutique in London’s Mayfair, has launched its first subscription-based service called Case Study by Hedonism.

Churchill’s launches digital first Port.Club for ‘Port curious’

Published: 07 December, 2020

Port lovers and the ‘Port curious’ are being targeted by Churchill’s Port in a new direct-to-consumer initiative, described as the first of its kind.

Ecommerce alcohol sales soar

Published: 30 November, 2020

Sales of alcohol through ecommerce are set to increase by 42% this year to reach US$24bn across 10 core markets, according to new research from IWSR Drinks Market Analysis.

Naked Wines appoints chief financial officer

Published: 17 November, 2020

Naked Wines has appointed Shawn Tabak as its new chief financial officer (CFO).

Retailers ‘cautiously optimistic’ about festive shopping season

Published: 12 November, 2020

Retailers are feeling “cautiously optimistic” about the festive shopping season, despite uncertainty around physical store openings and holiday sales patterns, according to Capgemini research released today.

Tring Winery packs a postable punch

Published: 03 November, 2020

Alex Taylor and Jamie Smith of Urban Craft Wines at Tring Winery are sending innovation out the door, as Andrew Catchpole reports

‘Shop out to help out’ scheme needed for small retailers

Published: 02 November, 2020

Extra help is needed to support small, independent retailers through a second lockdown, including a ‘Shop out to help out’ scheme and a cashflow windfall, it has been suggested.

Indigo founder Ben Henshaw unveils new delivery platform

Published: 28 October, 2020

Indigo Wines director Ben Henshaw has unveiled a new wine delivery platform promising to bring accessible modern fine wines to UK households.

Medium and smaller brands take lead over private label

Published: 21 October, 2020

Private label sales are down across almost all European countries, with mid-sized brands and smaller companies performing best.

Supermarket BWS sales up 17%

Published: 13 October, 2020

Sales of beer, wine and spirits (BWS) through supermarkets increased 17% in the four weeks to 3 October, meaning the category remained the fastest growing, according to new Nielsen research.

Bordeaux takes trade briefing online

Published: 06 October, 2020

Bordeaux Wines UK has become the latest marketing body to move its activities online.

New Zealand tastings go virtual

Published: 05 October, 2020

New Zealand Winegrowers (NZW) is to move its annual London and Dublin January tastings online.

31 Days of German Riesling winners bring ingenuity to the fore

Published: 09 September, 2020

This year’s winners of the annual 31 Days of German Riesling competition has put a spotlight on just how much businesses have adapted during the pandemic, using often imaginative ways to bring German Riesling to a wider audience.

Jerry Lockspeiser: What happens next?

Published: 26 August, 2020

One of the many reasons people like working in the wine trade is the sense of common bond. Trade outsiders may doubt how friendly people who are direct competitors can really be. But they often are. People can’t help liking and respecting each other. The bonhomie that wine engenders helps, as does admiration for the labour, love, and sheer dedication of those who make the stuff. From producers to distributors, retailers, and communicators, an unstated feeling of shared mission is in the air. Now, too, the trenches spirit that comes with having backs against the wall.

Graft bolsters Australia and South African portfolios as it gears up for digital tasting

Published: 24 August, 2020

Graft Wine, last year’s merger of Red Squirrel and The Knotted Vine, is gearing up for a bumper month of activity in September, with two Southern Hemisphere additions joining the company as it takes its autumn tasting online.